Using Variable Width Fonts for org-mode and Fixed Width for Tables

Using Variable Width Fonts for org-mode and Fixed Width for Tables

[Ian Barton]

I am struggling to get this to work. In my init files I have:

(set-default-font "DejaVu Serif Italic")

I have followed the advice on StackOverflow 
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3758139/variable-pitch-for-org-mode-fixed-pitch-for-tables 
and customized my Init file to include:

(set-face-attribute 'org-table nil :inherit 'fixed-pitch)

However, table formatting is still screwed up. C-u C-x = shows

     xft:-unknown-IM FELL DW 
Pica-normal-italic-normal-*-15-*-*-*-*-0-iso10646-1 (#x29)

Character code properties: customize what to show
   name: LATIN CAPITAL LETTER F
   general-category: Lu (Letter, Uppercase)
   decomposition: (70) ('F')

There are text properties here:
   face                 org-table
   fontified            t
   line-prefix          [Show]
   wrap-prefix          [Show]

I have tried setting the font for org-table using Emacs Customize 
Interface, but without any success. Ideally I want tables to use a 
monospace font like Inconsolata or DejaVu mono. Can anyone provide an 
example of how to set org-table to use a specified fixed width font.

Ian.

Re: Using Variable Width Fonts for org-mode and Fixed Width forTabless

[Alan Schmitt]

Hi Ian,

lists@wilkesley.net writes:

> I am struggling to get this to work. In my init files I have:
>
> (set-default-font "DejaVu Serif Italic")
>
> I have followed the advice on StackOverflow 
> http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3758139/variable-pitch-for-org-mode-fixed-pitch-for-tables 
> and customized my Init file to include:
>
> (set-face-attribute 'org-table nil :inherit 'fixed-pitch)
>
> However, table formatting is still screwed up. C-u C-x = shows
>
>      xft:-unknown-IM FELL DW 
> Pica-normal-italic-normal-*-15-*-*-*-*-0-iso10646-1 (#x29)
>
> Character code properties: customize what to show
>    name: LATIN CAPITAL LETTER F
>    general-category: Lu (Letter, Uppercase)
>    decomposition: (70) ('F')
>
> There are text properties here:
>    face                 org-table
>    fontified            t
>    line-prefix          [Show]
>    wrap-prefix          [Show]
>
> I have tried setting the font for org-table using Emacs Customize 
> Interface, but without any success. Ideally I want tables to use a 
> monospace font like Inconsolata or DejaVu mono. Can anyone provide an 
> example of how to set org-table to use a specified fixed width font.

I've played a little with this, and here is what I have (straight from
my config file).

First, I set up the font for variable pitch, and I tell emacs to use it
for text modes.

** setup
#+BEGIN_SRC emacs-lisp
  (set-face-attribute 'variable-pitch nil :family "Ubuntu")
  (set-face-attribute 'variable-pitch nil :height 140)
  
  (add-hook 'text-mode-hook 'variable-pitch-mode)
#+END_SRC

Then I set up exceptions for some faces in some modes. I have exceptions
for info, mu4e, and org mode. Here are the ones for org mode.

** org
from http://yoo2080.wordpress.com/2013/05/30/monospace-font-in-tables-and-source-code-blocks-in-org-mode-proportional-font-in-other-parts/

#+BEGIN_SRC emacs-lisp
  (defun my-adjoin-to-list-or-symbol (element list-or-symbol)
    (let ((list (if (not (listp list-or-symbol))
                    (list list-or-symbol)
                  list-or-symbol)))
      (require 'cl-lib)
      (cl-adjoin element list)))
  
  (mapc
   (lambda (face)
     (set-face-attribute
      face nil
      :inherit
      (my-adjoin-to-list-or-symbol
       'fixed-pitch
       (face-attribute face :inherit))))
   (list 'org-code 'org-block 'org-table 'org-block-background 'org-date 'org-link 'org-footnote))
#+END_SRC

What this says is: use fixed-pitch for the faces in the list at the
end. I have to include dates, links, and footnotes because I use them in
tables and I don't know how to conditionally change a face (i.e., use
fixed-pitch for links in tables but not for links in other places).

Hopefully this will work for you.

