Setting Tk default font sizes system wide

[Richard Owlett]

I've just installed 'filerunner'
[https://sourceforge.net/projects/filerunner/] whose configuration
utility refers to standard Tk fonts (TkDefaultFont, TkTextFont,
TkFixedFont, TkMenuFont, etc).

I have found https://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl8.5/TkCmd/font.htm#M31 which only
states:
> The following named fonts are supported on all systems, and default to
> values that match appropriate system defaults.

I'm using the MATE Desktop on Debian 9.
I went to System->Preferences->Look and feel->Appearance to experiment
with font sizes.

I saw no difference in the appearance of filerunner.
Is there a tool to display/set Tk font sizes?

[Brad Lanam]

There is 'tk scaling'. This will allow you to adjust the scaling
factor of fonts and widgets to match the DPI of your screen. I believe
it can be put in your .wishrc (I've never used it that way, so I don't
have any knowledge there).

See: https://wiki.tcl-lang.org/8484

I'm just trying to think if there's any way affect some external Tcl program's
font sizing. If it is a standard Tcl program, I suppose you could try:

#!/usr/bin/tclsh

package require Tk

font configure TkDefaultFont -size 12p
source someotherprogram

I have no idea if that would work out well or at all.

[Richard Owlett]

On 09/28/2018 03:09 PM, Brad Lanam wrote:
> On Friday, September 28, 2018 at 8:46:14 AM UTC-7, Richard Owlett wrote:
>> I've just installed 'filerunner'
>> [https://sourceforge.net/projects/filerunner/] whose configuration
>> utility refers to standard Tk fonts (TkDefaultFont, TkTextFont,
>> TkFixedFont, TkMenuFont, etc).
>>
>> I have found https://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl8.5/TkCmd/font.htm#M31 which only
>> states:
>>> The following named fonts are supported on all systems, and default to
>>> values that match appropriate system defaults.
>>
>> I'm using the MATE Desktop on Debian 9.
>> I went to System->Preferences->Look and feel->Appearance to experiment
>> with font sizes.
>>
>> I saw no difference in the appearance of filerunner.
>> Is there a tool to display/set Tk font sizes?
>
> There is 'tk scaling'. This will allow you to adjust the scaling
> factor of fonts and widgets to match the DPI of your screen. I believe
> it can be put in your .wishrc (I've never used it that way, so I don't
> have any knowledge there).
>
> See: https://wiki.tcl-lang.org/8484

That didn't lead me anywhere.
However I doubt that is related strongly to what I see as the program
responds as expected toggling the '^' in the top right of screen.

>
> I'm just trying to think if there's any way affect some external Tcl program's
> font sizing. If it is a standard Tcl program, I suppose you could try:
>
> #!/usr/bin/tclsh
>
> package require Tk
>
> font configure TkDefaultFont -size 12p
> source someotherprogram
>
> I have no idea if that would work out well or at all.
>

It led to a resolution of symptoms if not an underlying problem(bug???).
There may be an environmental dependency of some sort.
[I'm using Tcl/Tk 8.6 on Debian Stretch with MATE Desktop]

I followed that as a pattern setting the size of all Tk...Font.
It worked in an *UNEXPECTED* manner - filerunner's font configuration
window now works. It is unclear if it is a MATE, Tk, or filerunner problem.

Now that things are legible, it looks as though filerunner is the
appropriate tool for me.

Thanks

[Brad Lanam]

On Saturday, September 29, 2018 at 5:48:49 AM UTC-7, Richard Owlett wrote:
> On 09/28/2018 03:09 PM, Brad Lanam wrote:
> > On Friday, September 28, 2018 at 8:46:14 AM UTC-7, Richard Owlett wrote:
> >> I've just installed 'filerunner'
> >> [https://sourceforge.net/projects/filerunner/] whose configuration
> >> utility refers to standard Tk fonts (TkDefaultFont, TkTextFont,
> >> TkFixedFont, TkMenuFont, etc).
> >>
> >> I have found https://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl8.5/TkCmd/font.htm#M31 which only
> >> states:
> >>> The following named fonts are supported on all systems, and default to
> >>> values that match appropriate system defaults.
> >>
> >> I'm using the MATE Desktop on Debian 9.
> >> I went to System->Preferences->Look and feel->Appearance to experiment
> >> with font sizes.
> >>
> >> I saw no difference in the appearance of filerunner.
> >> Is there a tool to display/set Tk font sizes?
> >
> > There is 'tk scaling'. This will allow you to adjust the scaling
> > factor of fonts and widgets to match the DPI of your screen. I believe
> > it can be put in your .wishrc (I've never used it that way, so I don't
> > have any knowledge there).
> >
> > See: https://wiki.tcl-lang.org/8484
>
> That didn't lead me anywhere.
> However I doubt that is related strongly to what I see as the program
> responds as expected toggling the '^' in the top right of screen.

