Thursday, October 24, 2013
GIMP is Slow - And So Are We To Act - Part Two
There is hope for a Windows GIMP user wanting to further reduce the amount of time spent waiting for GIMP to display the application window. Unfortunately, the steps required of you will have a negative affect on your operating system and applications.
I don't recommend you do what I describe here. I only undertake discussing it in Erratalog because I have done it, and I have found that I can live with the results. You, on the other hand, may get quite angry should you do what I tell you not to do.
If you follow the instructions outlined in this blog post, you will lose system and application functionality. Therefore, you should consider these steps as being harmful to your computer.
Again, I do not recommend you follow these instructions. Any harm you cause to you or your system are your doing. This blog post is simply a tool to set that harm in motion, with you being the fool wielding that tool.
The task involves moving a great many and specific system protected True Type Font and True Type Font Collection files out of the Windows system fonts folder. If you installed Windows to the default location of a hard drive whose letter is "C", this folder is situated at C:/Windows/Fonts. All of the moved fonts support foreign language characters and are very much invisible to us if we never require or use them, with a few exceptions.
You will not be using a font manager to move these files since they will be of no help. Even if they display these protected foreign character fonts, they won't remove them from the system fonts folder.
The specific font files moved out of this folder are installed at the time Windows is installed, or subsequently if you ask Windows or other applications to provide or enable language support for foreign languages, or if they require it. These font files are both protected and hidden by the system by default, for the most part. So you may be totally unaware they are there, or you've seen them and shrugged your shoulders wondering what in hell they are doing on your computer.
When you visit a Chinese web site, you see the very same Chinese text the web site developer sees in your uni-lingual English Windows operating system and in browser applications and the like. If you install a Chinese developed Windows application that permits you to switch between an English-language application interface or a Chinese one, you'll also enjoy the benefit of having these font files. They allow you to make your application look just like it does in the screenshots featured on the Chinese developer's native language web site.
If the ReadMe.txt or Help.chm or Help.htm file accompanying this application is Chinese-only, these fonts allow you to view the text as actual Chinese characters. You can cut and paste this text into other files, applications, or into search engine or translator web site input fields.
Other fonts enable your Windows to employ Arabic language text in file names and extensions, such as when you save an Arabic web page whose title is totally Arabic to your hard drive. It exposes and enables you to work in a tremendous number of languages, even if you only work in one language. The system supports it even though you personally don't work on the computer in that language.
Moving the fonts out of the Windows system folder breaks all this unique functionality in your system, and much more. The above paragraphs provide a small sampling of what can or may be lost to you and your system. You won't see foreign language characters. Instead, you'll see garbage characters replacing them since the system no longer has character data with which to place on your screen - so it throws up whatever is handy, and usually, it's quite ugly to look at. Lots of little square boxes with numbers in them, all perfectly uniform in appearance, and all positively useless.
This specific thread is where I discovered the method discussed here. The reply by "support-ing" on February 11, 2010 is the specific entry where the method is described. You should visit his web site and get the most up-to-date version of the 2manyfonts batch file he created and the very necessary instructions you need to follow in order to make it work correctly. Save the instructions to a file. Write them down. Memorize them. You know what works best for you.
These instructions are solely for those whose Windows install supports US-English, UK-English, or any uni-lingual English variant that is nearly identical, and whose user only requires support for this language and it's characters alone. Those whose systems support creoles/krios, pidgins, or other variants whose roots are English and/or other languages should not follow these instructions. ie: If your mother or father use the system and require krio support, even if you don't, these instructions will harm their use of the computer.
You need to have administrative priviledges on the system in order to use the batch file. If the computer isn't yours, or you are not the administrator, I highly advise you to get permission from the administrator or owner of the system you are using. Most system administrators, if not all, will recommend that you do NOT do this to your system, for very good reasons. They certainly won't like the idea of you doing it to a company or shared computer. If you are uncomfortable doing it, get the administrator to do it for you. Once you see the admin do it, you'll see how easy it is.
The batch file references over one hundred True Type Font and True Type font Collection (TTF and TTC) font files, and moves them all out of the Windows font folder. All of the font files it references are fonts that are protected by Windows in certain Windows installations. Many of them will exist in your Windows fonts folder. Those that do not will exist in other Windows computers. The commonality is that they all have the system protecting and/or hiding them.
Here's why I used the 2manyfonts batch file.
Each time a change is detected in your collection of active font files by GIMP, it is forced to interrogate all of the font files in the system when GIMP is starting up. Many of these foreign character font files protected by the system are very large, occupying many megabytes of storage, and add a significant amount of time to GIMP start-ups. By moving them out of the Windows font folder, you'll notice a significant reduction in font interrogation time whenever GIMP interrogates fonts. Any other applications that have this font interrogation behaviour benefit in the same manner.
Less files to interrogate means less time and CPU spent interrogating. GIMP loads faster. You get to use GIMP faster. You are more productive because you aren't leaving the office to have a beer or cigarette or coffee while GIMP loads.
Here are all the TTF/TTC fonts that resided in my Windows font folder before I ran the 2manyfonts batch file procedure on my system. I had already removed a great many fonts using the MainType font manager, some two hundred plus. The files marked with !!! after the modification date/time were moved by 2manyfonts. Note the file sizes of what gets moved, and what stays.
