Scanahand 7: © 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All Rights Reserved

Scanahand 7
© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Scanahand Manual
All rights reserved. No parts of this work may be reproduced in any form or by any means - graphic, electronic, or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or information storage and retrieval systems - without the
written permission of the publisher.
Scanahand is a trademark of High-Logic.

Microsoft, Windows and OpenType are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the
United States and/or other countries.
Apple, the Apple Logo and Macintosh are registered trademarks and TrueType is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.
registered in the United States and other countries.
Adobe and PostScript are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated which may be registered in certain jurisdictions.
All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the sole property of their respective owners.
The Unicode Character Database is provided as is by Unicode, Inc.
While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this document, the publisher and the author assume no
responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of information contained in this document
or from the use of programs and source code that may accompany it. In no event shall the publisher and the author
be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damage caused or alleged to have been caused directly or
indirectly by this document.
May 2020
Contents I
Table of Contents
Part I Getting Started

1 Welcome
...................................................................................................................................
to Scanahand 7 2
2 What's ...................................................................................................................................
New in Scanahand 7 2
3 Technical
...................................................................................................................................
Support 3
4 Registration
................................................................................................................................... 3
5 Credits................................................................................................................................... 4
Part II Quick Start Tutorial

1 Your First
...................................................................................................................................
Font 6
Part III The User Interface

1 Overview
................................................................................................................................... 14
2 Font Setup
................................................................................................................................... 15
3 Adjust...................................................................................................................................
Metrics 17
4 Add Kerning
................................................................................................................................... 17
5 Template
...................................................................................................................................
Editor 18
Template Editor
.......................................................................................................................................................... 18
Positioning .......................................................................................................................................................... 19
6 Customizing
...................................................................................................................................
Scanahand 20
Keyboard Shortcuts
.......................................................................................................................................................... 20
Options .......................................................................................................................................................... 21
General ......................................................................................................................................................... 21
Template ......................................................................................................................................................... 22
Rebrand ......................................................................................................................................................... 24
Personalize......................................................................................................................................................... 24
Sample Text
......................................................................................................................................................... 26
Warnings ......................................................................................................................................................... 27
Index 29
I
Part
I
2 Scanahand Help
1 Getting Started
1.1 Welcome to Scanahand 7
Introduction
Scanahand allows you to generate a font without the need to know all of the
technical details involved. All you need is a printer, a scanner, and a black marker or
felt-tipped pen. It is also possible to use Scanahand without using a printer and
scanner, but then you'll have to draw characters through image processing software.
Key features
• Personalize your correspondence by creating a font in your actual handwriting
• Develop a distinctive look for your home and business communications
• Use your own handwriting on letters, greeting cards, and scrapbook projects
Make sure you have the latest version of Scanahand:
https://www.high-logic.com/
1.2 What's New in Scanahand 7
New features in this version of Scanahand include:

• New automatic kerning feature
• New generate template based on font
• Custom logo, title, and subtitle (premium edition only)
• Improved high DPI support
• Several enhancements and improvements
Scanahand is available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions.
A complete list of current and previous changes can be found online:
https://www.high-logic.com/font-generator/scanahand/changelog

Getting Started 3
1.3 Technical Support
Online User Manual

The user manual is also available online:
https://www.high-logic.com/scanahand/manual7/
Forum
The forum is available to you for support and information about managing and
designing fonts. This forum has become a place where all users of Scanahand can
share their knowledge. Membership of the forum is free. There's a good chance
other people have asked the same questions as you, so you may be able to find the
answers you need. Feedback and suggestions are also welcome in the forum.
https://forum.high-logic.com/
Frequently Asked Questions

View the most frequently asked questions (and answers) about Scanahand here:
https://www.high-logic.com/font-generator/scanahand/faq
1.4 Registration
Evaluation
During the trial period, Scanahand runs in reduced functionality mode. After using
Scanahand for a 30-day trial period, you must register and pay for it, or remove it
from your system. Registering unlocks all functionality for the specific edition and
makes your copy legal. It also helps support our efforts to develop innovative
products to best serve your needs. Thank you for your support of Scanahand!
Why Register?
When you buy a license of Scanahand 7 it entitles you to the following benefits:
· All future versions of Scanahand 7.x.

