julien breval

What is the practical difference between a *.pat file ("Max patch file") and a

*.mxb file ("Max binary patcher format") ? There are also text files (*.mxt)

Which one should I use on OS X and Windows ? Is there a performance difference

What is the practical difference between a *.pat file ("Max patch file") and a
*.mxb file ("Max binary patcher format") ? There are also text files (*.mxt)
...

Which one should I use on OS X and Windows ? Is there a performance difference
(I guess no) ?

pat-vs-mxb

On Dec 14, 2006, at 1:14 PM, julien breval wrote:

> What is the practical difference between a *.pat file ("Max patch 

> *.mxb file ("Max binary patcher format") ? There are also text files 

.mxt is the extension used for Max patches saved in text format. .mxb 

is used when you save a patch as binary (meaning you can't open it in a 

text editor and edit it). I'm not totally certain but I think .pat has 

been used in the past and might refer to a Max patch in binary or text 

format. While I think you can still use .pat, I don't think this is 

the recommended extension to use anymore for a Max patch.

> Which one should I use on OS X and Windows ? Is there a performance 

The .mxt and .mxb extensions work on both platforms. There isn't a 

performance difference once the patch is loaded, but patches saved in 

text format have to be parsed first which makes them slightly slower to 

load compared to their binary counterpart. IMO the difference in load 

times is fairly negligible. Saving patches in text format has the 

benefit that you can open and edit them in a text editor and they get 

along better with version control systems (CVS, svn, etc.).

> Hello
>
> What is the practical difference between a *.pat file ("Max patch 
> file") and a
> *.mxb file ("Max binary patcher format") ? There are also text files 
> (*.mxt)
> ...

.mxt is the extension used for Max patches saved in text format.  .mxb 
is used when you save a patch as binary (meaning you can't open it in a 
text editor and edit it).  I'm not totally certain but I think .pat has 
been used in the past and might refer to a Max patch in binary or text 
format.  While I think you can still use .pat, I don't think this is 
the recommended extension to use anymore for a Max patch.

> Which one should I use on OS X and Windows ? Is there a performance 
> difference
> (I guess no) ?

The .mxt and .mxb extensions work on both platforms.  There isn't a 
performance difference once the patch is loaded, but patches saved in 
text format have to be parsed first which makes them slightly slower to 
load compared to their binary counterpart.  IMO the difference in load 
times is fairly negligible.  Saving patches in text format has the 
benefit that you can open and edit them in a text editor and they get 
along better with version control systems (CVS, svn, etc.).


.pat was the original suffix used when Max went to Windows and 

suffices became absolutely necessary. However, it conflicted with 

PhotoShop (which just shows what a braindead idea filename suffices 

If you google the list archives on the words 'pat', 'mxb', and 

'sniff' (yes, 'sniff') you will find lots of history.

On 15-Dec-2006, at 2:56, Dave Watson wrote:

> .mxt is the extension used for Max patches saved in text 

> format. .mxb is used when you save a patch as binary (meaning you 

> can't open it in a text editor and edit it). I'm not totally 

> certain but I think .pat has been used in the past and might refer 

> to a Max patch in binary or text format. While I think you can 

> still use .pat, I don't think this is the recommended extension to 

Peter Castine +--> Litter Power & Litter Bundle for Jitter

Interface Building for |home | chez nous|

Max/MSP Extremely cool |bei uns | i nostri|

.pat was the original suffix used when Max went to Windows and  
suffices became absolutely necessary. However, it conflicted with  
PhotoShop (which just shows what a braindead idea filename suffices  
are). So .mxb and .mxt were born.

If you google the list archives on the words 'pat', 'mxb', and  
'sniff' (yes, 'sniff') you will find lots of history.

> .mxt is the extension used for Max patches saved in text  
> format.  .mxb is used when you save a patch as binary (meaning you  
> can't open it in a text editor and edit it).  I'm not totally  
> certain but I think .pat has been used in the past and might refer  
> to a Max patch in binary or text format.  While I think you can  
> still use .pat, I don't think this is the recommended extension to  
> use anymore for a Max patch.

--------------    http://www.bek.no/~pcastine/Litter/    -------------
Peter Castine             +--> Litter Power & Litter Bundle for Jitter
                                Universal Binaries on the way
iCE:  Sequencing,  Recording &
       Interface  Building  for                   |home    | chez nous|
       Max/MSP   Extremely cool                   |bei uns |  i nostri|
       http://www.dspaudio.com/                   http://www.castine.de

I will now use mxb files only, perhaps collectives sometimes ...

Probably foolishly, but with good reasons, I set out to do some batch renaming and leave behind me the .pat era forever (if type is max, and ends with .pat then replace it with .mxb). Next it appeared max couldn't find it's inspectors anymore, so I undid the renaming business for all patches that max relies on. All is fine now, but I thought it a little funny and unexpected. So don't be foolish like me.

I'm using MAX/MSP on a PC. Any help on opening this .mxb file? I am very new to Max Msp, so any link to form discussions on this would be a great help. I am interested in doing similar thing with generating music using algorithms and simple rules (like Wolfram's NKS ideas).

*.pat vs *.mxb

.pat vs .mxb