Copy and Relink Photos

[Mike Weeks]

I've always used iPhoto for storage. I recently exported everything to a new directory structure while maintaining the same file names.

Reunion will not change existing links to these new file locations even though I specify the new location in Options

This is true even if I move or rename the iPhoto Library.

How do I force Reunion to link to the new location?

[theKiwi]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

You probably need to make the photos that are in the iPhoto library "disappear" to force Reunion to find the same named photos in the new location.

Eg - compress the current iPhoto library and then delete the iPhoto Library would do it. Then once the links are correct in Reunion, you can unzip the iPhoto library again.

But

Are you certain that the names are the same now that you've moved them as they are when bundled up inside the iPhoto package file?

Roger

[rclrocco]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

Perhaps this is a little off topic, and I know its been covered before but can someone please remind me of the best way to store photos to use in Reunion. I am about to enter a few hundred in people's multimedia.

I have an iMac as my main base, generally use iPhoto for photo storage, and also an iPad and would like to have the photos available to both.

[theKiwi]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

Perhaps this is a little off topic, and I know its been covered before but can someone please remind me of the best way to store photos to use in Reunion. I am about to enter a few hundred in people's multimedia.

I have an iMac as my main base, generally use iPhoto for photo storage, and also an iPad and would like to have the photos available to both.

My recommendation is to NOT use iPhoto as the repository in which you keep the photos linked to Reunion.

Doing so puts you at the whims of Apple who have changed the whole iPhoto file/package structure more than once in the past and there's no reason to believe they won't do it again.

If you do keep your photos in iPhoto, before linking any to Reunion, I would export those images you want to link out of iPhoto to a separate folder hierarchy in say the Reunion Files folder, or your Pictures folder somewhere, and then link them to Reunion.

Roger

[Mark]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

Doing so puts you at the whims of Apple who have changed the whole iPhoto file/package structure more than once in the past and there's no reason to believe they won't do it again.

This shouldn't be as much of an issue in Reunion 10 as it was in prior versions, if it all; we've made some changes that allow for files to be moved to different folders and even renamed without the link being lost. As long as the image doesn't get deleted Reunion should be able to find it (in most cases, anyways).

[Bill George]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

There's a Reunion Version 10 check box in Multimedia Files Preferences called "Always search iPhoto Library". If this is checked, you might uncheck it and see if that solves your problem.

[Mike Weeks]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

There's a Reunion Version 10 check box in Multimedia Files Preferences called "Always search iPhoto Library". If this is checked, you might uncheck it and see if that solves your problem.

Thanks to all -- I'll try some things and see what happens...

[Mike Weeks]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

Nothing I've tried works. I think some improvements are called for in searching in a specified directory.

[Gregg]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

When you link to a media file in Reunion 10 the link will be much more 'persistent' than in Reunion 9. This means that you can move and/or rename a file or its parent folders and Reunion 10 will still know where that file is located.

This was a major enhancement to Reunion 10 because people were moving and renaming files and folders, and then later finding out that Reunion lost track of the them.

For what you are trying to do this enhancement is not working to your advantage. With Reunion 10, if you simply copy the files to a new location, Reunion 10 will not see the copies if the original files are still there. Deleting the original files is about the only way to force Reunion 10 to search for the files in a new location.

Roger's advice to you at the beginning of this thread is correct...
1. hide the original files in a zip archive
2. trash the original files and empty the Trash
3. have Reunion 10 find the files in the new location (Repair Media Locations)
4. unzip the original files from the zip archive made in step 1.

Note on step 4: You should not unzip the archive until you are satisfied that Reunion is linking to the correct files.

Please let us know if you still have problems.

[Mike Weeks]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

When you link to a media file in Reunion 10 the link will be much more 'persistent' than in Reunion 9. This means that you can move and/or rename a file or its parent folders and Reunion 10 will still know where that file is located.

This was a major enhancement to Reunion 10 because people were moving and renaming files and folders, and then later finding out that Reunion lost track of the them.

For what you are trying to do this enhancement is not working to your advantage. With Reunion 10, if you simply copy the files to a new location, Reunion 10 will not see the copies if the original files are still there. Deleting the original files is about the only way to force Reunion 10 to search for the files in a new location.

Roger's advice to you at the beginning of this thread is correct...
1. hide the original files in a zip archive
2. trash the original files and empty the Trash
3. have Reunion 10 find the files in the new location (Repair Media Locations)
4. unzip the original files from the zip archive made in step 1.

Note on step 4: You should not unzip the archive until you are satisfied that Reunion is linking to the correct files.

Please let us know if you still have problems.

Yup - I performed those 4 steps. It may be that your "Repair" is searching for part of tha path as specified in Reunion instead of just the file name of the file now located in a different directory structure.

[Gregg]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

Yup - I performed those 4 steps.

I am assuming that since you did all 4 steps that you got it working.

[Mike Weeks]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

No, it didn't work. I plan on starting over with 448 photos.

[Gregg]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

No, it didn't work. I plan on starting over with 448 photos.

After you empty the Trash in step 2, make sure that Reunion can no longer find the original files. You can do this with the Multimedia Usage Report.

Then add the new media location and repair media locations in step 3.

Make sure that you do not proceed to step 4 until all the media items have been found in their new locations. Again, you will be able to see this in the Multimedia Usage Report.

[Mike Weeks]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

I did that - I get the message that no media was found.

I'll look at it in more detail today.

[Mike Weeks]

Re: Copy and Relink Photos

I fixed several problems:

"Version" name and "File" name in Aperture are different things. I had to create an export setting using "original file name"

I had an export setting titled "Original Size JPEG" that was erroneously exporting PNG files.

All but 27 of my 448 files were located. Some original files imported to Reunion had a "jpeg" extension while Aperture exported only "JPG".

There were other strange errors that I will correct by deleting or manually locating lost files.

These were all my errors, not Reunions.

Although it would have been helpful to have the ability to edit the file name and extension inside Reunion. I couldn't find a way to do that.