relative text sizes

[dajo]

Linux Mint 21.3 QCAD 3.27.8 rev dea3962 Qt 5.8.0 x86_64
How do I change the relative text sizes in my user display, please?
The top menu line is good, but most other text is too small.
The popup title Application Preferences is good, but all the item texts in the popup are too small.
The tab titles are too small, the Property Editor text is too small, etc.
dajo

[CVH]

Hi,

Your screen capture is 3840 x 2160 (4K UHD) what is from a high DPI display.
Then your menu font size (24px) and icons (60px) seems to be rather large compared with other text (9px).

Your QCAD version is rather old, v3.27.8 was released on 2022/10/06, current art is v3.32.3.
Perhaps HD screen issues were already addressed in more recent versions.
I would advise to update your QCAD installation what includes various bug fixes and many enhancements.

Perhaps resetting your configuration may fix things: Tutorial
Remind that you loose all custom set preferences.
Instead of deleting you could also safeguard a copy of the config file to revert to later.


The GUI can be adapted globally:
- Application Preferences .. General .. User Interface:

• Auto detect active by default, try enabling high DPI scaling.

- Default scale factor = 1

• In a second stage try adapting this in little steps.

If anythings goes wrong then you can always revert to defaults with resetting your configuration or fall back on the copy of the former config file.


From the looks of it you use the default QCAD Theme.
- Application Preferences .. General .. Theme.
Custom themes by user petevick or Pete other than 'Default' and 'Dark' may force things or have an influence.

Some font sizes can be adapted individually.
- Application Preferences .. Widgets .. Menu Bar: A) Native menu bar or not, default is not ; B) Font Size, default is 9.
- Application Preferences .. Widgets .. Status Bar: A) Font ; B) Font Size, default is 9.
- Application Preferences .. Graphics View .. Fonts: Ruler - Snap Label - Info Label, defaults are 9 or 11 for the last.
- Application .. Modify .. Reorder .. Text Label size: Default is 16.
- Application .. Overlay .. Order .. Text size: Default is 10.

Several icon sizes can also be set individually.
- Application .. Widgets .. CAD Toolbar, default is 28px
- Application .. Widgets .. Tool Matrix, 24px
- Application .. Widgets .. Toolbars, 24px

In the end you might also verify and/or adapt all preferences based on pixels (px).
For example: Cursor range for snapping, Minimal grid spacing, ...

Regards,
CVH

[dajo]

Thank you for the response; however, it does not help me. I have installed 3.32, and the first-invocation screenshot shows what I see immediately after invoking QCAD. I am content with the top menu line; but other text is too small, how do I change those text sizes, please? For example: Untitled 1; Layer List; Property Editor; Command:.

The open-dwg screenshot shows what happens when I start to load an existing file created by an earlier version of QCAD. I should like to increase the text size.

Renaming the configuration file does change the size of the top menu line, by making it small. Restoring that configuration file restores the original display.

Changing the value of Scale Text Heights from 1 to 2 appears to do nothing, even after re-starting QCAD.
dajo

[CVH]

Breaking things down:

- Installing 3.32.? did not alter the situation.
This would however fix several known bugs and include or add new functionality.
(Please update your forum signature because that still reads 'dajo Trisquel 10.0.1, QCad Pro 3.27.8')

- Falling back on defaults by deleting/renaming the config file turned the Menu Bar text smaller.
Probably from 24px to 9px as that can be set by preference and is stored in the config file.
When you renamed the config then QCAD created a new default one on startup.

- Not sure about what you mean by 'value of Scale Text Heights', I can not locate such a preference.
Perhaps you mean the next step under: Application Preferences .. General .. User Interface
But then changing that from 1 directly to factor 2 would at least be noticeable.

• Try enabling high DPI scaling + Restart
  Try auto screen scale factor OFF and increase the scale factor manually to 1.1 - 1.2 - 1.3 - ... + Restart

Found your other forum post about the same issue: Fonts on a 4k screen (2022)
You did already experiment with the above:

I was afraid of getting this kind of reply: you have confirmed my findings. The User Interface setting does change things and makes the whole display bigger; but the quality of the drawing display goes down horribly.

