Building font cache

[DJX]

I created a ticket a while back...no progress though.
http://trac.videolan.org/vlc/ticket/3950

[secarica]

I still fail to understand why this font cache is required when no text is involved at all and why is so difficult to make a config switch to disable forever the font caching by those (like me) who know they will not use/need any text with VLC.

Cristi

[blank]

now changing the render engine thing to the dummy one isnt working for me on my laptop

so sick of this.

does anyoneknow of a alternative that is as good, but actually works? VLC programmers obviously dont give a --please stay polite-- if we use their program or not, a nd dont care about making it usable. had this problem for months now.

[Lobazniouk]

I have managed to fixed this '"Building Font Cache"issue (at least in my case). The problem was caused because CCleaner kept on deleting the font cache file (App Data/Roaming/VLC/...) after it was created. Just disabling VLC on CCleaner did the trick for me and I havent seen the Building font cache message ever again.

If you have any software which removes temporary files, you can try disabling the VLC cleanup.

Cheeers

[userix]

Noob here. What's the point of building a font cache? Can't VLC just play the video and display stylized subtitles on the fly? CCCP codec pack seems to have no problems doing it without having to create an initial cache.

Another question: Will it cache again if I load another video that contains different type of subtitle font, will it have to recache again? Or does it only create the initial cache once and can play any video regardless of subtitle text font in the future?

[fatepower]

Same exact issue here as well.
Every time I open VLC I get the "Building Font Cache" (edit; after a 'new' reboot).

I'm running Windows 7 X64, i do not store Appdata on a networkdrive.
I runned Vista 32 before and used VLC 1.0.5, did not see this error. Now when i installed x64 Win 7 using 1.1.4 i get this "Building...".
I use a fresh install of WIN 7 because i personaly took a step and "upgraded" from Pissta, i got the mood to do a format C

NOTE:
My OS crash 5 of 10 times when VLC tries to Build Font Cache.
The screen just freeze and you need to do a power off, power on /reset.

Annoying crashes ;/

EDIT:
Done some testing,
Font Cache build once, then i can look at all movies i want.
I logg off and reboot the computer.
I open a new video file in VLC and I get the "Building Font Cache".
So after each reboot I get the "Building Font Cache".
I uninstalled 1.1.4 and installed 1.0.5 again.
Now i do not see "Building Font Cache" anymore.

In someway Windows or VLC remove the cache/temp file when you logg off for a reboot/shutdown.
Or if Windows makes any changes in the fonts.

So someting is wrong with "Building Font Cache" in 1.1.4.

[GJSchaller]

I'm running into the same issue - we use VLC as our corporate media player, and as noted, we redirect the AppData directory to a server, using a UNC path. Any news on this issue would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

[sushi]

Windows 7 Pro 64 bit
VLC 1.1.4 compiled Aug 27 2010 01:22:41

Ran fine with no issues.
Downloaded and installed new fonts.
Now on each attempt to use VLC get message "rebuilding font cache"

Not using network share.
No UNC issues
Running as admin

AppData\roaming\VLC contains following files:
31bbba323fd9e5b47e0ee5a0353f11-i686.cache-3
and
a323fd9e5b47e0ee5a0353f11-i686.cache-3.NEW

The cache-3.NEW appears to be a cache file created after font installation.

Renamed original cache-3 file to cache-3.OLD

Renamed cache-3.NEW to cache-3 (removed the .NEW extension)

Reset all VLC preferences to default (I had tried the other fixes presented in this thread). Saved and exited.

Restarted VLC by right clicking on DVD.
Starts immediately, no font cache rebuild issues.
Shows sub-titles OK but these are badly rendered regardless of render engine selection in prefs / all
But that is a separate issue from the font cache issue which appears to be due to VLC appending .NEW to the new cache file and then opening and attempting to use the old cache file as VLC does not appear to recognize the .NEW cache file it has created.

[josephrot]

RE: azthai wrote:
Error:
Buidling font Cache pop-up >>

Thank God! and Thank azthai too!

This "Rebuilding Font Cache" under, in our case, WIndows XP and now WIndows 7, is THE most damned annoying "feature" of VLC Media Player, even since about version 1.x updated a while back.

Whatever VLC Media Player option or feature keeps demanding this annoying pop-up should be fixed or for pete's sake, PLEASE option it to be disabled or not.

Otherwise, VLC Media Player is one of THE best multimedia players ever!

[robinwilson16]

This annoying problem is also happening to me and has been ever since updating past VLC 1.0.5. I have kept installing the newer versions past 1.0.5 thinking that they must have fixed it but the problem remains.
Every time I try to play a video it makes me wait for about two minutes while it rebuilds its font cache. We have roaming profiles and no cache file is created within \\server\users\username\Application Data\vlc or within the c:\users\username\AppData\Roaming\vlc. It happens on every file I try to play and even if VLC is still open from the last file I played I still have to wait again.

