Subject:file deletion

Posted by: joejon

Date:1/25/2007 9:48:38 AM

When creating a file in Sound Forge and it's saved as a .wav file, the file is saved with a .wav extention and the same file is saved with a .sfk extention. Is it safe to delete the .sfk file, since it seems to have no purpose?

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: Chienworks

Date:1/25/2007 3:29:13 PM

It has a purpose. It contains the image of the waveform that you see on the timeline. It's perfectly safe to delete it. Just keep in mind that if you open the .wav file in SoundForge later on the .sfk file will be created again.

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: Illogical

Date:1/25/2007 4:30:07 PM

Sony will get a big hug from me the day they teach their apps to clean up after themselves. These are temp files and there's no reason SoundForge shouldn't delete them upon closing.

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: Chienworks

Date:1/25/2007 7:26:52 PM

Unless you have files that you're going to use again and don't want to wait for the waveform to be redrawn from scratch each time.

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: garrigus

Date:1/26/2007 6:50:41 AM

The .sfk files contain waveform images and they are there to save time when you open files later. This isn't so necessary for small files, but it is very convenient when working with large files.

If you need to learn more about Sound Forge, you may want to check out one of my Sound Forge Power books. You can find more info in the Power Books section of my site:
http://www.garrigus.com/

And be sure to check out my free music technology newsletter:
http://www.digifreq.com/digifreq/

Scott

--
Scott R. Garrigus - Author of Cakewalk, Sound Forge 6, 7/8 and SONAR 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Power books.
** Get Sonar 6 Power & Sound Forge 8 Power - Today! **
http://www.garrigus.com/

Publisher of DigiFreq. Win a free Smart Loops Sample Loops Collection and learn cool music technology tips and techniques by getting a FREE subscription to DigiFreq... over 20,000 readers can't be wrong! Go to:
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Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: Illogical

Date:1/26/2007 1:55:09 PM

Seriously, how long does a file have to have the .sfk file make a noticeable difference? Computers are fast, and a split second gain isn't worth the hassle of having these files scattered all over the place.

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: rraud

Date:1/26/2007 3:10:23 PM

I deal with large files and open them a number of times during a project, so I appreciate the .sfk for instant opening.
That said, you can set Sound Forge to delete these temp files upon closing the application. . It's been a long cold day and don't recall the exact location, other then Options> Preferences.

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: garrigus

Date:1/26/2007 4:44:29 PM

Yep, rraud is right. Just go into Options > Preferences > General and put a checkmark next to Delete Temporary Files On Close.

Scott

--
Scott R. Garrigus - Author of Cakewalk, Sound Forge 6, 7/8 and SONAR 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Power books.
** Get Sonar 6 Power & Sound Forge 8 Power - Today! **
http://www.garrigus.com/

Publisher of DigiFreq. Win a free Smart Loops Sample Loops Collection and learn cool music technology tips and techniques by getting a FREE subscription to DigiFreq... over 20,000 readers can't be wrong! Go to:
http://www.digifreq.com/digifreq/

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: Chienworks

Date:1/26/2007 6:53:15 PM

I never really found it to be much of a hassle having these files on the drive. Sound Forge always puts them in the same folder and with the same name as the audio file. They're not hard to deal with.

I used to worry about having extra files kicking around filling up directories. However, in the past month we've had a client start sending us 30,000 to 60,000 files daily. We have to keep them around for at least a year. We also create at least as many new files for that client as they upload. That means that by this time next year we're going to have 30 to 40 million files just for this customer alone. *whew* A few hundred .sfk files seems like nothing now.

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: Geoff_Wood

Date:1/29/2007 1:58:39 PM

Do the SFK files not also contain 'peak' info which Normalise and other level-related tools refer to ?

PS OP , if SFKs deleted, try opening and closing a 1 hour file a few times - you'll then see the point !

geoff

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: ATP

Date:1/31/2007 9:29:07 AM

@ Chienworks:

60k of sound files a day? wow. i'm curious, what does your client use these files for if i may ask? :)

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: Chienworks

Date:1/31/2007 3:45:06 PM

I didn't say they were sound files. ;)

Actually they're barcode scans from moving international mail containers around.

Subject:RE: file deletion

Reply by: ATP

Date:1/31/2007 4:15:18 PM

hahaha, all right. :)

i couldn't think of any kind of job in the music industry which would include the daily handling of more than a thousand sound files, let alone 60k.

even so, having to manage that amount of files can be a real pain sometimes, i imagine. :)