Real simple, all you do is CCP the .ttf URL, take it to Image Magick, and annotate a clear.gif or banner. Details below.
Grabbing the .ttf Font URL: When you find a font style that you like on one of my sample pages, copy the URL of the .TTF file just below it using Cmd-A and Cmd-C and then Cmd-V to store it in your "Find" box located on your "Find" Key.
The reason for storing the addy in your "Find" Key box is that you will want to use a clear.gif or banner URL to annotate it onto and can grab the .ttf URL from your "Find" box once at the "Annotate" page at Image Magick.
Need a clear.gif to annotate onto? Take this 200x50 CLEAR.GIF to whichever Image Magick is working at the time "Sigh":
Resize the CLEAR.GIF to maybe 400X60 or 468X60, it depends just how large you want the banner to be. The above heading is 400x50.
To resize the clear.gif: Select the "Resize" tab at the top and enter the dimensions in the text field with an exclamation point at the end like this example: 400x60!. Click the grey "Resize" button.
Go to the Annotate page. Once the resized clear.gif is returned to you, select the "Annotate" tab at the top. The next page will list all the options for annotating your banner with the .ttf (True Type Font) file.
Entering and Positioning Text: Enter the text you want on your banner into the first large box titled "Text". Select "Center" from the jumpbox near "Location and Gravity". If you understand coordinates, and want to annotate a small award or whatever, use exact coordinates. More information on this can be found at Angel's Imagery Tutorials linked below.
Choose a Color! In the Field labeled "Fill" enter the color for your font. You can use a colorname or a 6-digit hexidecimal code. Color samples are available at Image Magick by clicking the blue "Fill" link by the "Fill" box.
To Annotate using the .ttf file, scroll down to just below the Font List box and you will see a text field with "http://" inside it. Delete that, and copy (Cmd-V) the .ttf URL into that text field that .TTF was saved in your "Find" box.
Point Sizes: Beneath that you will see a default pointsize of 24. For a large site banner I recommend changing that number to 48 or 60. A pointsize of 18 or 24 might be good for annotating a smaller sized banner or award. I used pointsize 36 and set the density to 95 for the above header.
Setting Density: There is an option called "Density" that defaults at "72". That's fine for most applications. If you have a font that is very skinny, a density of 95 or above will make the text "thicker". For example, you may want to use a density of "95" if using the "Charming" or "Creepy Girl" fonts on Sample Page 1.
Annotate it! Once you've entered your banner text, the .TTF file URL is entered for the font, and the color and point sizes are selected, click the grey "Annotate" button and your resulting image will be rendered.
Redoing it: If you want to redo it at that time, hit your "Back" button and make any changes such as "Fill" color or "Pointsize". Then hit the "Annotate" button again. You can always Redo it by using your "Back" button.
Output the Image:If you're happy with the results, click the "Output" tab at the top and select ".gif" in the jumpbox and the "Single File" radio button. Then output and upload to your site.
Need More Help? If you need more help to familiarize yourself with Image Magick, I highly recommend Angel's Imagery Tutorials, which is a very comprehensive and easy to follow image tutorial. You will want to follow her "True Type Fonts" link.
