The Archive (Preview): testing loading time, responsiveness when typing & external editors open
Hey folks,
I stumbled upon a solution to prevent file saving conflicts with some external editors that had the same file open. It boils down to letting macOS know before anything is done to a file so that other apps are prevented from simultaneous access.
On my machine, this increased the loading time from 2 to 28 seconds, though, as all my notes are read from disk 
Otherwise, typing and auto-saving seems unchanged, except when an external editor is open that seems to be especially greedy with regards to file access and interferes. (e.g. iA Writer) When auto-saving takes place every couple heartbeats, I do notice a slight sub-second delay between 2 characters while I type. You know, the classic "hit keys on the keyboard but they appear with a delay" thing.
Could y'all give it a spin, especially if you're on MacBook Airs or older Macs? Might also be worth noting if you have FileVault enabled or not (System Prefs > Security & Privacy)
The preview version is here:
https://dlyfuw95744jo.cloudfront.net/TheArchive-b185.zip
Thanks!
Christian
Author at Zettelkasten.de • https://christiantietze.de/
Howdy, Stranger!
Comments
Hi Christian can I run this next to my existing installation? If not I can get a 2011 Macbook Air to test it on.
I am a Zettler, ie 'one who zettles'
research: pragmatism, 4e cognitive science, metaphor | you can't be neutral on a moving train
Yeah, that works. If you want to test things, it'd be great if you deliberately try how the new version behaves when the same file is open in the original The Archive on your machine, and if the original installation is closed, just like with other external editors. Thanks!
Author at Zettelkasten.de • https://christiantietze.de/
Version 1.6.3 is now on the cutting edge update channel and ships with various little file conflict improvements. I also had a nice chat with an engineer at iA Writer's office and if you want to have The Archive and iA Writer cooperate better, this update and upcoming changes to iA Writer will help with that. 🎉
Author at Zettelkasten.de • https://christiantietze.de/
Christian, could you please elaborate on this? I've deeply intrigued. I write in Ulysses, using external folders and .txt rather than their app specific database, because I prefer the file management, but I love iA Writer as well.
With abandon,
Patrick
@DeaconPatrick A user reported trouble when the same file was open in iA Writer and The Archive: a lot of file conflicts happened there. We discussed what each of us is doing and adapt some things to make the app's play more nicely with each other, without conflicts. That's basically it.
From The Archive's point of view, this improves interoperability with other apps as well if they save very often in the background.
Author at Zettelkasten.de • https://christiantietze.de/
Thank you, Christian!
@ctietze If I may ask a "noob question", does that implie that I can use iA Writer to edit my zettels in IOS, when my app is The Archive?
In other words, The Archive on the Mac, and iA Writer on IOS?
I know a few of us use 1Writer on iOS and The Archive on Mac. That combination works very well. In my case my notes are stored in a folder that syncs using Dropbox.
@MartinBB, do you have issues with the Dropbox syncing modifying the file/notes creation date? I do.
Will Simpson
My zettelkasten is for my ideas, not the ideas of others. I don’t want to waste my time tinkering with my ZK; I’d rather dive into the work itself. My peak cognition is behind me. One day soon, I will read my last book, write my last note, eat my last meal, and kiss my sweetie for the last time.
kestrelcreek.com
Hi @Will, I look at file creation dates about once every death of a Pope, as the Italians say, so I haven't noticed anything. If I was concerned about it, I would use A Better Finder Attributes to take the UUID from the filename and make that the file creation date. Wonderful utility -- I've been using it for years.
@MartinBB could you tell me the italian phrasing of that figure of speech?
my first Zettel uid: 202008120915
Una volta ogni morte di papa -- if I remember correctly -- and these days my memory is shot!
@MartinBB muite grazie!
my first Zettel uid: 202008120915
Hi - like @MartinBB , I use 1Writer on iOS and The Archive on my Mac. That works well and I don't have any synch problems. My zettelkasten resides in a Dropbox folder, which both The Archive and 1Writer access quite easily.
I use iA Writer for various tasks and for some applications I like its features better than 1Writer. I have used it for editing my zettelkasten files but find it's "fiddlier" than 1Writer. So I prefer 1Writer for editing zettels. But you could use either 1Writer or iA Writer - they are both excellent apps.
Correct!!!
I think your Italian is perfect and Verona is a beautiful place to live ;-)
https://virtualtour.verona360.it/VR/
Troppo gentile! Perfetto sicuramente no - (purtroppo!) - ma me la cavo in qualche modo. D'accordo su Verona (ostrega!).
Yes!