· Direct e-mail support from the developers.

4 Scanahand Help
Standard Edition versus Premium Edition

The Premium Edition incorporates all features available in the standard edition and
also includes several advanced features. The Premium Edition allows you to generate
fonts based on the Signature and Symbol templates and to set the font style.
Scanahand allows you to make your own templates. For each template you can
define your own character set (for example with Czech or Greek characters), so it
allows you to create multilingual fonts. The template editor is available in both
editions, but you need the premium edition in order to generate a font based on a
custom template.
To Register
The quickest and most convenient way to register is online via credit card. Other
payment methods are also supported. For more details take a look at our order
page:
https://www.high-logic.com/buy-now
1.5 Credits
Scanahand contains several unmodified libraries that are available under the MPL.
• Virtual Treeview from http://soft-gems.net/;

• Graphics32 from http://www.graphics32.org/

Part
II
6 Scanahand Help
2 Quick Start Tutorial

2.1 Your First Font
Scanahand is software that generates a font out of your handwriting. To be more
precise, it allows you to print out a template (one or more pages with a grid). After
you've filled out the template, you scan it back into Scanahand, which will then
convert all characters into a font that can be used on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.
This short introduction explains how to generate a font with Scanahand. Besides a
computer running Microsoft Windows you will need a printer, a scanner, and a black
marker or felt-tipped pen.
Step 1 - Print and fill out the empty template

We will use the Basic Character Set template to create a font. By default the Basic
and Extended Characters template is selected, so make sure you activate the Basic
Character Set template. To print the empty template, just click the Print button. A
Print Setup dialog will pop-up. Most likely the correct printer is already selected, so
just press the OK button.

Quick Start Tutorial 7
Take the printed template from the printer, and fill it out. Use a suitable pen (e.g. a
black permanent marker of fine or medium thickness) to draw the characters the way
that you normally write. The output of ballpoint pens will be too thin to give a
satisfactory result. Make sure you draw your characters into the designated cells and
ensure you don't touch the grid lines while drawing the characters.
Note: Only characters that are written down on the template are added to the font,
so if you only need a few characters, then only write those down.
All cells (except the signature cell) contain horizontal guidelines (actually four little
marks on both left and right side of each cell) that should help you write the
characters in the right dimensions, and in the best possible position in each cell.
These guidelines, represent Ascender, x-Height, Baseline, and Descender. The image
below illustrates how to get the best results (first row) and what you should avoid
(second row).

8 Scanahand Help
In the first row the characters are drawn with the recommended size and position. As
you can see, most characters are placed on the baseline. The small letter "g" goes
below the baseline. Capital letters and digits have the same size. Be sure not to draw
your characters as shown in the second row. The capital letter "A" is positioned on
the descender, the small letter "a" is too large, the small letter "e" has exaggerated
connecting strokes, the small letter "f" is too small, the small letter "g" goes outside
the cell, small letter "s" is drawn with a large-tip marker, and digit "8" is too small.
To aid in filling out the characters at the right position you can print out a guideline
underlay. Place this below your empty template so guidelines shine through the
paper. You can print the guideline underlay through the File menu.
Step 2 - Scan in the completed template

When you've drawn all characters you want to include in your font, click on the
"Completed Template" icon on the left.
Put the template page as straight as possible on the scanner bed. Use your scanner
software to scan the template and then click the Load button to retrieve the
completed template. Alternatively click the Scan button so Scanahand can scan and
retrieve the completed template. A Scan Setup dialog is shown. Ensure the correct
scanner is selected.
A 600 dpi scan resolution is recommended as this usually results in character

outlines with more details, but 300 dpi will be faster and may be sufficient for some
fonts.

