When typing text in-game for TF2, the fonts looked squished and it was hard to read. On searching the internet, I found this tutorial: http://www.dodbits.com/dods/index.php/source-graphics/source-gui-hud-tutorials/19-chat-area-in-hl2-games

Browsing through the SteamApps directory, I copied the file Multiplayer OB Linux Binaries.gcf to a Windows machine and used GCFScape to extract ChatScheme.res file.

When the .res file was opened, under FONTS section, I found that it uses Verdana fonts. This font comes pre-installed on Windows machine but not on Linux distributions as it was optional and was copyrighted by Microsoft. One could install the required fonts in order for the chat text to appear as it would in Windows version of TF2. This issue was previously reported in steamcommunity.com: http://steamcommunity.com/app/221410/discussions/0/846939071403952294/

Attached is the comparison between 2 different fonts rendering for the in-game chat system. Open both in full resolutions and compare them side-by-side:

• Installed Verdana font in my Linux distribution. Click on the image to see the full resolution. Text is clearly legible.
  
• Without Verdana font installed in my Linux distribution. Click on the image to see the full resolution. Text appears to be squished.
  

Steps to reproduce the issue:

1. Install Verdana font. There are ways to install it from repositories. Refer to distribution's help or search around the internet.
2. Run TF2 and load a map. Type some text in the chat. Take a screenshot (F12 key by default).
3. Exit TF2.
4. Uninstall Verdana font and run TF2 again.
5. Load a map and type some text in the chat. Take a screenshot.
6. Compare both screenshots.

Suggested solutions:

1. Modify ChatSheme.res file such that it can fallback to default fonts used by Linux distributions if Verdana was not installed. Downside is that different Linux distributions will come with different default fonts used, which may create additional problems if style consistency was to be maintained.
2. Bundle some fonts into the game that can be redistributed under some sort of license (preferably open source) to maintain consistency. Downside is that some fonts may not cover the whole Unicode range if characters other than Latin alphabets were used.
3. Provide an option in-game for the user to select the font to use, like an option found in most word processing software (e.g. Microsoft Word, LibreOffice Writer). Downside, more coding and possibly new bugs can be introduced.

System information:

Processor Information:
    Vendor:  GenuineIntel
    Speed: 2534 Mhz
    4 logical processors
    3 physical processors
    HyperThreading:  Supported
    FCMOV:  Supported
    SSE2:  Supported
    SSE3:  Supported
    SSSE3:  Supported
    SSE4a:  Unsupported
    SSE41:  Supported
    SSE42:  Supported

Network Information:
    Network Speed:  

Operating System Version:
    Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS (64 bit)
    Kernel Name:  Linux
    Kernel Version:  3.2.0-34-generic
    X Server vendor:  The X.Org Foundation
    X Server release:  11103000

Video Card:
    Driver:  ATI Technologies Inc. ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5400 Series 

    Driver Version:  4.2.11931 Compatibility Profile Context
    Desktop Color Depth: 24 bits per pixel
    Monitor Refresh Rate: 60 Hz
    VendorID:  0x1002
    DeviceID:  0x68e0
    Number of Monitors:  1
    Number of Logical Video Cards:  1
    Primary Display Resolution:  1366 x 768
    Desktop Resolution: 1366 x 768
    Primary Display Size: 13.54" x 7.60"  (15.51" diag)
                                            34.4cm x 19.3cm  (39.4cm diag)
    Primary VRAM Not Detected

Sound card:
    Audio device: IDT 92HD73C1X5

Memory:
    RAM:  2871 Mb

Miscellaneous:
    UI Language:  English
    LANG:  en_GB.UTF-8
    Microphone:  Not set
    Total Hard Disk Space Available:  27287 Mb
    Largest Free Hard Disk Block:  5393 Mb

Installed software:

Recent Failure Reports: