Sorting Mode Explanation
With the release of Folder Axe version 2.1, there's been an option added to the "By Size" split type called "Sorting Mode". There isn't enough space in the Folder Axe interface to explain what this option does, which is why this page was opened for you. Below are a short and long explanation.
Short Version
- Normal Mode: This mode keeps your files in whatever order they were in when before Folder Axe split the folder, but it can be inefficient in terms of filling each folder all the way to its limit.
- Compact Mode: This mode will fill each folder all the way to it's limit by smartly sorting the files, but because it fits each folder as much as possible, the files won't be in the same order as they were in the original folder.
Long Version
Normal Mode
Normal mode is the default option, and if you've used Folder Axe before, you already know how it behaves, as it is the process that has always been there. The problem with the way normal mode works is that it sometimes won't fill folders up and thus is inefficient. Let me provide an example. Say you have three files, their sizes are 20 MB, 90 MB, and 70 MB. Let's also say that you have set the folder size limit to 100 MB. When Folder Axe goes to split the folder, it creates a folder for the first file, and puts it there. Now, it looks at the next file (90 MB) and looks at the first folder it created (Which now has the 20 MB file in it) and it find that that folder would exceed the size limit if the 90 MB file was copied to it, so it creates another folder to put the 90 MB file into. Now it looks at the last file (70 MB) and looks at the last folder it made (Now containing 90 MB) and sees that it can't fit the 70 MB file into it, so it creates a third folder and puts it there. So now the end result is three folders, but as I'm sure you've noticed by now, that 70 MB file and that 20 MB file could have gone in the same folder, which would be more efficient. So, in conclusion, normal mode will keep the files in the same order they were in in the original folder, but it can be inefficient.
Normal mode is the default option, and if you've used Folder Axe before, you already know how it behaves, as it is the process that has always been there. The problem with the way normal mode works is that it sometimes won't fill folders up and thus is inefficient. Let me provide an example. Say you have three files, their sizes are 20 MB, 90 MB, and 70 MB. Let's also say that you have set the folder size limit to 100 MB. When Folder Axe goes to split the folder, it creates a folder for the first file, and puts it there. Now, it looks at the next file (90 MB) and looks at the first folder it created (Which now has the 20 MB file in it) and it find that that folder would exceed the size limit if the 90 MB file was copied to it, so it creates another folder to put the 90 MB file into. Now it looks at the last file (70 MB) and looks at the last folder it made (Now containing 90 MB) and sees that it can't fit the 70 MB file into it, so it creates a third folder and puts it there. So now the end result is three folders, but as I'm sure you've noticed by now, that 70 MB file and that 20 MB file could have gone in the same folder, which would be more efficient. So, in conclusion, normal mode will keep the files in the same order they were in in the original folder, but it can be inefficient.
Compact Mode
Compact mode is the new, smart way to divide folders by size. If you read the above, you know that with the situation that was stated, normal mode was proven inefficient. Compact mode fixes that, and it would have put the 20 MB and the 70MB in one folder, and the 90 MB file in another, thus creating 2 folders instead of three. The only drawback is that on a large scale with lots of files, using compact mode has the potential to jumble up your files and not keep them in order due to it just copying them where they fit.
Compact mode is the new, smart way to divide folders by size. If you read the above, you know that with the situation that was stated, normal mode was proven inefficient. Compact mode fixes that, and it would have put the 20 MB and the 70MB in one folder, and the 90 MB file in another, thus creating 2 folders instead of three. The only drawback is that on a large scale with lots of files, using compact mode has the potential to jumble up your files and not keep them in order due to it just copying them where they fit.
