Compressing dictionaries

The Compress utility can perform two types of compression: total compression or removing unused blocks. Total compression removes script source and all unused blocks from a dictionary. Total compression is used when you’re preparing a dictionary to be distributed. Removing unused blocks removes only unused blocks from the a dictionary, leaving the script source intact. As you work with a dictionary, it will accumulate unused blocks. Typically, the unused blocks are removed several times during the development process to keep a dictionary from getting unnecessarily large.

When a dictionary is compressed, a separate new dictionary is created. The compression in no way affects the original dictionary.

To compress a dictionary, select an editable dictionary, then choose Compress from the Utilities menu to display the Compress Dictionary window, shown in the following illustration.

  1. Select compression options.

You can choose to compress a dictionary completely, or to remove only unused blocks of space from a dictionary

Total Compression   Mark this option to create the smallest version of a dictionary for distribution. All script source will be removed, as well as unused blocks and unused space within blocks.

Remove Unused Blocks   Mark this option to remove only empty blocks from the dictionary. This is useful if many resources, especially large ones like pictures, have been removed from a dictionary.

  1. Compress the dictionary.

Click OK to compress the dictionary. The Compressed Dictionary Name dialog box will appear, allowing you to enter the name and location for the compressed dictionary. Click OK to create the compressed dictionary, or click Cancel to return to the Compress Dictionary window.


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