Benjamin,
You might want to also post to the PrPro CS 5/ CS 5.5/ CS 6 Forum.
AutoSave has been a bit of a dynamic function, in that things have changed over time and versions, so there could well be some of those, that are now affecting you.
To date (I know that I just placed a curse on my next Project), I have not had any issues with AutoSave, and have always kept it at the default. However, as I do a lot of Save_As (incrementing the Project Name), I usually have plenty of AutoSave folders (5 files each), as I go. I have only had to go to AutoSave 2 - 3 times, and only once have had to go to an AutoSave from a a Project version, prior to the last Save_As. In each limited case, I had what I needed, and seldom lost much editing. Ninety-nine percent of the time, I never even think about AutoSaves.
Once, AutoSave would not function, if the Project was idle, but that changed, at about CS 3, IIRC. I have also never Canceled out of AutoSave, so cannot comment on what happens then. Even on large Projects, AutoSave happens very quickly for me, but there HAVE been a few "Dang!" moments, when I wished that it had popped up a few minutes earlier, or later, rather than at the exact time that it did. Still, other than utter a mild curse, it has not really affected me.
Especially as of CS 5, it does seem that there are more complaints with AutoSave showing up. Not sure what has changed, and exactly why the complaints, but it does seem that there might be an issue. If so, then Adobe needs to be made aware of the problem, so that they can get it fixed. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), most users do not need to go to AutoSaves, so they might be totally unaware of a problem - until they DO need 'em.
Good luck,
Hunt
