[luatex] LuaTeX precompilation

[Henrik Mannerström]

On Wed, Dec 20, 2023 at 9:57 PM Hans Hagen <j.hagen at xs4all.nl> wrote:

> Did you time how long loading these packagestakes? Things like fonts
> always need to be loaded (and a 8 bit font is way smaller than a 32 bit
> wide font with features). You could try to use latex/luatex with 8 bit
> fonts.
>

Without a precompiled format, pdflatex takes 1.2s for my four page example.
That lualatex takes 2.5s is not that big a difference. What my question is
about is precompiled formats: If I put everything in the preample and
precompile it, pdflatex takes only 0.56s. /Here/ is the big difference.
When I'm typing a typical technical note, I have over the years developed a
workflow where I use latex + editor as a wysiwyg-setup. With two windows:
one for the pdf and one for the source, recompile almost once for every
sentence or equation. /It is here/ where the difference adds up. Judging by
the other posts sparked by my question, I'm not the only one that feels the
difference.

I readily admit that luatex is a wonderful piece of software and I really
appreciate the work you have done. Could we make it even better? From a
technical point of view, how hard would it be to have something akin to a
precompiled format in luatex?
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