IM 5.8.2

[herman]

IMatch 5.8.2. downloaded and installed here as usual, no problems.

One thing I noticed, don't know if it is of any importance: this time the download on my machine was just called imatch_5_8_2 without the trailing characters and digits we used to have recently.
See attached screenshot.

[Mario]

This is correct.
I have changed the way IMatch downloads are prepared for download. The new pattern does not produce unique file names anymore. Users were confused and contacted me about that.

[BanjoTom]

I notice that as well when downloading and installing 5.8.2.  Thanks for that change, Mario!

[Mario]

I notice that as well when downloading and installing 5.8.2.  Thanks for that change, Mario!

Always improving 

[JohnZeman]

Installed here with no problems either on my brand new computer.

FWIW this new machine has my first ever SSD 500GB C: drive in it.  The IMatch program loaded much quicker on the SSD then as it opened the database, which is on a standard 6TB hard drive, it took a minute or so longer.  A nice improvement all around as my 6 year old machine took 4 minutes or so to launch the program and open the database.

[sinus]

John, I wish you good luck and fun with your new PC, sounds great 

[Mario]

Installed here with no problems either on my brand new computer.
then as it opened the database, which is on a standard 6TB hard drive, it took a minute or so longer.

New computers are always great. Congrats.
I'm note sure, but did you put the database also on your SSD? This is a great performance improvement.
It shows on "linear" operations like loading the database. But it even more speeds up "random" operations like searching, filtering, category calculations.

As I always say, spending some money on a SSD is money well spent. SSD storage is just great. And on super-fast systems, M2 SSDs now read 1 GB/second. Awesome.

[JohnZeman]

Thanks Markus and Mario.

I'm note sure, but did you put the database also on your SSD? This is a great performance improvement.

Mario currently I have the database on a second standard 6TB hard drive.  Would you advise that I have both the IMatch program and the database on the SSD?  I can certainly do that but have kept them on different drives thinking it would be better that way.

[sinus]

Of course only Mario can answer this, John.

I would guess, the both on your SSD would be better.
But Mario's answer will be interesting ... I am thinking also about a bigger SSD 

[Mario]

Mario currently I have the database on a second standard 6TB hard drive.  Would you advise that I have both the IMatch program and the database on the SSD?  I can certainly do that but have kept them on different drives thinking it would be better that way.

Absolutely. Moving the database to the SSD will be a massive performance boost.

[jelvers]

I have a 1 TB Samsung SSD 850 EVO as drive C: and enough space for the IM database. Sofar the IM programme starts on C:\ but my IM DB is on a conventional  drive, but I would would like to check the performance gain on the SSD. Guess I could just copy the database to C:\ and then open it from IMatch and just go ahead. Any other advice?

I have read that SSDs have a limited lifetime in comparison to other drives which is also determined by the access frequency. I am a little worried that by having IM DB on c:\ may negatively impact on the lifetime due to increased write/read frequency. But is that really true?

Thanks for your views

Juergen

[imfan]

Hi Jürgen,

I have a Samsung 840 Pro , 256GB SSD since 3 years installed. For my system as well as for my iMatch DB - no problem so far and I am working more or less everyday with iMatch.

[Mario]

I have read that SSDs have a limited lifetime in comparison to other drives which is also determined by the access frequency. I am a little worried that by having IM DB on c:\ may negatively impact on the lifetime due to increased write/read frequency. But is that really true?

Nope. Nonsense.

While SSD's have a limited lifetime, the vendors guarantee a certain amount of data written.

The renowned German computer magazine c't recently did a very interesting test to check how long SSDs really work.
The used several computers which did nothing than write, read, delete data from built-in SSDs of various brands.
The test took over 6 months.

For the Samsung 750 EVO, Samsung guarantees 3 years or 70 TBW (70 Terrabytes written). This means you can write 40 GB per day, for five years.
In the test, all SSDs held up for twice to 18 (!) times the guaranteed TBW. The Samsung EVO 750 gave up after 161 days of constant 24/7 usage. This is of course nothing that happens in real life.

It managed to write over 1200 (!) TB in that time, which is almost 18 times the guaranteed TBW (70).

It is much more likely that you buy a new computer or swap the SSD for a bigger, faster one than you run into problems because of too much data written.