Alan

Re: Using Variable Width Fonts for org-mode and Fixed Width forTabless

[Ian Barton]

On 27/09/13 08:19, Alan Schmitt wrote:
> Hi Ian,
>
> lists@wilkesley.net writes:
>
>> I am struggling to get this to work. In my init files I have:
>>
>> (set-default-font "DejaVu Serif Italic")
>>
>> I have followed the advice on StackOverflow
>> http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3758139/variable-pitch-for-org-mode-fixed-pitch-for-tables
>> and customized my Init file to include:
>>
>> (set-face-attribute 'org-table nil :inherit 'fixed-pitch)
>>
>> However, table formatting is still screwed up. C-u C-x = shows
>>
>>       xft:-unknown-IM FELL DW
>> Pica-normal-italic-normal-*-15-*-*-*-*-0-iso10646-1 (#x29)
>>
>> Character code properties: customize what to show
>>     name: LATIN CAPITAL LETTER F
>>     general-category: Lu (Letter, Uppercase)
>>     decomposition: (70) ('F')
>>
>> There are text properties here:
>>     face                 org-table
>>     fontified            t
>>     line-prefix          [Show]
>>     wrap-prefix          [Show]
>>
>> I have tried setting the font for org-table using Emacs Customize
>> Interface, but without any success. Ideally I want tables to use a
>> monospace font like Inconsolata or DejaVu mono. Can anyone provide an
>> example of how to set org-table to use a specified fixed width font.
>
> I've played a little with this, and here is what I have (straight from
> my config file).
>
> First, I set up the font for variable pitch, and I tell emacs to use it
> for text modes.
>
> ** setup
> #+BEGIN_SRC emacs-lisp
>    (set-face-attribute 'variable-pitch nil :family "Ubuntu")
>    (set-face-attribute 'variable-pitch nil :height 140)
>
>    (add-hook 'text-mode-hook 'variable-pitch-mode)
> #+END_SRC
>
> Then I set up exceptions for some faces in some modes. I have exceptions
> for info, mu4e, and org mode. Here are the ones for org mode.
>
> ** org
> from http://yoo2080.wordpress.com/2013/05/30/monospace-font-in-tables-and-source-code-blocks-in-org-mode-proportional-font-in-other-parts/
>
> #+BEGIN_SRC emacs-lisp
>    (defun my-adjoin-to-list-or-symbol (element list-or-symbol)
>      (let ((list (if (not (listp list-or-symbol))
>                      (list list-or-symbol)
>                    list-or-symbol)))
>        (require 'cl-lib)
>        (cl-adjoin element list)))
>
>    (mapc
>     (lambda (face)
>       (set-face-attribute
>        face nil
>        :inherit
>        (my-adjoin-to-list-or-symbol
>         'fixed-pitch
>         (face-attribute face :inherit))))
>     (list 'org-code 'org-block 'org-table 'org-block-background 'org-date 'org-link 'org-footnote))
> #+END_SRC
>
> What this says is: use fixed-pitch for the faces in the list at the
> end. I have to include dates, links, and footnotes because I use them in
> tables and I don't know how to conditionally change a face (i.e., use
> fixed-pitch for links in tables but not for links in other places).
>
> Hopefully this will work for you.
>
> Alan
>
Hi Alan,

That sort of works. The fonts in org-table, etc are fixed pitch as 
expected. However, I seem unable to set a variable width font using 
text-mode-hook. Whatever font I choose Emacs ends up using DejaVu Sans 
Mono. I have tried several fonts that Emacs should be able to use by 
listing them with (print (font-family-list)).

If I set the font instead using set-default-font org-table, etc claim 
they are using a fixed pitch font, but they don't look as though they are.

Ian.

Re: Using Variable Width Fonts for org-mode and Fixed WidthforTablesss

[Alan Schmitt]

Hi Ian,

lists@wilkesley.net writes:

> That sort of works. The fonts in org-table, etc are fixed pitch as 
> expected. However, I seem unable to set a variable width font using 
> text-mode-hook. Whatever font I choose Emacs ends up using DejaVu Sans 
> Mono.

Is it because the "variable-pitch-mode" is not set, or because the face
associated with it is not applied? What happens when you do a "M-x
variable-pitch-mode"?

Alan

Re: Using Variable Width Fonts for org-mode and Fixed WidthforTablesss

[Ian Barton]

On 02/10/13 10:10, Alan Schmitt wrote:
> Hi Ian,
>
> lists@wilkesley.net writes:
> ur help.
>> That sort of works. The fonts in org-table, etc are fixed pitch as
>> expected. However, I seem unable to set a variable width font using
>> text-mode-hook. Whatever font I choose Emacs ends up using DejaVu Sans
>> Mono.
>
> Is it because the "variable-pitch-mode" is not set, or because the face
> associated with it is not applied? What happens when you do a "M-x
> variable-pitch-mode"?
>
> Alan
>

Aha! As you suggest variable-pitch-mode isn't being set. Doing an "M-x 
variable-pitch-mode" sets the font correctly. So either text-mode-hook 
isn't being called, or something is resetting it.

[Time passes...]
Just had a look through my .emacs and I was using text-mode-hook later 
on to turn on autofill. So problem solved, thanks very much for your help.

Ian.