ACDsee, another question

[cooljam2000]

I see a lot of questions about this program,so am hoping someone may have an answer to mine. I have ACDsee photo manager 10,I have most of my graphics organized there. I notice when I delete something from ACDsee it is deleted from my computer.Should it do that? If I move all the graphic folders I have on my desk top to my flash drive,will they be gone from ACDsee?I need to free up some space on my computer. It is running very slow. I am also going to move all the photos to a flash drive. But I am concerned about loosing all from ACDsee. Would hate to have to start over.Any help or suggestions are appreciated

[Kathleen]

Here is a basic explanation ... You have "stuff" on your computer organized in folders. Typically you are probably used to moving things around in Windows Explorer. ACDSee is a database program that keeps track of where your stuff is, and what it is (your tags). You can move things around in ACDSee just like in Windows Explorer, by dragging a dropping. Also you can delete things in ACDSee, so yes, if you delete a folder in ACDSee it is removing it from your computer.

Here is the trick, once you tag something in ACDSee you are telling it where it is located. If you move it outside of ACDSee, it will no longer no where to find it. So you need to move things in a way ACDSee recognizes. Think of it this way ... you make a list of things, and where they are in your house, one of the things is a photo album and it is in the shelf in the living room. Your toddler comes along and while you aren't looking takes the photo album and puts it in her room. Your list is still there and still tells you where the photo album is supposed to be, but you can't find it. That is what happens when you move things outside of ACDSee.

Here are a couple links from DigiScrapInfo that should help:

Transfering organizing from one EHD to another EHD (http://digiscrapinfo.com/joomla/component/content/article/52-updating-or-transferring/245-transfering-organizing-from-one-ehd-to-another-ehd)
How to Move Organized Images (photos or digital kits) with ACDSee (http://digiscrapinfo.com/joomla/component/content/article/53-using-features/139-how-to-move-organized-images-photos-or-digital-kits-with-acdsee)

[Kathleen]

Just a point of clarification, if you have things tagged in ACDSee, and you move a folder (drag and drop) in ACDSee your tagging should remain intact! The only exception I have seen is moving large amounts of data at once, ACDSee doesn't seem to process that well.

[cooljam2000]

Kathleen thanks for the info. Am a little confused,in the Digiscrap info is my computer considered the "old" EHD? I just want to get all the folders off my hard drive.Is this the way I do it?

[Kathleen]

Sorry to post and run earlier, I was out most of the day. In the instructions for 'Transferring organizing from one EHD to another EHD', you should be able to follow Option 1, and, yes, it would be as if your internal hard drive were the first EHD. Watch the video about changing your binding. The biggest key is to move the entire folder structure as is. So if you have everything in c:\my documents\scrap\[sub folders], move the entire scrap folder to your flash drive. That scrap folder would then be your top level folder to change the binding to.

[kaylaugh]

yes, exactly. Also, ACDSee won't keep your tagging if you use a flash drive or memory card.

Also, if you upgrade to PM2009 you can embed your tagging info. Then if you move things outside of ACDSee on accident, you can run the 'catalog files' wizard and it will pull in all that tagging info for you. We still recommend using ACDSee to move or copy files though.

HTH!
Kristi

[cooljam2000]

Thank you both so much. In using the tutioral, should I copy or move the folders and I do not have all the graphics in one folder.They are in individual ones.If I put them into one folder,do I leave them in the individual folders they are in now?
Kaylaugh what is PM2009? I have ACDSee photo manager 10.

[Kathleen]

I think I can answer these questions ...

I would COPY your files first. Once you know everything has moved successfully and your tagging is intact, then you can delete the files in the original location.

The files do not have to be in one folder (that would be quite a mess!). Do you have them all in one nested folder? For example a file structure kind of like:

My Documents
-- Scrap
----- ABC Kit
----- 123 Alpha
----- ZYZ kit

If it is something like this, then Scrap would be your top most folder level, and you should be able to copy that folder, and all its sub-folders, to your new drive. Then remap ACDSee to that location.

Photo Manager 2009 is the latest release of the ACDSee product. Photo Manager 10 is one release "old."

And, almost forgot ... back up your database before you start moving things!

[cooljam2000]

Kathleen sorry to be so dense. In ACDSee I copy the folders to my flashdrive and then delete them from my desktop and it will still be in ACDSee?I do not understand the "remap ACDSee"What does this mean and how do I do I'll check out photo manager 09,thanks

[Kathleen]

yes, exactly. Also, ACDSee won't keep your tagging if you use a flash drive or memory card.

Also, if you upgrade to PM2009 you can embed your tagging info. Then if you move things outside of ACDSee on accident, you can run the 'catalog files' wizard and it will pull in all that tagging info for you. We still recommend using ACDSee to move or copy files though.