Click on the "Rotate 180 Degrees" toolbar button if you accidentally placed the
filled-in template into the scanner, upside-down.
Step 3 - Generate and install the font

Click on the "Font" icon on the left, and then press the Generate button.
On the Font Setup dialog, fill in the Name field. The Name field is very important, as
that name will appear as the font name in all applications. Don't change the
advanced settings, as those are set to recommended values. Press the OK button.

10 Scanahand Help
During the font generation process, Scanahand detects the template, and places the
characters into your font. Upon completion, you instantly get to preview your
finished font. Just type some text to see how it looks. Also include the caret
character ^ and you'll see your signature.
If you want to add kerning to your font, just click the Add Kerning button.

Finally click the Install button to make the font available to all applications (Microsoft
Word, etc.) on your computer.

Part
III
14 Scanahand Help
3 The User Interface

3.1 Overview
The default layout of Scanahand will look like the image below.
Empty Template
On the Empty Template selection box, you can select a template. You can use the
Template Editor to define your own custom templates.

The User Interface 15
The most common task is to print the template, but you can also press the Save As
button to store the template as an image. Then you can edit your template with your
favorite image editing software. This is great for people who don't have a scanner or
printer, but it is also a pleasant way to draw your characters if you have a Tablet PC.
Completed Template
When you've drawn all characters you want to include in your font, put the template
as straight as possible on the scanner bed and press the Scan button. Select your
scanner and scan the template.
Alternatively, use the load button to add one or more completed template files.
Click on the "Rotate 180 Degrees" toolbar button if you accidentally placed the
filled-in template into the scanner, upside-down.
Font
To initiate the font generation process, press the Generate button to open the Font
Setup dialog.
During the font generation process, Scanahand detects the template, and places the
characters into your font. Upon completion, you instantly get to preview your
finished font.
Click the Install button to make the font available to all applications (Microsoft Word,
etc.) on your computer.
3.2 Font Setup

Fill in the Name field. The Name field is very important, as that name will appear as
the font name in all applications.

16 Scanahand Help
The font style allows you to set the proper fields inside the font. Please note however
that this setting will not convert your template into a bold or italic font! To make a
bold font just use a thicker pen.
Scanahand needs to find out what pixels belong to the characters. The threshold
value is used to make that decision. Usually the Auto value gives best results, but
you can also choose between Low, Medium, and High. The Low threshold removes
all light colored pixels, while the High threshold includes all light colored pixels.
When you use the High threshold you get slightly fatter characters, but you risk
inclusion of unwanted pixels.
Based on the filter value, Scanahand will add or remove additional pixels to improve
the generated contours. Both the Smooth and Super filter polish the outlines. This
usually results in more rounded contours.
Recommended values for the conversion settings are Auto threshold, and Smooth
filter.
Tip: You can set other font related information through the Personalize tab on the
Options dialog.

3.3 Adjust Metrics

The Adjust Metrics feature allows you to find the best optical space before and after
each Latin based character. The process takes a lot of time to complete, so
fortunately a preview allows you to see the approximate end result of the process.
You can easily repeat this process if you feel the font has become too tight or too
loose.
3.4 Add Kerning

Kerning is the reducing/increasing of the space allocated between two glyphs to
make them fit more comfortably. Sometimes you want the side-bearings to be
different in special situations. For example the A and the V could be closer (AV)
together than TV.
Scanahand allows you to generate kerning pairs for all Latin characters. Click the Add
Kerning button to start the auto kern process.

18 Scanahand Help
The auto kern process uses some options from Adjust Metrics, so you might want to
regenerate kerning if you redid Adjust Metrics.
3.5 Template Editor

3.5.1 Template Editor
Use the Template Editor to define your own custom templates. This allows you to
decide which characters to include in a template.
To create a custom template, click the Add button. Then you can give the new
template a name, set the size of the grid, and specify characters you want to include.