I just ran an 'strace' and it doesn't appear that 'wish' tries to locate
a '.wishrc' file at all. Must be broken.

> >
> > I'm just trying to think if there's any way affect some external Tcl program's
> > font sizing. If it is a standard Tcl program, I suppose you could try:
> >
> > #!/usr/bin/tclsh
> >
> > package require Tk
> >
> > font configure TkDefaultFont -size 12p
> > source someotherprogram
> >
> > I have no idea if that would work out well or at all.
> >
>
> It led to a resolution of symptoms if not an underlying problem(bug???).
> There may be an environmental dependency of some sort.
> [I'm using Tcl/Tk 8.6 on Debian Stretch with MATE Desktop]
>
> I followed that as a pattern setting the size of all Tk...Font.
> It worked in an *UNEXPECTED* manner - filerunner's font configuration
> window now works. It is unclear if it is a MATE, Tk, or filerunner problem.
>
> Now that things are legible, it looks as though filerunner is the
> appropriate tool for me.

I didn't have any trouble with fr's font configuration screen.
I'm on MX Linux running XFCE so the environment's not quite the same.

I did have trouble getting filerunner to run at all, as it removes
packages from TCLLIBPATH.
Had to change the 'if {1}' around line 5182 to 'if {0}'.

[Richard Owlett]

Using Debian Stretch default install, there's no '.wishrc'.
My wander through links on wiki suggests it is less commonly used today.

>>>
>>> I'm just trying to think if there's any way affect some external Tcl program's
>>> font sizing. If it is a standard Tcl program, I suppose you could try:
>>>
>>> #!/usr/bin/tclsh
>>>
>>> package require Tk
>>>
>>> font configure TkDefaultFont -size 12p
>>> source someotherprogram
>>>
>>> I have no idea if that would work out well or at all.
>>>
>>
>> It led to a resolution of symptoms if not an underlying problem(bug???).
>> There may be an environmental dependency of some sort.
>> [I'm using Tcl/Tk 8.6 on Debian Stretch with MATE Desktop]
>>
>> I followed that as a pattern setting the size of all Tk...Font.
>> It worked in an *UNEXPECTED* manner - filerunner's font configuration
>> window now works. It is unclear if it is a MATE, Tk, or filerunner problem.
>>
>> Now that things are legible, it looks as though filerunner is the
>> appropriate tool for me.
>
> I didn't have any trouble with fr's font configuration screen.
> I'm on MX Linux running XFCE so the environment's not quite the same.
>
> I did have trouble getting filerunner to run at all, as it removes
> packages from TCLLIBPATH.
> Had to change the 'if {1}' around line 5182 to 'if {0}'.
>

No apparent difference for me.

[Brad Lanam]

On Saturday, September 29, 2018 at 10:10:44 AM UTC-7, Richard Owlett wrote:
> On 09/29/2018 10:50 AM, Brad Lanam wrote:
> > I just ran an 'strace' and it doesn't appear that 'wish' tries to locate
> > a '.wishrc' file at all. Must be broken.
> >
>
> Using Debian Stretch default install, there's no '.wishrc'.
> My wander through links on wiki suggests it is less commonly used today.

Not surprising considering it's inconsistency.

It seems singularly useless.

Rather unfortunate, as putting a 'tk scaling <scale>' in
a .wishrc would be useful as the default 96 DPI (38 dpcm)
probably is not the most common size.

- /home/bll/local/bin/wish
.wishrc loaded.
- #!/home/bll/local/bin/wish
No .wishrc loaded.
- #!/usr/bin/env wish
No .wishrc loaded.
- #!/home/bll/local/bin/tclsh
package require Tk
No .wishrc loaded.

[Rich]

Slackware 14.1 - Tcl 8.6.1

.wishrc would be loaded, if I had a .wishrc:

open("/home/__________/.wishrc", O_RDONLY) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)