I was wondering if anyone could point me towards a document/site that

contains all the nifty ;max messages you can pass to max (e.g. ";max crash"

More importantly, I was wondering if there is a message in Max 5 (apparently

there isn't one in 4) that would clear the Max window stack (or alternately

turn off the Max window output altogether)? I ask this because I am not sure

what is the Max window's max size and consequently how it handles

ever-growing volume of messages (does it continue to gobble all the memory

until it runs out or it actually has a FIFO or something similar in place

with a fixed size and if so, what is this size)? In other words is it safe

to leave Max running for a long period of time (e.g. weeks, or even months)

with low but steady stream of printed messages without having to worry about

running out of memory (or other similar joyous occasion)?

Director, DISIS Interactive Sound & Intermedia Studio

I was wondering if anyone could point me towards a document/site that
contains all the nifty ;max messages you can pass to max (e.g. ";max crash"
:-).

More importantly, I was wondering if there is a message in Max 5 (apparently
there isn't one in 4) that would clear the Max window stack (or alternately
turn off the Max window output altogether)? I ask this because I am not sure
what is the Max window's max size and consequently how it handles
ever-growing volume of messages (does it continue to gobble all the memory
until it runs out or it actually has a FIFO or something similar in place
with a fixed size and if so, what is this size)? In other words is it safe
to leave Max running for a long period of time (e.g. weeks, or even months)
with low but steady stream of printed messages without having to worry about
running out of memory (or other similar joyous occasion)?

Ivica Ico Bukvic, D.M.A.
Composition, Music Technology
Director, DISIS Interactive Sound & Intermedia Studio
Assistant Co-Director, CCTAD
CHCI, CS, and Art (by courtesy)
Virginia Tech
Dept. of Music - 0240
Blacksburg, VA 24061
(540) 231-6139
ico@vt.edu
http://www.music.vt.edu/faculty/bukvic/


max-message-list

Had you thought of using the online help? Typing

"messages to max" into the search box does wonders....

Had you thought of using the online help? Typing
"messages to max" into the search box does wonders....


Unfortunately, it appears none of these necessarily address the latter part

Unfortunately, it appears none of these necessarily address the latter part
of my email...

> More importantly, I was wondering if there is a message in Max 5 (apparently

> there isn't one in 4) that would clear the Max window stack (or alternately

> turn off the Max window output altogether)? I ask this because I am not sure

> what is the Max window's max size and consequently how it handles

> ever-growing volume of messages (does it continue to gobble all the memory

> until it runs out or it actually has a FIFO or something similar in place

> with a fixed size and if so, what is this size)? In other words is it safe

> to leave Max running for a long period of time (e.g. weeks, or even months)

> with low but steady stream of printed messages without having to worry about

> running out of memory (or other similar joyous occasion)?

It is a huge FIFO as far as I know. You will only run out of memory if

those messages are Max messages and they are all different. (I think 

Any message which will be created is going into a lookup table in memory 

and never free'd. But exactly the same message would take the same part 

If you create a date-time message every second, it will eat your memory

slowly but constantly no matter if you post it to the Max window or not...

Ivica Ico Bukvic schrieb:
> More importantly, I was wondering if there is a message in Max 5 (apparently
> there isn't one in 4) that would clear the Max window stack (or alternately
> turn off the Max window output altogether)? I ask this because I am not sure
> what is the Max window's max size and consequently how it handles
> ever-growing volume of messages (does it continue to gobble all the memory
> until it runs out or it actually has a FIFO or something similar in place
> with a fixed size and if so, what is this size)? In other words is it safe
> to leave Max running for a long period of time (e.g. weeks, or even months)
> with low but steady stream of printed messages without having to worry about
> running out of memory (or other similar joyous occasion)?

It is a huge FIFO as far as I know. You will only run out of memory if
those messages are Max messages and they are all different. (I think 
errors are a different story)
Any message which will be created is going into a lookup table in memory 
and never free'd. But exactly the same message would take the same part 
of memory...
If you create a date-time message every second, it will eat your memory
slowly but constantly no matter if you post it to the Max window or not...

-- 
Stefan Tiedje------------x-------
--_____-----------|--------------
--(_|_ ----|-----|-----()-------
-- _|_)----|-----()--------------
----------()--------www.ccmix.com

> It is a huge FIFO as far as I know. You will only run out of memory if

> those messages are Max messages and they are all different. (I think 

> Any message which will be created is going into a lookup table in memory 

> and never free'd. But exactly the same message would take the same part 

> If you create a date-time message every second, it will eat your memory

> slowly but constantly no matter if you post it to the Max window or not...

Many thanks for the info. By "Max message" you mean messages to Max or any

message inside the patch (e.g. [set $1])?

> It is a huge FIFO as far as I know. You will only run out of memory if
> those messages are Max messages and they are all different. (I think 
> errors are a different story)
> Any message which will be created is going into a lookup table in memory 
> and never free'd. But exactly the same message would take the same part 
> of memory...
> If you create a date-time message every second, it will eat your memory
> slowly but constantly no matter if you post it to the Max window or not...

Many thanks for the info. By "Max message" you mean messages to Max or any
message inside the patch (e.g. [set $1])?

stephan is referring to symbols, one of the three atomic datatypes 

each _unique_ symbol is stored in a table in RAM which never gets 

re-using the same symbol doesn't add it to the table, since the point 

of the table is fast lookup of existing symbols.

programmatically creating lots of unique symbols such as date/time is 

a bad idea for long term usage, this could effectively be considered 

> By "Max message" you mean messages to Max or any

> message inside the patch (e.g. [set $1])?

stephan is referring to symbols, one of the three atomic datatypes  
used in max.
each _unique_ symbol is stored in a table in RAM which never gets  
flushed during a session.
re-using the same symbol doesn't add it to the table, since the point  
of the table is fast lookup of existing symbols.
programmatically creating lots of unique symbols such as date/time is  
a bad idea for long term usage, this could  effectively be considered  
something like a memory leak.

> By "Max message" you mean messages to Max or any
> message inside the patch (e.g. [set $1])?


;max message list