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Fonts Installation Guide

This guide explains how to install fonts using dottie, including Nerd Fonts for terminal customization.

Basic Configuration​

install:
  fonts:
    - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/FiraCode.zip

dottie downloads the font archive, extracts it, and installs the fonts to ~/.local/share/fonts/.

Installation Location​

Fonts are installed to the user's local fonts directory:

~/.local/share/fonts/

After installation, the font cache is automatically refreshed with fc-cache -f.

Nerd Fonts​

Nerd Fonts patches developer-targeted fonts with icons and glyphs. They're essential for modern terminal setups with tools like Starship, Powerlevel10k, and Oh My Zsh themes.

Fira Code​

Popular monospace font with programming ligatures:

fonts:
  - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/FiraCode.zip

JetBrains Mono​

Clean, modern font designed for code:

fonts:
  - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/JetBrainsMono.zip

Hack​

A typeface designed for source code:

fonts:
  - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/Hack.zip

Meslo​

Apple's Menlo font with Nerd Font patches:

fonts:
  - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/Meslo.zip

Source Code Pro​

Adobe's monospace font for developers:

fonts:
  - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/SourceCodePro.zip

Finding Nerd Font URLs​

  1. Go to Nerd Fonts Releases
  2. Find the version you want (e.g., v3.0.2)
  3. Expand the Assets section
  4. Copy the URL for your desired font (e.g., FiraCode.zip)

After Installation​

Configure Your Terminal​

After installing fonts, configure your terminal emulator to use them:

GNOME Terminal: Preferences → Profile → Custom font

Alacritty (~/.config/alacritty/alacritty.yml):

font:
  normal:
    family: "FiraCode Nerd Font"
    style: Regular
  size: 12.0

VS Code (settings.json):

{
  "terminal.integrated.fontFamily": "FiraCode Nerd Font",
  "editor.fontFamily": "FiraCode Nerd Font"
}

Verify Installation​

Check if fonts are installed:

fc-list | grep -i "fira"

Non-Nerd Fonts​

You can install any font from a URL:

fonts:
  - url: https://example.com/MyFont.zip

Supported archive formats:

  • .zip
  • .tar.gz
  • .tar.xz

The archive should contain .ttf, .otf, or other font files.

Idempotency​

dottie checks if font files already exist before downloading:

⊘ FiraCode Skipped (Font) - Already installed

To force reinstallation, remove the fonts manually:

rm -rf ~/.local/share/fonts/FiraCode*
> dottie install

Complete Example​

install:
  fonts:
    # Primary coding font
    - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/FiraCode.zip

    # Backup/alternative font
    - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/JetBrainsMono.zip

    # Terminal-specific font
    - url: https://github.com/ryanoasis/nerd-fonts/releases/download/v3.0.2/Meslo.zip

Troubleshooting​

Fonts Not Showing in Applications​

Run the font cache refresh manually:

fc-cache -f -v

Then restart the application.

Download Failed​

✗ FiraCode Failed (Font) - Download failed

Solution: Verify the URL is correct and accessible.

Old Font Version​

To update to a newer version:

  1. Remove the old fonts from ~/.local/share/fonts/
  2. Update the URL to the new version
  3. Run dottie install