I have been working on this issue for most of the day over in the Vibrant forums.
I am posting here in hopes of getting someone who knows more about apk editing and fonts then I do to help out.
Link to the post on the XDA Vibrant forum here
Please post your response there. Once the issue is solved I will repost a walk-through on all Galaxy S forums.
Here is the start of my thread, please read the link to see the progress.
I am aware that there are other ways to edit the fonts on our phone, by replacing renaming the default font. This is NOT what I would like to accomplish.
Since the Galaxy S is the first android phone to use Flipfont, I think we should take advantage of it. It gives us a nice preview of the font in the built in menu option and is thus superior to the other methods.
I originally purchased the Bauhaus font from the market and made a backup of it through ASTRO. After pulling the file from my phone and putting it on the computer I started editing the file with Apk Manager 4.8 found here
Steps preformed
Copied original apk into place-apk-here-for-modding folder
Run script.bat and choose option 9 ***this maybe where the issue is as I may need to choose option 10 and include the dependancy if there is one for the flipfont apk.
replace bauhaus.ttf with a .ttf font of my choosing
edit all XML, yml and smali files to include the font name or font.ttf depending on the entry in the original file *** I did not change any of the other coding so again this maybe where the problem is, as I may need to change something else to have the font act properly.
Edit the last folder name in the smali folder tree from bauhaus to the name of my font
Replace font with custom font and replace the preview image with my own
Compile apk
Sign apk
Rename apk
install apk on my phone
After putting the apk on my phone and installing the file, it shows up as expected in settings>Sound and Display>Font style. The font thumbnail shows up properly as does the font preview. The preview does show up a little larger then the other fonts and may be a sign that the font is not optimized properly or that I missed something in the XML.
After applying the font and restarting, the phone is extremely slow, freezing quite often and the font does not show up, it shows the default font instead.
If anyone that knows more about XML or apk editing/creation can help it would be great.
I have included the edited font apk if you would like to download it and run it through Apk Manager 4.8. If you want to try it with the bauhaus or one of the other fonts you will need to buy it from the market and back it up. (trying not to break any rules here.)
[EDIT][More info] Ok I took a closer look at the font that came with the Bauhaus akp
In the discription of the font it list:
OpenType Layout, Digitally Signed, TrueType Outlines
I know that opentype is a new format and that alot of the fonts for OpenType that I find are made by Monotype, the same people that make the fonts available for download. I think this may have something to do with it or maybe Im just grasping. :ºp
Any font guys out there have any info on this?
CAUTION THE FOLLOWING FILE IS NOT MEANT FOR USE AND WILL CAUSE YOUR PHONE TO RUN SLOW!!!
Download Font APK
You only can use .ttf (true type font) any other type will not work,if you have a font u want to use but is not in .ttf then you need to convert it to .ttf, btw i prefer the Type Fresh app to manage and change my fonts is easier than the method you described.
Also, make sure the font has a full latin library. I learned the hard way from the TypeFresh app (which is a way better solution IMO). In its instructions which I only read the second time, one font (i believe its called DroidSansFallback.ttf) needs to have a COMPLETE set, including latin, I believe for certain coding going on somewhere. I bricked my phone within two hours of rooting it. Took three to get it back. (Backup people!)
Anyways, now I use TypeFresh, it gives you options on which system font to replace, and I never replace that one.
Hope this helps.
Hi,
I tried to install Arabic font on my samsung captivate device. In the part of the font installing process I replaced the litewebcore.so file in the system/lib directory. After replacing the litewebcore.so file, the phone is stuck with the At&t logo screen World Phone. On boot up the phone plays the samsung galaxy s sound in the background. Can any body help how to get back my phone to home screen.
can't help you with fixing that unless you flash using Odin and lose all your info (unless you have a backup).
Adding Arabic font should be the same as Hebrew though. You need to find a zip of the fonts that include arabic and then copy them to your system/fonts folder. I can't post links but try to google DeJavu fonts (they include arabic) and just push them using adb (you should be able to google that as well). you only need to push font files (ttf) and that's it. If you wish to type arabic, after you get the fonts installed use AnySoftKeyboard (available in the market)
Actually it's not the same
Just found more info. The only difference is that the letters are not connected. I guess that was the system file that screwed your phone.
hxxps://sites.google.com/a/ut.utm.edu/arabic-android/Home
I would say just install the fonts and you can view arabic but not connected letters.
Froyo (2.2) should bring Hebrew and Arabic natively, so you can wait for that.
(You need to replace the x's in the link with t's)
I was able to install arabic fonts. But I did not get connected words. To get the connected words I copied the litewebcore.so file and my phone got stuck on the at&t logo screen. I there any way that I can get backup of my data in the current situation.
Do you get anywhere past that screen? can you get adb to recognize the phone? Do you have rom manager installed. If not, I doubt there is any easy way to get back on.
