Path: utzoo!dptcdc!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!bbn!apple!bloom-beacon!primerd!barry
From: barry@primerd.prime.com
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Inefficiency with DiskFit 1.5 durin
Message-ID: <160700025@primerd>
Date: 18 Apr 89 01:36:00 GMT
References: <1122@atux01.UUCP>
Lines: 21
Nf-ID: #R:atux01.UUCP:-112200:primerd:160700025:000:1199
Nf-From: primerd.prime.com!barry    Apr 17 21:36:00 1989


My recollection of how DiskFit works when creating a NEW Smartset is
that it processes smallest files first and largest files last. This
ordering almost always ensures an increasing amount of wasted space
per floppy as floppies are added; since small files are used first,
it becomes increasingly likely that there will be a sizable chunk of
space left on a floppy, but all files remaining to be written are too
big to fit. A simple change that would yield much better space
utilization is to process files from largest to smallest, e.g.
whenever there is unused space on floppy, whether reclaimed space or
newly formatted space, always write the largest unwritten file that
will fit.  Since small files are useful for "filling in the chinks",
DiskFit should try to hold on to these, not use them up at the
beginning.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Barry Wolman                      | barry@s66.prime.com
Principal Technical Consultant    | 492 Old Connecticut Path
Prime Computer                    | Framingham, MA 01701
                                  | 508/626-1700, ext. 4187
------------------------------------------------------------------------