progeCAD support, tips and troubleshooting forum. progeCAD works very similar to some versions of AutoCAD. Moderated.

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#388 by rodent027
Sun Jan 11, 2009 11:38 pm
This question has been asked but never answered.

New to progeCad( but not autocad) still in the testing phase

It is real slow to save a file, even a small one. Real annoying with autosave set to 15min. I'm talking about 20 sec. wait on a small file.

I'm running XP Pro sp2, p4, 3ghz, 2gb ram, no xrefs in the file, a few blocks, not connected to any network, all saved on local drive. I have a hp oj7200 and hp dj500 connected via usb. Also noticed printing from any other app to be slower to bring up the printer window. Possibly due to the added progeSoft PDF and JPG printer
#390 by caddit
Mon Jan 12, 2009 1:44 am
Hi rodent027,


First, progeCAD 2009 will offer significant performance improvements.

As to printers, additional printers do not normally interfere with the function of existing ones unless there was a more fundamental problem in the setup of your operating system to start with. As for slow saving, sometimes a buggy drawing can also cause this. Can you please paste your results of an "audit" command run from progeCAD? Also, you say you have some blocks, what kind? external? embedded? nested? Does your DWG drawing(s) contain any microsoft OLE objects, tables or images? You can also try using the "PURGE" command to lighten the file.

Other tips to increase progeCAD performance:
Turn off Windows Themes and Effects (right click on screen background, click "Properties", and turn off the "Effects" items from the "Appearance" tab (also other Windows "eye candy"):

Image


Have you checked the "Event Viewer" in your Control Panel for entries logged at the time of any "strange behaviour"? If you still feel there is a problem related to the third-party PDF or JPG printer remove them and see if it makes a difference.

Also check if there are updated drivers available for your other printers, just in case there was a bug discovered in their development that might be the root of some incompatibility.

If you continue to have problems we might need a sample of your DWG files causing the problem.

#404 by rodent027
Sat Jan 17, 2009 11:29 pm
Results from a audit:

Command : audit
Fix any errors detected? [Yes/No] <N>: n
AcDbMInsertBlock(1AEB), Number of rows (0), Validation: <Not >0>, Default value is: < Set to 1>.
2679 objects audited C:\Program Files\progeSOFT\progeCAD 2008 Pro ENG\Projects\Jim Cabin Plan.dwg Sat Jan 17 16:51:19 2009
Total errors found during audit 1, fixed 0
Command : '_PMTHIST

The blocks are just dwg. files. Like a door or window symbol. Nothing embedded or nested. No MS OLE objects, tables or images. I do use purge frquently. Usually after a big editing day.

Window effects have be reduced. Event Viewer showed nothing related to progeCad only information and a warning at "Userenv"

Could the evaluation version be the problem?

#413 by rodent027
Wed Jan 21, 2009 2:58 am
Still testing 2008.

File to be e-mailed.
#414 by caddit
Wed Jan 21, 2009 6:56 am
Hi,


We have tested the file in lab and only noticed that same one error when running "audit", but I notice that my file size is several K bytes more than yours after only adding a line or two both in 2008 and 2009 versions. It is possible that something is very different with your installation or computer.

I have forwarded your file to development for further study, but now try the following:

1) I suggest as administrator, run "Disk Cleanup" and "Disk Defragmenter" (under system tools) on your hard drive. A really messed up drive might be your problem.

2) Uninstall progeCAD 2008 (it is old) and install progeCAD 2009 instead.

Let me know the results. Thank you!

#417 by rodent027
Sat Jan 24, 2009 1:01 am
File sent.

Thanks for all the help. It is strange to have all this help from a software company. Unlike another Cad company, I will not mention any names like AutoCAD, that take your money and leaves you hanging.

Thanks again.

r.
#423 by caddit
Thu Jan 29, 2009 1:38 pm
Hi,

Now you actually have us digging. Let's see:

We have noticed that sometimes the "Spoolsv" process may cause this slowdown with the file save, open and print commands.
Try this procedure:
-restart the computer
-open Task Manager, go in "Processes" item, select "Spoolsv" with the right button of the mouse and choose "End process tree"

Is file save still slow after stopping the "spoolsv" service?