What you most likely have to do is use Odin to flash back to stock. Once you have all your accounts setup make a backup!!! Use Rom manager, it's free and takes just a few minutes. You can always restore and it will save you HOURS! I haven't see any fixes yet for the connected letters but I'm no expert....
any one can help me.
i need to install farsi fonts on my samsung Galaxy Tap Gt-P1000
i get fasri fonts and i put them in samsung's root directory, but it does not see them.
i dont find fonts directory to copy them.
can any one help?
download font changer from the market, its free, and i use it, works perfect.
yes man but you dont understand.
i dont need to change my screen fonts. i need to add some fonts to my android. i dont need to change my screen fonts.
i want to see arabic web sites.
In settings what locale/language did you select? Is the language you want available? You will have to flash a rom with that language in it.
Anyone know what rom has farsi? I have seen discussions about arabic language roms.
If you just want to use arabic font (.ttf) installed on your tab do the following
1. Install Type Fresh and AndExplorer from Market
2. Backup your font (using Type Fresh) to /sdcard/Fonts
3. Copy your arabic font to /sdcard/Fonts
4. Launch Type Fresh, select the arabic font, select OK.
5. Click on Menu (you're still in Type Fresh), click Apply Fonts. Enjoy
ok just realized the above might not work as the tab will use the selected font and the display might mess up.
Not sure if this will help http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=826615&highlight=Check
Hello guys
As we all know, Samsung uses the FlipFont library in system fonts, which provides a new way of font customizations. But in the same time, this library does not give us the benefit of having two desired fonts together (unless we build our custom font). Samsung has also replaced the stock Android ICS Arabic font with an ugly looking font type.
Samsung uses a system Arabic font stored within "/system/fonts" folder under the name of "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS" as their stock Arabic font, which is the classical font in even older Samsung phones.
Here, I am posting this thread to those people who would like to install their custom "English FlipFont" whether from the market or internet and in the same time want a permanent good Arabic font. This procedure needs root!
1- Choose a TTF font that you would like to use as Arabic font. In this tutorial, I have used the "Adobe Arabic" font. You can find it in the attachments.
2- Rename this file into "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS.ttf".
3- Copy this font into your mobile SD Card (whether internal or external).
4- Using a root explorer on the device, navigate to the font. Copy the font.
5- Navigate now to "/system/fonts" and paste the font there.
6- Fix file permissions into "rw-r--r--".
7- Reboot your device.
8- Enjoy!
Some TTF fonts may fail. If you have an Open-Type Font (OTF), you may use an online font converter to convert it to TTF.
Screenshots are provided.
I hope I could help
tried this without succes and then i tried to include the fonts before flashing the rom that works well.
Don_Zakaria said:
tried this without succes and then i tried to include the fonts before flashing the rom that works well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried the font included herein?
Some TTF fonts do not work. You should follow exactly the aforementioned steps.
What have you exactly done?
tweetatoo said:
Have you tried the font included herein?
Some TTF fonts do not work. You should follow exactly the aforementioned steps.
What have you exactly done?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i followed all the steps with the included font but the Original file seems to be read only so it can't be replaced. What i did is:
1. unpack the rom.zip
2. put the ttf in the fonts folder (system - fonts) -as you mentioned it has to be renamed into "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS.ttf"-
3. zipped it again.
4. flashed the rom
Don_Zakaria said:
i followed all the steps with the included font but the Original file seems to be read only so it can't be replaced. What i did is:
1. unpack the rom.zip
2. put the ttf in the fonts folder (system - fonts) -as you mentioned it has to be renamed into "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS.ttf"-
3. zipped it again.
4. flashed the rom
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why don't you just use Root Explorer? Just navigate to / System / fonts folder. Mount the folder as R/W and paste the file there. As simple as that!
tweetatoo said:
Why don't you just use Root Explorer? Just navigate to / System / fonts folder. Mount the folder as R/W and paste the file there. As simple as that!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's an easier way that's true but had to flash a new rom anyway.
Some fonts
tweetatoo if you don't mind here are some fonts already renamed. Those are much better than the default (ugly) one.
Don_Zakaria said:
tweetatoo if you don't mind here are some fonts already renamed. Those are much better than the default (ugly) one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wonderful collection
Thank you very much
tweetatoo said:
Wonderful collection
Thank you very much
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have actually applied all the steps mentioned by tweetatoo to install a new font instead of the default one shipped on Samsung Galaxy Note 2. In fact I couldn't paste the new font in /fonts/ directory since it is a system file that cannot be changed. I tried to change permissions of font directory, but still in vain. Therefore, pasting the new font which has the same name of the old one, could not be completed and no replacement of the old font with the new one has taken place.
Do you have any idea how I can allow pasting the new font in /fonts/ directory?
Many thanks.