All other programs work fine with roaming profiles which have been in use for years and so did VLC up until the latest versions of it.

Now it is just a real pain to use so I installed FFDShow and the Matroska Splitter so I could play VLC files with Windows MEdia Player/Centre but I still need VLC sometimes in order to be able to select the subtitles track or audio track etc.

Please fix this as it is really annoying.

Thanks
Robin

P.S. This is not the portable one but the main version of VLC.

[-g-]

I had this issue with 1.1.4 and it is indeed annoying. I made a clean installation of VLC 1.1.5 (I removed older settings folder) and the problem is gone. You can try checking the settings folder (on Windows XP it's C:\Documents and Settings\User\Program Data\vlc) and delete any (damaged?) cache files.

Beware, I don't know the side effects of doing this. I would suggest a clean installation instead but that means rebuilding your Media Library, thumbnails, etc..

[robinwilson16]

Thanks for the reply.
The problem is a cache file never gets created in the VLC folder in the local profile on drive c or on the roaming profile. So it seems to be trying to create it and not managing it.
Even deleting the vlc folder does not help. The folder gets re-created but the cache file is never created inside the folder.
Even on a fresh install of WIndows the problem occurs with every file I open.

[MRDOS]

Disable it.
Tools - Preferences - Show settings "ALL" - Video - Subtitles/OSD - Text rendering module - "Dummy font renderer function" - Save - Exit

[halo_bone]

+1

this needs to be either a) improved to a practical rebuild time--like 1-10 seconds; b) changed to happen during install and only once. What's the point? Just default to arial or something, let users pick a different font manually if they want to.

I can't count the # of times I've waited minutes and minutes before being able to play a video. And the number of times I say forget it and just open with WMP instead. No other video player does this that I know of, and if it did, I wouldn't use it.

Long time users that don't care to dig around forums are leaving; and good luck with getting new users with an problem like this.

Seems obvious it needs fixed ASAP--and work properly by default, not an option.

Best,
- wb

[robinwilson16]

I agree. It is a pain having to do the workaround on every computer with every user's account if in fact it saves the setting.

Hope it gets fixed soon. And as halo_bone points out why does it need to take quite so long anyway. I only have the standard fonts used by Windows and Office.

Robin

[softskiller]

After Installing Photoshop or Office or Updates with hundrets of Fonts, that Caching that blocks the player for minutes comes up again.
The number of users that use that font features must be extremely low, most may not even use it.
But all the millions of users have that caching window, when they get new fonts.
So please disable it by default.

[robinwilson16]

And many also get it when they haven't got any new fonts if they haven't disabled it which seems to be a new feature!!!

[fatepower]

Fixed on 1.1.5?

[robinwilson16]

No still not fixed.

Hoping for 1.1.6 for Christmas!

[eaglepep]

Clean Install of XPSP3 with no added fonts and no other programs installed and I still get the rebuilding cache problem!
I am starting to use VLC less and less because of this stupid issue. WHEN WILL THIS BE FIXED?

[VLC_help]

eaglepep: and you installed Windows to C drive, and cache file is generated to %appdata%\vlc ?

[rg146le]

Disable it.
Tools - Preferences - Show settings "ALL" - Video - Subtitles/OSD - Text rendering module - "Dummy font renderer function" - Save - Exit

This would be nice if there was a "Dummy font renderer function", but not in 1.1.5 that I can see.
In my case I have Dreamweaver CS5 installed and it has loads of fonts. Result is that it takes up to 3 mins to build the cache for some reason and it happens the first time I run VLC after booting, each and every time. W7 64 with VLC 1.1.5 built by j-b.

[VLC_help]

This would be nice if there was a "Dummy font renderer function", but not in 1.1.5 that I can see.

It should be there. At least I have it.
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/7977 ... myfont.jpg

[rg146le]

It should be there. At least I have it.
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/7977 ... myfont.jpg

As usual, a picture is worth a thousand words.
Many thanks. I've found it immediately. Hopefully I've seen the end of the font caching problem.
Again, thanks for your help.
Mike

[sylvia.plath]

first, olease forgive me for duplicating the thread at viewtopic.php?f=14&t=85993

now, VLC_help says:

There are many issues that can cause that. Broken font files, Windows that is installed to different drive than C, home folders that are on network drive etc.

the issue is that i dont see any pattern. broken fonts aint a bad idea, if it only occurred after installing some... btw, what do you mean by "broken font files"? i should test it anyway

at first, i thought it might be me adding VLC to EMET(dep, sehop, nullpage, heap spray, eaf, mandatory aslr) but its been on for months now, the message just pops up erratically -- nothing for a week or two and suddenly on on each and every start.

oh, one more dull question, could it be related to Extensis Fusion and/or Bonjour?