Tip: Samsung has a software (Disk Magician?) which monitors the disk and tells you how much data you write per day and how much data was written in total.

This astonishing reliability does mean nothing when it comes to backups. You still have to make backups every day. Even the most robust SSD cannot protect you from deleting or damaging the wrong file, a computer virus, power surges or ransomware...

[JohnZeman]

Wow, you guys were right!  It made a day and night difference once I moved the database to the SSD too.

Loads much faster and even the script based slideshows I created snap from one photo to the next now.   

[Mario]

Awesome!
All IMatch operations will be a lot faster now.

Loads much faster and even the script based slideshows

Would you elaborate on that?
I will retire the ancient Basic scripting engine for IMatch 6 and instead support scripts written in JavaScript and HTML.

What does your script do?
Have you worked with IMatch Anywhere yet? It has a built-in Viewer which uses smooth animations to move between files. This could be enhanced to support transitions or I could even implement a separate slide show feature. This is quite easy to do with HTML and JavaScript because browsers support DirectX (Games Graphics) and there are cool slide show JavaScript libraries available...

[JohnZeman]

I'm not a pro Mario, I'm a retired old fart in my late 60s and occasionally I like to view slideshows of images in specific categories and I like to see certain metadata displayed with those images.  Primarily that means vacations and other major events in my life.  The attached screen shot shows you how I'm using it.

Each slideshow script is launched from a favorites panel you can see in the lower right of my screen shot.  I can pause the slideshow by clicking on the red square stop script button in the script manager panel which I positioned just above the favorites panel.

The photos are randomly selected from the specified category by the script and displayed in the Quick View panel.  Photos change every 10 seconds or whatever I have the slideshow delay set for.

Doing it this way lets me customize it to be exactly the way I want.  The normal IMatch viewer is great but I like random slideshows so I decided to do it this way instead.

I will retire the ancient Basic scripting engine for IMatch 6 and instead support scripts written in JavaScript and HTML.

What does your script do?
Have you worked with IMatch Anywhere yet?

I would really hate to see scripting retired and replaced by JavaScript and HTML because I'm getting to the age now where in a few years I won't be able to write new scripts in any language.  Even now it's a challenge when I need to go back and edit a script I wrote a recently as 5 years ago.

No, I haven't tried IMatch Anywhere yet, and to be honest I haven't even seen it.  That's only because it sounds like a way to use IMatch on other computers and I have no need for that so I never gave it a try.

[JohnZeman]

I forgot to mention that I store that configuration in a separate workspace named Slideshows.  That way I can easily toggle back and forth from my normal workspace to the one for slideshows.

[sinus]

I would really hate to see scripting retired and replaced by JavaScript and HTML because I'm getting to the age now where in a few years I won't be able to write new scripts in any language.  Even now it's a challenge when I need to go back and edit a script I wrote a recently as 5 years ago.

No, I haven't tried IMatch Anywhere yet, and to be honest I haven't even seen it.  That's only because it sounds like a way to use IMatch on other computers and I have no need for that so I never gave it a try.

Nice picture and your famous script.
Well, I am with you, I will hate it too.

I do not know, what the future will bring, but at the moment it seems to me, if one day the basic script will be gone from IMatch, I will go with this last version some time, maybe long   

I do not know, how ancient is this basic scripting, I found only a list (attachement).

But it is, I think and like Mario pointed out, simply because theses basic is very expensive for him.
And how many people out there does really use Script, I do not know.

At least I have some scripts, what saves me a lot of time, and I know, it will take ages, that I can do this in Javascript (though it is a fine language).

So, it is like it is. 

[Mario]

I will retire the Basic Scripting. That has already been decided. The current distribution license runs out in July or so and I will not renew it.
This means that I will have to remove Basic from IMatch versions released after that date. Older IMatch versions will keep running of course.

It's just not worth the money anymore. Only a few people use it. It's ancient. I cannot do any of the cool things I have in mind, and things that users need today.

IMatch has a built-in slide show feature which is quite good. I could improve it, or built a new one using HTML and JavaScript. This will be a lot faster than doing it in 'real' code.

[sinus]

John,
if I have time (evenings), I do lern a bit JS.

I think, it is quite complicated for me, but of course it is a question of time. to lern it. 