T.
terryhenderson said:
I have actually applied all the steps mentioned by tweetatoo to install a new font instead of the default one shipped on Samsung Galaxy Note 2. In fact I couldn't paste the new font in /fonts/ directory since it is a system file that cannot be changed. I tried to change permissions of font directory, but still in vain. Therefore, pasting the new font which has the same name of the old one, could not be completed and no replacement of the old font with the new one has taken place.
Do you have any idea how I can allow pasting the new font in /fonts/ directory?
Many thanks.
T.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have root? Did you use root-mode in file explorer?
Chief_Death said:
Do you have root? Did you use root-mode in file explorer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes of course, I use root explorer, otherwise how would I be able to get to /fonts/ directory?
It's very good ! Thanks very much !
i'll do it soon
terryhenderson said:
Yes of course, I use root explorer, otherwise how would I be able to get to /fonts/ directory?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Getting into a protected system folder does not need root actually. Any folder explorer can reach the topmost folder in the system. But writing to a system folder requires root permissions.
Use this root explorer: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.speedsoftware.rootexplorer&hl=en
Google for downloadable versions
Open this program, copy the font file, then navigate to /system/fonts/ folder. After that, you will find on the top side of the screen "Mount R/W". Click on it and paste now.
After that, reboot and enjoy
Is this applicable for Samsung only?
Sent from my LG-E975 using Tapatalk 2
Hi,
I followed your steps and used the file you attached and now all the arabic shows as rectangles. Any ideas? Also, could I have the original font back for now until I sort this out, its my mums phone and shes upset lol.
tweetatoo said:
Hello guys
As we all know, Samsung uses the FlipFont library in system fonts, which provides a new way of font customizations. But in the same time, this library does not give us the benefit of having two desired fonts together (unless we build our custom font). Samsung has also replaced the stock Android ICS Arabic font with an ugly looking font type.
Samsung uses a system Arabic font stored within "/system/fonts" folder under the name of "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS" as their stock Arabic font, which is the classical font in even older Samsung phones.
Here, I am posting this thread to those people who would like to install their custom "English FlipFont" whether from the market or internet and in the same time want a permanent good Arabic font. This procedure needs root!
1- Choose a TTF font that you would like to use as Arabic font. In this tutorial, I have used the "Adobe Arabic" font. You can find it in the attachments.
2- Rename this file into "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS.ttf".
3- Copy this font into your mobile SD Card (whether internal or external).
4- Using a root explorer on the device, navigate to the font. Copy the font.
5- Navigate now to "/system/fonts" and paste the font there.
6- Reboot your device.
7- Enjoy!
Some TTF fonts may fail. If you have an Open-Type Font (OTF), you may use an online font converter to convert it to TTF.
Screenshots are provided.
I hope I could help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
---------- Post added at 04:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:18 PM ----------
Oh crap, I thought this was the s4 section. I have an international s4 gt-i9500 and I just replaced the font with the adobe arabic font. What should I do now?
3alaawi said:
Hi,
I followed your steps and used the file you attached and now all the arabic shows as rectangles. Any ideas? Also, could I have the original font back for now until I sort this out, its my mums phone and shes upset lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
keikai25 said:
Is this applicable for Samsung only?
Sent from my LG-E975 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is supposed to work on your device, since it supports Arabic natively. Just locate the Arabic font used by your LG device. Personally, I am a Samsung professional, and not an LG professional. Sorry
3alaawi said:
Hi,
I followed your steps and used the file you attached and now all the arabic shows as rectangles. Any ideas? Also, could I have the original font back for now until I sort this out, its my mums phone and shes upset lol.
---------- Post added at 04:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:18 PM ----------
Oh crap, I thought this was the s4 section. I have an international s4 gt-i9500 and I just replaced the font with the adobe arabic font. What should I do now?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After replacing the font, it is better to fix permissions back into rw-r--r-- instead of the rw-rw-rw. Then, reboot your phone
The rectangles should now appear good. In case the problem persists:
1- Try to make your phone language "English".
2- Reboot the phone.
3- Replace the font again and fix permissions.
4- Reboot again.
Arabic should now work perfectly.
Logically, even if you use Galaxy S 4, this method shall work perfectly, since the method uses a universal Android trick instead of the FlipFont library.
tweetatoo said:
This is supposed to work on your device, since it supports Arabic natively. Just locate the Arabic font used by your LG device. Personally, I am a Samsung professional, and not an LG professional. Sorry
After replacing the font, it is better to fix permissions back into rw-r--r-- instead of the rw-rw-rw. Then, reboot your phone
The rectangles should now appear good. In case the problem persists:
1- Try to make your phone language "English".
2- Reboot the phone.
3- Replace the font again and fix permissions.
4- Reboot again.
Arabic should now work perfectly.
