mapbox / mapbox/node-fontnik

Port to protozero

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good first issue jira-sync-complete
Dominant language
C++
Stars
248
Forks
67
PR merge metrics
No merged PRs in 30d

Description

We should port the code to [protozero](https://github.com/mapbox/protozero/) because:

- it would make the code easier to build: no protoc to run, no pre-compiled library to link
- it would make the build system easier to maintain and easier to update deps
- it would make the code potentially higher performance

The downside to protozero is that it makes it slightly more work when you want to update the protobuf scheme. However, I think this is a fine tradeoff since the schema here for [glyphs](https://github.com/mapbox/node-fontnik/blob/master/proto/glyphs.proto) has not changed frequently so far.

This in my mind is low urgency, but a nice to have and a good starter task for someone interested in learning and using protozero more.

/cc for visibility @kkaefer @ChrisLoer @mapbox/core-tech

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start with proto/glyphs.proto and trace how protoc and the pre-compiled protobuf library enter the current build. Compare that path with protozero's usage and confirm the glyph schema remains supported; done means the code builds without protoc or the pre-compiled library while preserving glyph encoding.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
cpp
Domain
build-system
Issue type
Refactor
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
35/100

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