[GNC] File Format Documentation, v. 2

[MycoGeo]

Do people have experience with different load/save times with the different formats?

A long while back, I experimented with storing gnucash data on a MySQL server on a NAS, so it was over the LAN.  I didn’t find the save/load times different than saving/loading from the compressed XML format on the local machine.

Gnucash 2.x.16
Windows 10


Sent from my iPad

> On Aug 16, 2018, at 7:20 PM, David T. via gnucash-user <gnucash-user at gnucash.org> wrote:
> 
> John, 
> I don't understand your statement. 
> Insofar as a user might open the Guide immediately after installation (I'm not that self-aggrandizing as that), they would see in the second sentence of this section that xml is the default file format. 
> Or did you have some other concern? 
> David
> 
> 
> 
>  On Thu, Aug 16, 2018 at 18:53, John C<jcoppock at tds.net> wrote:   Please tell the reader the default file format right after installation.
> 
> regards,
> John
> 
>> On 8/16/2018 5:06 PM, Adrien Monteleone wrote:
>> Looks good to me.
>> 
>> Regards,
>> Adrien
>> 
>>> On Aug 16, 2018, at 3:00 PM, David T. via gnucash-user <gnucash-user at gnucash.org> wrote:
>>> 
>>> I’ve attempted to incorporate the suggestions that others have made for the section on file storage formats, and I attach the resulting version 2 for further consideration. Keep in mind that this is not meant to be an encyclopedic coverage of the topic; it’s meant to outline the choices. I expect further detail to reside on the wiki, or be placed in other places in the documentation.
>>> 
>>> Cheers,
>>> David
>>> 
>>> P.S. The table layout doesn’t come through, but will be in the final version…
>>> 
>>> 
>>> ————————————
>>> 
>>> 2.5 Storing your financial data
>>> 2.5.1 Overview
>>> GnuCash offers several formats for storing your financial data. The default file storage format is XML, while SQL storage is available in SQLite, MySQL, and PostgreSQL formats. Users can choose a file format from the File→Save and File→Save As dialogs.
>>> The XML storage format is a text file that is compressed with gzip, which is a preference that is set at Edit→Preferences→General→Use file compression. SQL storage is available via the DBI back end; use of MySQL and PostgreSQL requires installation of those DBMS packages as well as additional DBI drivers.
>>> Note: users can change the format at any time by using File→Save As. This will create a copy of the data file in the selected format.
>>> 
>>> Storage Comparison
>>> Each storage format has benefits and shortcomings that the user should consider for their needs and abilities. See the Storage Comparison Table below for further details.
>>> The XML format is the most stable and established, and for this reason, it is recommended for most users. SQL stora