Logically, even if you use Galaxy S 4, this method shall work perfectly, since the method uses a universal Android trick instead of the FlipFont library.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, Will this solution work with the galaxy tab 3.8.0 ?
i followed your steps exactly. Arabic is still showing on my device but the problem is not in the font, it's in the size of the font.
is this supposed to be solved with the replacement of the font? or the size has nothing to do with the font?
Characters disconnected in the stock browser
Hi,
Thank you for the tip.
The characters appear disconnected in the stock browser Jb 4.3.
In Chrome everything is fine. Did not test other browsers.
tweetatoo said:
Hello guys
As we all know, Samsung uses the FlipFont library in system fonts, which provides a new way of font customizations. But in the same time, this library does not give us the benefit of having two desired fonts together (unless we build our custom font). Samsung has also replaced the stock Android ICS Arabic font with an ugly looking font type.
Samsung uses a system Arabic font stored within "/system/fonts" folder under the name of "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS" as their stock Arabic font, which is the classical font in even older Samsung phones.
Here, I am posting this thread to those people who would like to install their custom "English FlipFont" whether from the market or internet and in the same time want a permanent good Arabic font. This procedure needs root!
1- Choose a TTF font that you would like to use as Arabic font. In this tutorial, I have used the "Adobe Arabic" font. You can find it in the attachments.
2- Rename this file into "GS45_Arab_AndroidOS.ttf".
3- Copy this font into your mobile SD Card (whether internal or external).
4- Using a root explorer on the device, navigate to the font. Copy the font.
5- Navigate now to "/system/fonts" and paste the font there.
6- Reboot your device.
7- Enjoy!
Some TTF fonts may fail. If you have an Open-Type Font (OTF), you may use an online font converter to convert it to TTF.
Screenshots are provided.
I hope I could help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for this excellent job.
However, I did everything by the book on my gnote3,but I keep getting error message:
"copy action error". Can you help, please?
I'd like to add a font to my device for use with apps like Tasker and Minimalistic Text. From what I have read on the forum it looks like a matter of adding the font file to /system/fonts and (perhaps) rebooting.
Of course this does not work or I would not be writing this thread. Font files (I'm using TTF) handled in this manner do not appear anywhere. I cannot access them through Tasker (I can access each of the stock fonts that are present in the folder). Minimalistic Text is probably a separate issue and I may need to try and contact the developer on that one.
So...is there something else? Is there a font "table" somewhere that needs to be updated? Is there something special about TTF fonts for the NST/G which makes TTF fonts from other sources unrecognizable to the system?
I'd have to look how those apps access their fonts.
Normally in Android you only have serif, sans-serif, monospace.
They get mapped through /system/etc/system_fonts.xml
For fallback there is /system/etc/fallback_fonts.xml
For older B&N Reader, the fonts are selected directly by path in /system/fonts from a preset list of fonts.
For newer B&N Reader, the fonts are selected from raw resource assets (in Vendor.apk) from a preset list of fonts.
Renate NST said:
I'd have to look how those apps access their fonts.
Normally in Android you only have serif, sans-serif, monospace.
They get mapped through /system/etc/system_fonts.xml
For fallback there is /system/etc/fallback_fonts.xml
For older B&N Reader, the fonts are selected directly by path in /system/fonts from a preset list of fonts.
For newer B&N Reader, the fonts are selected from raw resource assets (in Vendor.apk) from a preset list of fonts.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, on the original NST there is no /system/etc/system_fonts.xml, just the fonts in the /system/fonts folder and, I guess, some mysterious fixed list somewhere.
What I discovered by trial and error is that one sure way to get a new font is to rename the new font as one of the existing fonts. This, of course, eliminates the original font. I learned this the hard way when a "font installer" app did it without warning. Luckily I have two NSTs so I was able to restore the font.
Tasker cannot access anything but the three basic font types unless the text is in HTML format, but even there it can only access the fonts in /system/fonts and only those in the secret list. So no just dropping the font into the folder and rebooting.
Minimalistic Text turned out to be more amenable. Its issue is a generally poor install on the device. Perhaps there are permissions that need fixing. I corrected initial problems when I first got it by copying the settings.xml file from an installation of the same version on a KitKat device. The file from installation on the NST seemed to be malformed in some way. With the fonts (which are simply dropped into any folder you like), it would not create a global.xml file where the "where are they?" information was stored. So I did the same trick again and now that is fixed. In the end, this is an acceptable result for me because the purpose of the custom font is for a widget and the only remaining app through which this ancient version of Tasker can actually make a widget is Minimalistic Text.
Someone asked in another thread about adding fonts. This thread was first in the search I guess as one of the recent about this issue. I know that problem exist with limited choice of fonts for this device that people circumvent by renaming the font of their preferred choice as already existing one on device after safely backing up existing font. Just out of curiosity did someone tried adding these recently published fonts from respected source?