Filename.............................File Size.....Modification Date
batang.ttc 16,264,732 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
gulim.ttc 13,524,972 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
meiryo.ttc 9,533,888 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
meiryob.ttc 9,749,256 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
mingliu.ttc 32,217,124 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
mingliub.ttc 33,805,700 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
msgothic.ttc 9,176,636 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
msmincho.ttc 10,057,108 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
simsun.ttc 15,323,200 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
arial.ttf 778,552 10/05/2011 6:38 PM
arialbd.ttf 749,004 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
arialbi.ttf 561,924 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
ariali.ttf 555,884 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
cour.ttf 709,600 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
courbd.ttf 710,192 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
courbi.ttf 530,336 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
couri.ttf 618,240 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
ebrima.ttf 304,428 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
ebrimabd.ttf 298,952 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
estre.ttf 110,436 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
euphemia.ttf 172,656 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
gautami.ttf 256,384 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
gautamib.ttf 221,268 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
himalaya.ttf 610,104 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
iskpota.ttf 548,036 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
iskpotab.ttf 368,924 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
kalinga.ttf 212,356 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
kalingab.ttf 205,636 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
kartika.ttf 131,264 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
kartikab.ttf 126,460 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
KhmerUI.ttf 330,464 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
KhmerUIb.ttf 263,864 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
LaoUI.ttf 97,516 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
LaoUIb.ttf 88,700 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
latha.ttf 120,848 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
lathab.ttf 119,848 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
lucon.ttf 115,016 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
malgun.ttf 4,337,296 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
malgunbd.ttf 4,515,044 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
mangal.ttf 206,260 04/11/2010 9:59 PM!!!
mangalb.ttf 191,892 04/11/2010 9:59 PM!!!
marlett.ttf 26,672 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
micross.ttf 652,664 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
monbaiti.ttf 356,576 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
msjh.ttf 21,663,376 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
msjhbd.ttf 14,512,072 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
msyh.ttf 21,767,952 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
msyhbd.ttf 14,602,860 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
msyi.ttf 342,124 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
mvboli.ttf 84,940 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
ntailu.ttf 82,864 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
ntailub.ttf 75,552 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
nyala.ttf 438,016 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
phagspa.ttf 146,496 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
phagspab.ttf 150,228 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
plantc.ttf 118,824 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
raavi.ttf 94,300 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
raavib.ttf 93,800 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
segoeui.ttf 516,560 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
segoeuib.ttf 497,372 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
segoeuii.ttf 385,560 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
segoeuil.ttf 330,908 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
segoeuiz.ttf 398,148 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
seguisb.ttf 406,192 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
seguisym.ttf 842,104 04/07/2012 11:13 AM
shruti.ttf 270,172 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
shrutib.ttf 235,340 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
simsunb.ttf 15,406,288 10/06/2009 5:25 PM!!!
sylfaen.ttf 228,348 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
tahoma.ttf 700,180 10/05/2011 6:38 PM
tahomabd.ttf 648,008 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
taile.ttf 72,008 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
taileb.ttf 63,364 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
times.ttf 834,240 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
timesbd.ttf 840,736 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
timesbi.ttf 619,972 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
timesi.ttf 661,244 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
tunga.ttf 188,908 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
tungab.ttf 174,896 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
verdana.ttf 191,344 25/08/2011 10:59 PM
vrinda.ttf 259,520 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
vrindab.ttf 257,672 10/06/2009 5:26 PM!!!
Here is what remained after running 2manyfonts.
Filename..........................File Size.....Modification Date
arial.ttf 778,552 10/05/2011 6:38 PM
arialbd.ttf 749,004 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
arialbi.ttf 561,924 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
ariali.ttf 555,884 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
cour.ttf 709,600 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
courbd.ttf 710,192 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
courbi.ttf 530,336 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
couri.ttf 618,240 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
lucon.ttf 115,016 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
marlett.ttf 26,672 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
micross.ttf 652,664 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
segoeui.ttf 516,560 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
segoeuib.ttf 497,372 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
segoeuii.ttf 385,560 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
segoeuil.ttf 330,908 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
segoeuiz.ttf 398,148 16/01/2011 7:34 PM
seguisb.ttf 406,192 10/06/2009 5:26 PM
seguisym.ttf 842,104 04/07/2012 11:13 AM
tahoma.ttf 700,180 10/05/2011 6:38 PM
tahomabd.ttf 648,008 16/01/2011 7:35 PM
times.ttf 834,240 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
timesbd.ttf 840,736 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
timesbi.ttf 619,972 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
timesi.ttf 661,244 04/11/2010 10:00 PM
verdana.ttf 191,344 25/08/2011 10:59 PM
The real gain, for me, is in moving out two hundred and forty-two megabytes of TTF/TTC font data, leaving behind a paltry eighteen megabytes. Your mileage may differ. It is not uncommon to have over three hundred megabytes of these foreign fonts. On my netbook computer with an anemic first generation Atom CPU that always struggles to fire up GIMP, or anything for that matter, a several minute wait while GIMP interrogated fonts was reduced to less than twenty seconds interrogating fonts. You can imagine how much I hated firing up GIMP on that P.O.S. system (No, it's not used as a point of sale device).
The 2manyfonts batch file does not address the numerous FON files on a system. These files are also problematic with respect to moving them out of the Windows font folder. A number of FON-type files are system critical, and Windows may not boot without them. The FON-type font files don't affect GIMP font interrogation nearly as much since they are all very small. But they do clutter up the Text tool in GIMP if you have over a hundred of them as I do on my box.
I didn't add these 100+ FON files to Windows. They're there as part of the Windows install and/or in support of specific hardware/devices and driver software associated with them. So I suspect many others out there have the same issue.
I'll leave discussion about FON-type files for another day.
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