Please also tell us if you have the same file save problems with progeCAD 2009:
http://www.progecam.com/download/progeCAD_Professional_2009_CADDIT.exe

#425 by rodent027
Sun Feb 01, 2009 5:54 pm
that is the problem, sort of.

I ended the Spoolsv process and the save was quicker the first time. After the first save, "Spoolsv" was restarted and save was back to being slow again.

Also after stopping the process there was two error upon launching progeCAD - "Impossible to add JPG Driver" and "Impossible to add PDF Driver" I ran the install file for both drivers (installjpg.exe and installpdf.exe) but that just started the "spoolsv" process again and save was slow again.

There does seam to be a conflict with the 'Spoolsv" process, but no way to get around it.
#426 by caddit
Tue Feb 03, 2009 2:03 am
Now that we have isolated your problem with the Windows "spoolsv" service, there are several more things we can look at to fix it:

1) What kind of Anti-Virus software are you running? CADDIT has had very bad experiences with NORTON and CA VET. We recommend NOD 32 Antivirus.

2) If your antivirus causes other problems you can also look at Microsoft Update KB887742

3) Microsoft Office Document Image Writer has been known to cause this. If you have Office Image Writer installed, you can try deleting it.

4) Are you working on a network with shared printers (Windows SMB print sharing, not UNIX LPR which normally is no problem)?

5) Do you have an NVIDIA chipset graphics card? If so which one?

6) Make sure you have "Print directly to the printer" set in the "Advanced" tab of the PRINTER PROPERTIES (control panel) for BOTH the JPEG and PDF print drivers as shown below:

Image

#447 by rodent027
Sun Feb 08, 2009 3:05 am
I am running Avast Anti-Virus, free version. I turned off all the services then ran progeCAD, still slow.

Anti-Virus has not caused other problems so I have not tried the MS Update.

Do not have Office Image Writer installed.

Printers are not on a network nor is the computer.

The graphics card is a Nvidia Quadro FX 1400.

Both drivers are set to "Print directly to Printer"

Evaluation is over, so testing may continue with ver. 9.0. Maybe this will fix the problem, after uninstalling 8.0.

#670 by turbflow
Tue Jun 16, 2009 12:23 pm
Is there any update for this issue? There are posts on various forums dating back to at least early 2006 with what looks to be a consistent problem. It is constantly cited as a major negative with the software, with which we are otherwise happy.

We're running 2009 (up-to-date at 9.0.22.5) and suffer very slow saving, even with very small (40 kB) files. Even files of moderate size can take a minute or more to save. The same problem was experienced with the 2008 version.

Taking the advice of a post above, I killed spoolsv with immediate effect - the save time for a small file went from 20 seconds to less than 1 second. Removing 'Microsoft Office Document Image Writer' (can their names be any longer?) did not help. Neither does purging, etc. (These are tiny files, so it cannot be related to disk fragmentation, memory, etc. - there is a fundamental problem in the way the files are being saved.)

Doing a little digging, it looks like the installed printers are being enumerated, with a lot of time spent doing something with the 'progeSOFT PDF Wizard' (why would this be done? - what does that have to do with saving a DWG?). As we have some networked printers, I did an experiment and disconnected the network - the file had not finished saving after more than 2 minutes, when I gave up and killed it. However, removing the network printers from the system did not solve the problem.

Any update would be appreciated, as this is by far the most annoying issue with the product.
#671 by caddit
Wed Jun 17, 2009 7:16 am
Hi turbflow,


You are absolutely right. We have seen this problem ourselves slowly creeping (no pun intended) back into the software again and your post was indeed quite timely. The manufacturer has already assigned a developer as we speak to fix the issue, particularly in regards to spoolsv.

I believe we have already spotted the problem, are working quickly to resolve and should be able to offer a patch soon.