[mapserver-users] How I got PHP + GD + Freetype + MapScript to work with proper text label angle

[Peter Rukavina]

Several users have reported problems with text label angle after using 
MapServer 3.6 + GD-2 + FreeType2.  I had the same problem: text labels 
would appear on the map, but at either (a) a seemingly weird angle to 
the line their were labeling and/or (b) each individual letter in the 
text labels rotated at a weird angle.

Advice on this mailing list was to backstep to GD-1.8.4.

I experimented with various combinations of all of the above, and found 
the following worked for me:

1. RedHat 7.2 with 2.4.7 kernel
2. PHP 4.2.3
3. GD 1.8.4
3. Freetype-pre1.4

When I compiled the Freetype and GD libraries, I modified the base 
installation directory to /usr/local/src/mapserver-dev to ensure that 
conflicting versions of either weren't being picked up by mistake.

Here's how I got things working:

1. GD 1.8.4

Important lines in the Makefile are:

CFLAGS=-O -DHAVE_LIBPNG -DHAVE_LIBJPEG -DHAVE_LIBTTF
LIBS=-lgd -lpng -lz -lm -lttf -ljpeg
INCLUDEDIRS=-I. -I/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev/include/freetype 
-I/usr/include/X11 -I/usr/X11R6/include/X11 -I/usr/local/include
LIBDIRS=-L. -L/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev -L/usr/local/lib 
-L/usr/lib/X11 -L/usr/X11R6/lib
INSTALL_LIB=/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev/lib
INSTALL_INCLUDE=/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev/include
INSTALL_BIN=/usr/local/bin

2. Freetype-pre1.4

I couldn't get freetype-1.3.1 to compile for me, as it appears that the 
--without-x switch is broken (confirmed by others) so that if you don't 
have the proper X setup available it won't compile.  I downloaded the 
pre-1.4 version from the Freetype "unstable" FTP area.

Configured with:

./configure --prefix=/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev

3. PHP 4.2.3

Configured with:

./configure --with-sybase-ct=/opt/sybase --enable-track-vars 
--with-mysql=no --with-system-regex 
--with-gd=/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev  --with-zlib 
--with-jpeg-dir=/usr --with-png-dir=/usr --without-ttf

Note that the "--without-ttf" seems important, and perhaps 
counter-intuitively so.

4. Mapserver 3.6

Configured with:

./configure --prefix=/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev 
-with-gd=static,/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev 
--with-freetype=/usr/local/src/mapserver-dev --enable-force-freetype1 
--enable-runpath --with-php=../php-4.2.3

Once I did all of the above, the resulting was a PHP executable and a 
MapServer PHP module that, together, produce fine, well-angled labels.

Peter Rukavina
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island