[Script] for Large Storage Drives /Updated + Alternate for Steam

[Kasuha]

I work with VERY big pictures, PNG files with 130 MB or more (1200 dpi A3 pictures for poster usage or bigger) and I did not even notice any difference with the new 500GB hitachi hard disk (7K500) between fastfilling the zones and sorting.

Personally I consider 130 MB files 'large' and these go directly to my 'big spacehogs' zone which is not just never sorted but even not fastfilled.

But you know, majority of population does not work with such large images. The more specific usage pattern you have, the more should you be aware of the fact that what works for you may not work for everyone.

Whenever you come and write something like 'this MUST be ALWAYS done this way', please add 'on MY PC' to it. Then I'll have no comments to such statement.

[BloodySword]

Mhh I also work with small images, and did not notice even any difference between fastfill and sort. Directory listing, thumbnail creation etc is fast. Don't know why it should not be for all other people.

[Kasuha]

Don't know why it should not be for all other people.

Yes, that's exactly the problem. You can't imagine somebody can ever use the PC any different way than you do.

Let me give you an idea: A video file can be broken up to individual images. When you want to play back the video, having these images all around the drive does not really improve the framerate. You may say storing a video this way is ineffective but that doesn't mean nobody's doing that. Accidentally, I have a few such ones on my drive. And that's just one example, I'm pretty sure there may be many more valid reasons to have images or music sorted.

[BloodySword]

You don't seem to understand, that I'm not using the files in a fixed defined way. I somewhat mix a lot of usage patterns and I think I did a lot of things the average user might do.

Let me explain: I said that on a FAST drive it is not really neccessary to sort this spacehogs. On slow drives this might speed things up but I did not notices much difference on my TravelStar 7K500 HDD. So everyone with a fast HDD should test it and consider if he needs sorting or not. But sorting spacehogs should be avoided.

[poutnik]

Thingsa like images, videos (including movies or episodes), music should NEVER be sorted.

As usual you yet again consider your particular usage pattern the only one in the world.

I agree with you there's little point to sort videos and generally any large files as time needed to access such file is orders of magnitude shorter than time to read it.
Also there's little point to sort media files you intend to just view or listen to.

But if you need to perform batch operations with your images or music files often enough, then having them sorted is really good idea.

Question is how much often over the same files is good justification and how many times one do that.

For pictures/music process time can be much longer than transfer time, depending on content processing operation.
Sorting does not make much sense for such file processing batch operations.

[poutnik]

Let me give you an idea: A video file can be broken up to individual images. When you want to play back the video, having these images all around the drive does not really improve the framerate. You may say storing a video this way is ineffective but that doesn't mean nobody's doing that. Accidentally, I have a few such ones on my drive. And that's just one example, I'm pretty sure there may be many more valid reasons to have images or music sorted.   

I would say negation of one extreme ( 1/few-cluster-sized segmented files ) is not the opposite  extreme ( sorted multimedia files ).
Most valid reasons for sorting them are just being the easy alternative for grouping them, aside of zoning.

[poutnik]

You don't seem to understand, that I'm not using the files in a fixed defined way. I somewhat mix a lot of usage patterns and I think I did a lot of things the average user might do.

Let me explain: I said that on a FAST drive it is not really neccessary to sort this spacehogs. On slow drives this might speed things up but I did not notices much difference on my TravelStar 7K500 HDD. So everyone with a fast HDD should test it and consider if he needs sorting or not. But sorting spacehogs should be avoided.

At comparison, I has also consider only part of gain is caused by sorting,  rest is done is done by grouping.
3 cases to be evaluated
1 fastfilled zone
extra fastfilled zone(s) for files of interest + 1 fastfilled zone for the rest
extra sorted zone(s)    for files of interest + 1 fastfilled zone for the rest

[alttbm]

OK you've bitched about this script long enough
I use the drive for Photoshop work, java coding, Multimedia Storage / Hosting, and Games (in Raid Stripe)
find someone who doesn't fall into one of those categories
who give 2 shitts if the media is sorted or grouped its no slower than fastfill
+ I got a miner case of OCD I need it that way
change if it makes you happy i posted it the way I did for a reason