Saving Time for a 500 MB Help-File

[Theo_Gottwald]

Let me say that my current Help-File for the Smart-Package Robot has already crossed the 500 MB Limit (>1000 Pages and a lot of pictures partly as PNG-Files). Now doing Changes it makes sense to save it often to not loose the changes if whatever happens.

Normal Saving using "ctrl+s" (or Save Button) takes several Minutes.

If i go instead to the "File/SAVE AS" and then save it as another Filename like "Backup_Helpfile.hmz" it saves in a few seconds!
Then i just save it as the original Filename overwriting the Original File - and also then it just saves in a few seconds.

Is there some "Sorting" etc. automatically done during the normal SAVE-Process, that is not done using "SAVE-AS"?

[Tim Green]

Hi Theo,

Is your project saved in the uncompressed (.hmxp, folder of directly accessible files with sub-folders) or the compressed (.hmxz, single file) format? If it is a larger project you should always work in the uncompressed format. You can convert it by selecting Save As... in the File menu. Then select an empty folder to save in. After that you can move your image files subfolder and any other subfolders and update your search path settings in Configuration > Common Properties > Project Search Path so that Help+Manual will find your images in the new location.

If you use the uncompressed format you should find that saving is faster.

[Theo_Gottwald]

I generally save it as one file, because it contains so many pages and pictures it will get into a chaos otherwise.
Anyway while you are right on that.
DO you have an explanation, why "Save AS" is much faster then "Save" even if the result (saving as one file) is the same?

[Tim Green]

DO you have an explanation, why "Save AS" is much faster then "Save" even if the result (saving as one file) is the same?

That shouldn't be possible. What may have happened is that you did a save first and then a Save As.. If you do that, then all the housekeeping that was done during the save had already been done, and HM just needed to make a copy. That's much faster, of course.

I generally save it as one file, because it contains so many pages and pictures it will get into a chaos otherwise.

Losing your project if there is a Windows or network error during the save process is much greater chaos. The point is, a HMXZ is a compressed binary (really a ZIP with a different extension, just like a Word DOCX file), and even minor damage to it can prevent access to all the contents. The uncompressed format consists of 100% plain text XML files, and even if a couple get slightly damaged in a scenario like that, even the unaffected parts of those files can be recovered.

In addition to that, the uncompressed format supports more features and is much more efficient. Also, if you're storing all your pictures in the HMXZ by putting them in the Baggage or by using embedded images, then it's not surprising that saving is taking a long time. The baggage really is only for small assets used in HTML output, like icons and additional CSS and JS files. And more than a couple of embedded images will bloat your project file(s) and can significantly slow down editing as well as making saves much slower.

Embedded images should always be converted to external files, which you can do easily with the right-click menu. They can be easily managed in a folder inside your HMXP project folder, and since everything is then in a single folder you can move it around without changing any settings. That format is strongly recommended for any ongoing work. HMXZ is nice for small, quick projects and for archiving, but HMXP is definitely the preferred working format.

PS: If you use the uncompressed format you can safely store your images in the baggage, but it's still better practice to put them in their own folder.