But on the other hand holds the brain joung! 

Attached 2 screen-examples, what I created so far. But they are not related to IMatch though.

But the third goes into your direction, your collapsile .... But mostly of the data here is pure html.
Only the picture and icons are taken from IMatch (from one of Mario's apps, and changed).

But taking pics from IMatch and do something with it, I find it very difficult or maybe I have simply not checked it, how it works.
Because the good apps what comes with IMatch, like the app "Tiles" (what is great) is so complicated for me, that I was not able to take some code from it.

What I have not, as a starting point, a simple app, what has access on 2 or 3 image (not only 1) and maybe the app takes then some tags (headline, keywords and also an attribute.).
From such an an app I would maybe be able to see, how it works, to deal with some images within IMatch.

For me it is like lerning some basic.
In one attachement there is an easy calculator. Looks easy designed and only the basic operator-possibilities (plus, minus, divide, mutliplicate).

I took the code from a "free-place" and because this code ist not that big I can work with it.  Lern and change some code and so.
There are great calculators, made with JS, out there with a lot of calculating possibilities.

But, this code is that complicated, that I have no chance to see, how it works (like the great tiles from Mario, no chance for me, to see, how JS can take 3 images from my IMatch-DB and work with it).

I can remember, I have "lerned" basic scripting here, when I bought a book for children  and Mario and others helped also a lot.

Sorry for the long post, but it is a really important stuff for me, scripting. If this is with Basic, great.
If with JS, even greater ... but I have to lern, how I can have access to my images in IMatch.

Until now, this knowledge I do not have. Maybe Mario will deliver some easy apps, where I can build better and better apps. That would be great.

Last: the third attachement shows 1 image from the DB.
All the data are variables, so no Javascript.
But if you would say, I want see 3 images, I would be at lost. No chance for me with JS.

With the basic scripting: no problem. 

So, I guess, I have to lern it. If I am not able to lern it, I will stay as long with the last IM-version with basic scripting as possible. 

Phew, it is Fryday, so that must be the reason for such a chaotic post.

[Mario]

This looks more than promising.

If with JS, even greater ... but I have to lern, how I can have access to my images in IMatch.

You can see how you can use IMWS directly in IMatch WebViewer. In the Gear menu, choose the "Discover IMatch WebServices" command.
This opens a page where you can see all methods currently supported by IMatch WebViewer. And you can try them out against the database immediately.
You can do that without any special tools, right in your web browser.

Of course I will provide sample scripts which show how to access IMWS from JavaScript. But since IMWS is a standard web service, any "How do I access a Web Service from JavaScript" tutorial out there will do the trick. The only difference between web services is the methods (or "endpoints") they support.

And that when you write a JavaScript that works with IMWS, the script will work whether you run the script on the same computer as IMWS, or on an Apple tablet 1000 miles away 

[jch2103]

You can see how you can use IMWS directly in IMatch WebViewer. In the Gear menu, choose the "Discover IMatch WebServices" command.
This opens a page where you can see all methods currently supported by IMatch WebViewer. And you can try them out against the database immediately.
You can do that without any special tools, right in your web browser.

Of course I will provide sample scripts which show how to access IMWS from JavaScript.

This should be helpful.

Regarding SSDs, it would seem they, along with other factors, are having an impact on conventional hard drive production: http://www.anandtech.com/show/11037/seagate-to-shut-down-one-of-its-largest-hdd-assembly-plants

[Mario]

along with other factors, are having an impact on conventional hard drive production

Sure. SSDs get bigger and cheaper and faster all the time. Only a matter of time before conventional spinning disks are a thing of the past.
I just saw a NAS system with 5 1 TB SSD disks in RAID 5 configuration. It was noise-less, low-powered and not much larger than my hand...

[jelvers]

Have you worked with IMatch Anywhere yet? It has a built-in Viewer which uses smooth animations to move between files. This could be enhanced to support transitions or I could even implement a separate slide show feature. This is quite easy to do with HTML and JavaScript because browsers support DirectX (Games Graphics) and there are cool slide show JavaScript libraries available...

Mario, the slide show feature would be indeed very cool. Looking forward to that.

Have in the meantime moved my IMDB to my SSD and performance boost is visible indeed!

Regards, Juergen