If you don't know how to type a specific character, you can add the corresponding
code point value through the Code Points tab. More information about characters
and their codes can be found here: http://www.unicode.org/charts/
To create a template based on another font, click the Font Based button and select
the specific font file.
The Export button allows you to store a template in a single file. This allows you to
share your custom templates. The import feature allows you to make use of
templates made by other users. We have collected several custom made templates,
that you can download from here:
https://www.high-logic.com/font-generator/scanahand/custom-templates
Note: You can't change the first (predefined) templates, but you can copy (clone)
them and then make modifications to those clones. Although it is allowed to change
a character set from Unicode to Symbol, we strongly recommend against doing that
unless you are an experienced user who knows how to update the code points
accordingly.
Use the Advanced positioning settings to change page and cell ratios.
3.5.2 Positioning
Although the default settings do work for most font templates, it is possible to make
changes to meet your specific requirements.

20 Scanahand Help
To remove the page header, set the value between Top and Header of the Page
Ratios to zero. Likewise you can do the same thing for the cell caption. From the
drop list by the cell caption position you can select from top, left, bottom, or right
position for the cell caption. Whatever changes you make, do make sure the baseline
is positioned correctly, as that position is used to determine the vertical position of
your characters.
You can click the Revert to Default button if you want to reset the ratios to default
settings.
3.6 Customizing Scanahand

3.6.1 Keyboard Shortcuts
You can quickly accomplish tasks by using these keyboard shortcut keys.
Press To
F1 Help
F5 Go to Empty Template

Press To
F1 Help
F6 Go to Completed Template
F7 Go to Font
Ctrl + T Template Editor
3.6.2 Options
3.6.2.1 General
You can customize Scanahand through the Options window (Select Options from
the Tools menu).

22 Scanahand Help
On Start... Shows the Welcome dialog when Scanahand is started.
Measureme Allows you to set the measurement units used for the template
nt units margins.
Code-point Allows you to set the code-point format as shown on symbol or

format dingbat templates. This setting also applies to the Code Points values
in the Template Editor.
Print When this setting is enabled, every time you print a template a
Options guideline underlay will also be printed. If you require just one
guideline underlay you can print it through the File menu.
Scale This allows you to increase or decrease the size of the generated font
outlines.
Include This will include predefined diacritical marks in your font if you have
predefined not defined them yourself.
diacritical
marks
Tip: FontCreator can then be used to add many more composite glyphs to your fonts
by using the Complete Composites feature, without having to draw them all on the
template. This will also ensure greater consistency.
3.6.2.2 Template
To change template related settings, select Options from the Tools menu and then
click the Template tab.

Header This font will be used to show the headers in the template cells. Leave
it empty to use the system default font.
Margins Sets the printing area of the empty template. The printer will only
print within these margins.
Guide Lines The empty template will contain colored guide lines, if you enable
Colors these settings.
Print When this setting is enabled, every time you print a template a
Options guideline underlay will also be printed. If you require just one
guideline underlay you can print it through the File menu.

24 Scanahand Help
3.6.2.3 Rebrand
To change template logo, title, and subtitle, select Options from the Tools menu
and then click the Rebrand tab.
3.6.2.4 Personalize
Some specific data can be stored inside your fonts. To change these font related
settings, select Options from the Tools menu and then click the Personalize tab.
Leave a field empty, if you don't want to include that information.

Some fields can be modified within the Edit Naming Field window accessed by
pressing the [...] button. To test your links, do click the Web/Earth icon.
Copyright Notice
Within this field you can use the tag <year> which will automatically be replaced
with the current year on generating your font.
Embedding Licensing Rights

Embeddable fonts may be stored in a document. When a document with embedded
fonts is opened on a system that does not have the font installed (the remote
system), the embedded font may be loaded for temporary (and in some cases,
permanent) use on that system by an embedding-aware application.