That is logical if you scale whole the GUI by a factor other than 1.
I presume that the Graphics View itself can be adapted (Excluded):
Application Preferences .. Graphics View .. Appearance .. Display and Performance .. Use full resolution.
Although it has not the desired effect on my FHD 1920x1080px screen, line art and Rulers remain 'horrible'.
'Retina' is associated with the high-PPI screens of Apple products.

What I read in that topic kinda confirms your personal preference for 24px text height.
But not every widget has an individual configurable text height.
First increase the GUI scale factor globally and then alter the configurable preferences for text and icon size.

BTW: Are you using a QCAD Theme by Pete (petevick) other than 'Default' or 'Dark'?
Not sure what supersedes what, the individual widgets settings by CSS or the listed preferences for text and icon size.
That would also have been reverted to 'Default' on renaming/deleting the config file.
The specific Theme file is not part of a standard installation, perhaps it is no longer installed by updating the OS or QCAD.

I also detect that it doesn't report things backwards.
A CAD Toolbar icon size of 28px remains 28px even in GUI scale 1.2 but is displayed larger and measures 34px (42px with frame).
Same for the Menu Bar text, 9px displays as 10px (10.8 or 11px expected).

For the record: This doesn't alter the content of drawings created with older versions of QCAD.
It is all about the look and feel of the QCAD GUI.

Regards,
CVH

[dajo]

"For the record: This doesn't alter the content of drawings created with older versions of QCAD.
It is all about the look and feel of the QCAD GUI."

Exactly. I understand these things. Hence my questions, which boil down to "How do I effect text size changes to the QCAD GUI now that I am using a 4K screen?".

It seems that you have answered my questions indirectly: using a 4K screen has not been addressed by the QCAD team; and you do not know how to change the GUI appropriately. This is disappointing, 4K technology is hardly new in 2025. I have used QCAD for quite a few years (not for the last two or three for personal, irrelevant, reasons; and I had forgotten about my earlier post) and I shall continue to do so. Simply, I shall have to get used to squinting at the GUI.

Could I suggest that you take another look at my later screenshots? They are essentially "out-of-the-box" without any input from me. Isn't it rather obvious that the text size in the Open Drawing popup is too small to be comfortable?

Scale Text Heights is on the Edit menu.

[andrew]

Can you maybe try one of the Qt 6 based snapshots to see if that improves the situation in any way as this is really a Qt problem (Qt is the underlying toolkit of QCAD).

4K screens are not really the problem, QCAD works fine with correct GUI scaling and fonts on most of them, I also use one. However, 4K is not always correctly detected by Qt for unknown reasons.

[CVH]

Hi,

Scale Text Heights (MG) is a Pro tool to scale all Text entities in the drawing.
All currently selected or all existent including those in all Blocks.

This has no influence on the GUI.

I had a look in detail at all your screen shots and don't see something unexpected.

text-sizes.png:
Menu Text height: 23-24px
Toolbar Icon (with frame): 58px
CAD Toolbar Icon (with frame): 60px
Widgets text (including Rulers): 9px

as-installed-first-invocation-2025-07-06 14-22-06.png:
Menu Text height: 23px
Toolbar Icon (with frame): 29px
CAD Toolbar Icon (with frame): 30px
Widgets text (including Rulers): 9px

Renaming the configuration file does change the size of the top menu line, by making it small.

Assumed to be reverted to default = 9px

But all that needs confirmation of the configurable preferences for text and icon sizes.
Unanswered: Theme related questions and assumptions.
Perhaps you can include a copy of you config file associated with each screen capture.
Then I can look these up myself.

Other widgets can not be configured individually: Property Editor, Layer List, Command Line, dialogs ...
Those relate to the overall GUI scale.

Please attach a screen capture after forcing the GUI scale manually by for example 20% or 50%.
Specify the preference changes.

Regards,
CVH

[dajo]

Thank you, gentlemen, for the replies.

CVH: I attach a new screenshot. I started with no configuration file, and did nothing with the startup popup. I attach the resultant configuration file. I can change the menubar text size with Edit->Application Preferences->Widgets->Menu Bar.

