Feedback: some nice features but terribly slow

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rkoe
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Joined: Sun Jan 29, 2012 12:41 pm

Feedback: some nice features but terribly slow

Post by rkoe » Sun Jan 29, 2012 1:40 pm

Hi,
I like QCad2, and so I tested QCad 3 and noticed the following:

Positive:
  • I like the 3D projection.
  • I like that inserting a single objects from the library multiple times now only adds 1 block to the block list. :)
Suggestion:
  • library: When inserting an object from the library, could you make e.g. the right mouse button rotate the object by 90° before insering it (1 click=90°, 2 clicks=180°, 3 clicks=270°, 4 clicks=360° etc.)? That would make it much faster.
Negative:
  • Unfortunately, the library-objects still are not "stretchable at defined lines" like they were in QCad1. :( With this feature, you could e.g. have a single "stretchable" M6 screw in the library and set the length when inserting it; without it, you have to have M6 screws with every possible length in the library. This very useful feature was in QCad1, and I don't understand why it was removed in QCad2 and not added again in QCad 3. :(
  • The user-interface is terribly slow. If it doesn't get faster, QCad 3 will be completely unusable for me.
    Details (without harddisk-access, all files were cached in ram):
    • Startup: QCad2: 1-2s, QCad3: 10s; but this is not so important
    • Open library browser: QCad2: instantly, QCad3: 30s (!)
    • Menu bar:
      QCad2: instantly
      QCad3: 0.5-2s to open a menu! And when I switch from one menu to an other, it's so slow that I often first still see the old menu, then the old menu without text (=a gray rectange), then a gray rectangle for the new menu and then the new menu with text...
    • Click on a "CAD Tool" toolbar-button:
      QCad2: instantly after clicking, the new buttons are there
      QCad3: I have to wait 0.5-1s before the new buttons appear!
    So, after every click, I have to wait 0.5-1s, and so it's completely impossible to work with it . :x

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andrew
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Post by andrew » Sun Jan 29, 2012 8:39 pm

Stretchable library objects:

Something is in the works for that (scriptable library items). This is already possible by placing an ECMAScript into the part library (.js). Examples are included. More comfortable solutions based on custom entity properties will be available after the final QCAD 3 release.

Slow interface:

- The library browser is slower because it updates its search index on start up (QCAD 2 did not have a search functionality). This might be improved in the future but not for QCAD 3.0.
- Please let us know what operating system you are using.
- Is the QCAD user interface that slow with an empty drawing or only when a (complex) drawing is loaded?
- Did you check if you are not running our of RAM and your computer is starting to swap (use disk space as virtual RAM)?

Thanks for any additional information on that. It's certainly not normal. Maybe you have a chance to try QCAD 3 on a different computer or operating system?

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J-J
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start-up time

Post by J-J » Mon Jan 30, 2012 2:32 pm

for info:
start-up with ver2.2.2.0 or 3 is about 4s
library in ver 3: 12 to 13s
Menu bar: instant

system win7-64
proc:intel I7-2600 3.4/3.4 GHz
Ram: 16 Go

tukuyomi
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Joined: Mon Aug 09, 2010 6:15 pm

Post by tukuyomi » Mon Jan 30, 2012 4:02 pm

I kinda encounter the same symptoms. On Windows XP (dunno which version) as well as on Linux (Debian testing).
The interface sure seems less responsive.
Clicking on a button takes a bit of time (up to 1 sec) to show its sub-menu.
Drawing lines or measuring entities is choppy (even on non-complex drawings)
Opening DXF files takes some time as well (some complex drawing takes REALLY forever) and autozoom after opening comes some seconds later.
Simply moving the mouse on an empty drawing or tools buttons makes the CPU fly high.
And on Windows, Qcad takes a long time to boot, mainly "searching for plugins" and "loading plugins" (this one takes almost 20 secs before actually starting loading all js files).

I remembered seeing a post in these forums related with Qt UI style to make the UI faster or something; maybe Qt version used in qcad is the culprit...
I know it's old, and I do not code, so I can be wrong, but see there: https://bugreports.qt-project.org/brows ... 6083[quote]
The bug is that when moving the mouse cursor around on top of Qt windows, performance gets slaughtered badly on the Windows port (I did not test other ports yet.)[/quote]

rkoe
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Posts: 2
Joined: Sun Jan 29, 2012 12:41 pm

Post by rkoe » Fri Feb 03, 2012 11:27 pm

- Please let us know what operating system you are using.
Debian 6 (Squeeze)
- Is the QCAD user interface that slow with an empty drawing or only when a (complex) drawing is loaded?
It's slow with an empty drawing. (I haven't tested QCad3 with any loaded drawing.)
- Did you check if you are not running our of RAM and your computer is starting to swap (use disk space as virtual RAM)?
There was enough ram, and no swap was used.

After testing it a bit more (e.g. on a different computer and with a different graphics-driver), I know a bit more. The QCad3 performance seems to depend on the graphics driver (maybe on the OpenGL performance?).
  • Nvidia graphics + driver "nouveau": very slow
  • Nvidia graphics + proprietary driver "nv": faster, but still slower than QCad2
  • Intel graphics + driver "intel": faster, but still slower than QCad2 (somehow like Nvidia+"nv")
So, I don't know if the bad performance is the fault of QCad3 or of the GUI-Library (Qt). But although performance can be improved with a different (unfortunately proprietary) graphics driver, I would still stay at QCad2 for performance reasons.


PS: Your forum-software is shitty. If you try to carefully write a response, and so need some minutes for this, and then e.g. click on "Preview", the software throws the reply away (probably because of some silly timeout), and you have to write the reply again... :x And the buttons in the editor assume that the text is written completely linear, and a click on a button does not insert the code to the current cursor position, but to the end of the text and after that scrolls to the top of the text, so that the end of the text isn't visible anymore. :!: :shock:

hairy_marmite
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Joined: Thu Jun 21, 2012 11:59 am

Re: Feedback: some nice features but terribly slow

Post by hairy_marmite » Thu Jun 21, 2012 12:08 pm

I had slow ui response in RC5 until i typed qtconfig at the command line and switched the style to CDE. Now is loads quicker.

Haven't investigated why yet as I have work to do.

Using Debian 6 Squeeze by the way.

Hope it works for you

magicleader
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Joined: Mon Jul 16, 2012 5:29 pm

Re: Feedback: some nice features but terribly slow

Post by magicleader » Wed Jul 18, 2012 7:18 pm

Hi,

i have similar problems.

When i work with an empty document all works fine. If i open a dwg file (about 1.2 mb) all functions begin to run really slow.

It takes about 30 second to open the file, 15 seconds to enable / disable a layer..

I i try to edit or move some labels but the main window become white and load for many time (minutes).

I tried in 3 differents pc (all core 2 due with 3 gb ram running win 7 32 bit)

If i disable some layers qcad began to run a little bit faster...

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andrew
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Re: Feedback: some nice features but terribly slow

Post by andrew » Thu Jul 19, 2012 1:42 pm

If you experience problems with a particular drawing, please send us the file for testing:
http://www.ribbonsoft.com/shop/contact-form.php

There are known performance issues with drawings that contain many complex blocks and with certain snap functions in connection with ellipses and splines.

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