Map-Making Q&A

[DiM]

is there any way to reduce the psd file size, aside from merging layers?

my laptop is beginning to show it's age and it needs almost 6 minutes to open my psd file and whenever i move several layers at once it's a real adventure as it lags like hell and sometimes even freezes for several minutes.

so right now i basically have to keep the layer number to the bare minimum if i want to be able to work.
for example on my latest map each icon has 22 layers. if i put those layers in a separate group then multiply the groups and place them all over the map i'll end up with 528 layers just for the icons and my laptop will just crash and burn. so instead i keep those icons in a separate psd file with all the layers so i can edit them, and on the actual map i use the merged versions of those icons. so now i have just 24 layers with icons instead of 528.
this allows me to work without worrying the laptop might freeze and erase all my work. but the trouble starts whenever i have to make a modification because i have to open the icons psd, make the modification. save it, merge the icon group again, save that separately,open the map psd, import the merged icon and replace it in the exact position where the original icon was. this takes a lot of time unfortunatelly.

so does anybody have a better solution? (aside from upgrading the laptop)

[RjBeals]

instead of merging, you can try to use place smart objects from the file>place menu. It may not reduce file size though - not sure. .

[DiM]

LOL it actually makes it larger.


with 4 icons at 22 layers each i have 12.328 MB
with those 4 icons merged into 4 layers i have 12.206MB
with a single smart object for all 4 icons i have 12.398MB, probably more if i use 1 smart object for each icon.

wow, i really didn't expect that...

PS: also this method i'm using is very risky as a single mistake can do irreparable damage. i accidentally merged the icons with full layers in my back-up psd and even saved the file. luckily this was done while i had the full layer icons in the main map to test its size and i managed to recover them from there and place them back in the back-up psd.

[natty dread]

Get a new computer

Sorry I can't help you. Maybe try GIMP? It might run a bit smoother than PS on your computer.

[RjBeals]

sorry - but an icon with 22 layers is super inefficient.

[Telvannia]

It was going to suggest splitting it but then i reread and saw you did that anyway. But maybe instead of having a file for each icon and add them to the map one by one, make a file that is the same size as the map image and place all the icons in their correct places on that, then you save that as a png whenever you make a change and when you add it to your map you dont have to place the icons everytime.
Although im not too familiar with photoshop method so there might be a better way to do it. But that is the best i can think off.

Or you could just not edit your icons again.

[gimil]

Download CCleaner.

http://www.piriform.com/CCLEANER

This tool can be used to clean out your computer and give it back a bit of performance. There are two tools this program uses. The first is the cleaner, which look through your computers caches, internet history etc and gets rid of files that are just junk. I have gotten up to 8GB of junk off a friends computer and that clawed back a good it of performance.

The second tool clears out your computers registry (probably where you are having problems DiM).

Give it a try and let me know if it claws back some performance.

[DiM]

The second tool clears out your computers registry (probably where you are having problems DiM).

Give it a try and let me know if it claws back some performance.

my laptop is in tip top shape. constant removal of temp files, deletion of unused registry entries, defragmentation, minimal applications installed, etc.
the reason its performance is kinda low is that it's very old. it's a 2.2ghz t7500 core 2 duo, with 2gb ram and a 512mb geforce 9500mgs bought 4.5 years ago.
back then it was a really good laptop. right now it's somewhere in the low-budget area.
unfortunately just because i can't work with big map psd files is not a sufficient enough reason to change it since anything else works perfectly.

[gimil]

The second tool clears out your computers registry (probably where you are having problems DiM).

Give it a try and let me know if it claws back some performance.

my laptop is in tip top shape. constant removal of temp files, deletion of unused registry entries, defragmentation, minimal applications installed, etc.
the reason its performance is kinda low is that it's very old. it's a 2.2ghz t7500 core 2 duo, with 2gb ram and a 512mb geforce 9500mgs bought 4.5 years ago.
back then it was a really good laptop. right now it's somewhere in the low-budget area.
unfortunately just because i can't work with big map psd files is not a sufficient enough reason to change it since anything else works perfectly.

Well you may just have to accept the the limitations of your technology