testing version 3.3.2.
i observe “bad” hdd usage. i dont like how my hdd sounds and apparently there is more going on with it, for no apparent reason. see the images for v3.3.2 and v2.4.2 for comparison and visualization.
there is a slight chance, that the way i test the newer version can be causing this, so id like to know, if anyone else has this “bad” hdd usage.
The introduction of smart trimmed clips will inevitably use more memory … Audacity 3.1 - A Significant Audio Editing Improvement - YouTube t=66s
i dont see how this is related. or should be related
More data => More disk I/O.
im not using any special, or new features, hence i (should) have the same data, as in the genuine version.
That setting only affects clips copied from one project and pasted into another. There is no way to “turn off” smart clips.
How much difference smart clips make to the size of a project depends mostly on how much audio is deleted. Prior to smart clips, deleted audio was retained as Undo data until the project is closed, and removed from disk when the project is closed. Now, with smart clips, deleted audio remains (hidden) in the project indefinitely unless the clip is rendered. How much difference that will make to disk I/O depends on what you are doing as there are many factors involved.
I’ve not tried measuring the amount of disk I/O, but I would guess that the biggest increase in disk I/O is due to SQLite using temporary disk storage prior to writing into the AUP3 file (effectively writing data to disk twice in most cases). I’d guess that the increased amount of data does not make a lot of difference because hidden data is mostly accessed by reference rather than actually moving the data on disk.
Regardless of the exact details, disk usage is nearly always greater in recent versions of Audacity than in older versions, both in terms of disk space and I/O. Sometimes the difference will be relatively small, but in large complex projects the difference can be massive.
dont guess. find an old hdd and observe its behavior. something is done wrong. the older the hdd, the better you will see the issue - its how proper testing is done.
im a hdd wisperer. ive been using them for so long, that i know their language. my hdd is in pain with audacity 3.3.2. im not joking.
I’m aware that disk usage can be much greater in recent versions of Audacity, but I mostly use Audacity 2.4.2 which does not have these issues. I can speculate about the reasons based on knowledge of the code, but as I’m no longer involved in Audacity development I no longer need to know all the details.
Because the newer .AUP3 format is based on SQLite, FAT formatted drives are unsuitable, and network drives can be major headaches. There’s information about some drive issues regarding SQLite databases here: SQLite Frequently Asked Questions The SQLite documentation is pretty comprehensive and maybe worth a look if you are trying to resolve disk issues.