26 Scanahand Help
Installable (no embedding restrictions)

Fonts that have none of the flags set are installable embedding fonts. Fonts with this
setting indicate that they may be embedded and permanently installed on the
remote system by an application. The user of the remote system acquires the
identical rights, obligations and licenses for that font as the original purchaser of the
font, and is subject to the same end-user license agreement, copyright, design
patent, and/or trademark as was the original purchaser.
Editable (read-write)
Fonts with this flag set indicate that they may be embedded in documents, but must
only be installed temporarily on the remote system. In contrast to Preview & Print
fonts, documents containing Editable fonts may be opened "read-write;" editing is
permitted, and changes may be saved.
Preview & Print (read-only)

Fonts with this flag set indicate that they may be embedded within documents but
must only be installed temporarily on the remote system. Any document which
includes a Preview & Print embedded font must be opened "read-only;" the
application must not allow the user to edit the document; it can only be viewed
and/or printed.
Restricted (embedding is not allowed)

Fonts that have this flag set must not be modified, embedded or exchanged in any
manner without first obtaining permission of the legal owner.
3.6.2.5 Sample Text
To change the sample text you can use to preview your generated font, select
Options from the Tools menu and then click the Sample Text tab.

If the sample text only contains the tag <TemplateCharacterSet> this will be
replaced by all the characters as available on the currently selected template.
Click on Add to add a new sample text. Edit the title to whatever you want, then type
the sample text in the sample text field.
Press the Reset button to revert to the default list of Sample Text.
3.6.2.6 Warnings
To show, enable or disable specific warning messages, select Options from the
Tools menu and then click the Warnings tab.

28 Scanahand Help
Update Checker Set the interval that Scanahand uses

to check for updates. An interval of
Once a week will ensure that you are
always working with the latest version
of Scanahand.
Template Selection We recommend that all warnings

should be enabled for novice users.

Index 29
Manual
Index PDF 3
-N-
-A- New Features 2
Add Kerning 17
Adjust Metrics 17
-P-
-C- Personalize
Positioning
24
19
Copyright 24
-R-
-D- Rebrand 24
Decimal 21 Register 3
Designer 24
-S-
-E- Sample Text 26
Embedding 24 Scanahand
buying 3
getting help 3
-F- manual 3
user interface 14
Features 2
Shortcut 20
Font Name 15
Support 2
Font Style 15
-H- -T-
Template Editor 22
Handwriting 6
Templates 18
Hexadecimal 21
-K- -W-
Warnings 27
Kern 17
White-label 24
-L-
Language 21
-M-
Mailing List 2

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Scanahand 7

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Scanahand is a trademark of High-Logic.

Part I Getting Started

Part II Quick Start Tutorial

Part III The User Interface

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Make sure you have the latest version of Scanahand:

1.2 What's New in Scanahand 7

New features in this version of Scanahand include:

Scanahand is available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions.

A complete list of current and previous changes can be found online:

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

1.3 Technical Support

Online User Manual

Frequently Asked Questions

· All future versions of Scanahand 7.x.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Standard Edition versus Premium Edition

• Virtual Treeview from http://soft-gems.net/;

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

2 Quick Start Tutorial

Step 1 - Print and fill out the empty template

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Step 2 - Scan in the completed template

A 600 dpi scan resolution is recommended as this usually results in character

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Step 3 - Generate and install the font

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

3 The User Interface

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

3.2 Font Setup

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

3.3 Adjust Metrics

3.4 Add Kerning

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

3.5 Template Editor

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

3.6 Customizing Scanahand

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Ctrl + T Template Editor

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

On Start... Shows the Welcome dialog when Scanahand is started.

Code-point Allows you to set the code-point format as shown on symbol or

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Embedding Licensing Rights

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Installable (no embedding restrictions)

Preview & Print (read-only)

Restricted (embedding is not allowed)

3.6.2.5 Sample Text

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

© 2007 - 2020 by High-Logic B.V. All rights reserved.

Update Checker Set the interval that Scanahand uses

Template Selection We recommend that all warnings