"I had a look in detail at all your screen shots and don't see something unexpected." Ok, but what I asked is: doesn't the text in the popup look too small to be comfortable. I am concerned that I am not managing to get you to see what I see.

andrew: What you write makes more sense to me as the problem. I am happy to help if I can. I know nothing about Qt, in particular, I do not know what you mean by trying one of the Qt 6 based snapshots. Please tell me how to do that, and anything else that might lead to the right discovery.

dajo

[CVH]

CVH: I attach a new screenshot. I started with no configuration file, and did nothing with the startup popup. I attach the resultant configuration file. I can change the menubar text size with Edit->Application Preferences->Widgets->Menu Bar.

QCAD not maximized but that doesn't play a role here.
In Config A the Menu text height is set (back) to 9px.
Other configurable preferences not listed and thus default.
Before we start altering individual configurable preferences let us first scale the GUI up.

Not listed in Config A because default and now included in Config B what should scale up the GUI by 50%

Code: Select all

[Ui]
QT_AUTO_SCREEN_SCALE_FACTOR=false
EnableHighDpiScaling=true
QT_SCALE_FACTOR=1.5

QCAD3.config.B.txt

(101.23 KiB) Downloaded 110 times

Try this Config file as QCAD3.config and attach a screenshot.

Ok, but what I asked is: doesn't the text in the popup look too small to be comfortable. I am concerned that I am not managing to get you to see what I see.

The text in the dialog measures 9px as expected.
Same as for:

Other widgets can not be configured individually: Property Editor, Layer List, Command Line, dialogs ...
Those relate to the overall GUI scale.

Regards,
CVH

[andrew]

andrew: What you write makes more sense to me as the problem. I am happy to help if I can. I know nothing about Qt, in particular, I do not know what you mean by trying one of the Qt 6 based snapshots. Please tell me how to do that, and anything else that might lead to the right discovery.

You can download Qt 6 based snapshot releases from your download link if you scroll down under "QCAD Professional Snapshots 3.32.3.1". These should be fairly stable as we have been moving slowly towards Qt 6 for all platforms for some time now.

[dajo]

What I needed was QT_SCALE_FACTOR. First, I changed this in my config file, then discovered that QT_SCALE_FACTOR is controlled by Edit>Application Preferences>General>User Interface; it is set to 1.7 for the screenshot. All those labels referred to earlier, with one exception, have increased in size to my satisfaction.

The exception is the grid co-ordinate labels, which I should like to reduce in size. Can you tell me what you call them, where to look, or otherwise, how to change them?

dajo

[CVH]

What I needed was QT_SCALE_FACTOR

Right, as included in my first reply in this topic ... No further comment.

I changed this in my config file, then discovered that QT_SCALE_FACTOR is controlled by Edit>Application Preferences>General>User Interface

True, changes to preferences are stored in the QCAD3.config file.

The exception is the grid co-ordinate labels

Perhaps you can (not) look that up in my first reply in this topic.
Default is 9px (times 1.7) ... Try 8px (times 1.7) or try a different Ruler font.


In 2022 you disliked the same solution proposed by ryancousins and Husky. (post p38768 and post p38769)

I was afraid of getting this kind of reply: you have confirmed my findings. The User Interface setting does change things and makes the whole display bigger; but the quality of the drawing display goes down horribly.

How does your Graphics View look with GUI Scale factor 1.7 under QCAD 3.32.3?

Regards,
CVH

[dajo]

How does your Graphics View look with GUI Scale factor 1.7 under QCAD 3.32.3?

I do not know what you are asking. I am content with what is shown in after-qt-scale-factor-change-2025-07-08 11-39-05.png

I have learnt that what I called grid co-ordinate labels are properly called Rulers. Also that the default font, Nimbus Sans [urw], is only available in size 9px

QCAD 3.32.3 now works well for me, as earlier versions have in the past, thank you.

dajo

[CVH]

I do not know what you are asking. I am content with what is shown in after-qt-scale-factor-change-2025-07-08 11-39-05.png

There is no drawing content in that screen capture.
In 2022 you posted p38771 with Screenshot at 2022-10-13 16-26-46.png and complained about the poor quality of the drawing content.

Also that the default font, Nimbus Sans [urw], is only available in size 9px

Available as OTF and TTF and therefore scalable to any font size. (e.g. Nimbus Sans Font)
Typically defined in a space of 1000 or 2048 UPM, for a font height of 100px the data is scaled by 10% for the first and by about 4.9% for the latter.
There is no fixed font height but there are various default font sizes, for browsers (CSS) that may be 16px.

Regards,
CVH