Welcome to RoboFab

RoboFab is a Python library with objects that deal with data usually associated with fonts and type design. RoboFab reads and writes UFO font files and works in any Python 2.3 (and 2.2.1), 2.4. 2.5. The RoboFab code for FontLab works in in FontLab 4.6, FontLab Studio 5 and up.

RoboFab is available as a couple of relatively easy to install packages. If you're just starting with RoboFab, or you just want to make UFO's, this is the place to start.

For developers and folks who like to keep their fingers on the pulse of digital type, there is trac and svn service. The svn version will be more up to date and might contain new features. But you have to know how to checkout stuff from svn.

This site

• Download RoboFab: download options and installers.
• RoboFab Getting Started: simple stuff
• Glossary: index of words and terminology.
• How To: A couple of cases and examples
• Links: Relevant links for RoboFab, Font tools and editors.
• Objects: Overview of the objects, their methods and attributes
• Step by step: An overview of step by step explanations of common procedures and objects.
• RoboFab Tools: overview of the tools and miscellaneous code.
• UFO: About the UFO tools

Object Model

Here is a handy map of the RoboFab objects.

The Developers

RoboFab is developed and maintained by Tal Leming, Erik van Blokland, Just van Rossum (in no particular order)

Contact

Email the RoboFab Consortium at
i n f o (at) r o b o f a b (dot) o r g

Copyrights

This package is distributed under the BSD license. See the license. RoboFab is built in Python. Parts of RoboFab use fontTools, an OpenSource font toolkit by Just van Rossum. Parts of the RoboFab library are built to work with code from FontLab, which is a product of Pyrus Inc. Parts of RoboFab implement the Property List file format in XML, copyright Apple Computer. Parts of RoboFab implement tables and names from PostScript and the OpenType FDK, copyright Adobe.