HTH!
Kristi

Kathleen sorry to be so dense. In ACDSee I copy the folders to my flashdrive and then delete them from my desktop and it will still be in ACDSee?I do not understand the "remap ACDSee"What does this mean and how do I do I'll check out photo manager 09,thanks

First off, Kristi mentioned above that ACDSee will not recognize your data on a flash drive or memory card. So the first thing is you will need to look at an external hard drive. You can find all kinds of deals on them in a wide array of sizes which should accommodate your digital stash.

Once you have your new hard drive:


1. Outside of ACDSee (using Windows Explorer) copy over all your digital kits to your new EHD ... it is IMPORTANT to keep the same file structure here. Meaning, if in the original location your files were in My Documents > Scrap > [individual folder names], you need to keep that same folder structure from at least Scrap down on the new drive
2. Once the files are moved, go back into ACDSee Go to Database | Database Maintenance.
3. Now it's going to process for a while while it is collecting stuff about your database. It says on the bottom... Please wait while ACDSee is collecting and summarizing Database information... You need to wait until this disappears before you can go on and this could take minutes.
4. in the Database Content: click on the + signs to expand out your EHD
5. Then you want to click on the top level folder on your old EHD,
6. Click on Change binding
7. Choose the top level folder on your new EHD.

Watch the video posted on DigiScrapInfo: Change Binding (http://www.screencast.com/users/HeidiAtDigiScrapInfo/folders/Jing/media/51709723-83f0-4c21-a9ce-ec535f128ad4) to try to understand the process better. Changing the binding is basically telling ACDSee the correct (and new) location to look for your files.

DO NOT DELETE your existing files in their existing location until you know that everything has been moved successfully.

[cooljam2000]

I have had company so been away for a time. Kathleen thanks for the info.I have backed up my files.I have several flash drives,what is the difference between them and an EHD?Are they used in a USB port?Sorry to have so many questions.

[Ted]

A flash drive is a little pocket drive (or keychain drive) that is quite small and plugs into the USB port... it's built for portability.

An EHD is "external hard drive" and larger. It sometimes has its own power cord to plug into an outlet. One can also connect it via USB or Firewire, etc. Some EHDs do NOT need their own power cord; they use the power from the computer. These are handy for laptops.

For my desktop, I have an EHD that uses a power cord, so that it doesn't have to drain from my computer. I also have a self-efficient (no power cord) smaller EHD for backups each month that I keep off-site (out of my home).

Did I help or make you more confused?! LOL! :)

[Kathleen]

I have had company so been away for a time. Kathleen thanks for the info.I have backed up my files.I have several flash drives,what is the difference between them and an EHD?Are they used in a USB port?Sorry to have so many questions.

Ted explained the difference, but I am guessing you knew the basics. Both devices primarily connect via USB, although computers see them as different types of devices - hard drives and devices with removable storage. I found this note over at ACDSee Why are the drives of some removable devices excluded (grayed out) in ACDSee and can I include them? (http://acdsystems.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/acdsystems.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=204&p_created=1216114633&p_sid=vxwYiSrj&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX 3Jvd19jbnQ9MzcsMzcmcF9wcm9kcz00JnBfY2F0cz0mcF9wdj0 xLjQmcF9jdj0mcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJja F9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MSZwX3NlYXJjaF90ZXh0PWZsYXNoIGRyaXZ l&p_li=&p_topview=1), and am guessing that the lack of serial number on a flash drive is the problem. One of the ways that ACDSee identifies the location of files is via the drive serial number. Another thing to consider, a flash drive likely isn't going to have the storage you will sooner or later need for you collection. An external hard is what you need.

There was a recent discussion about external hard drives that you might find helpful if you decide to go shopping for one: EHD Shopping - What's Good? (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=37091)

[faerywings]

cooljam, how are things going for you? I know you have gotten a lot of information here.

If you are looking to clean up some space on your computer, I would also recommend using an EHD.
If you are going to use a flash drive, IMHO- I would only use it as temporary storage of some photos I am going to scrap with etc.

Photo Manager 2009 is the newest version and like Kristi stated, the "embed metadata" feature is very helpful for people who tend to move things around a lot. I scrap on a desktop and a laptop and use a portable EHD for my scrap supplies and that is what gets moved from computer to computer.
If this is something you want to consider, you can upgrade with Customer pricing at 34.99 (http://store.acdsee.com/DRHM/servlet/ControllerServlet?Action=DisplayProductDetailsPage&SiteID=acd&Locale=en_US&productID=106893200)

If you need to clean off a lot of disk space, ACDSee Photo Manager can help you as well. You can copy files and/or photos onto a dvd, then delete the files off off your hard drive. You can then make a Photo Disk which keeps all of your tagging accessible to the program. For ex. if you burn all of your tagged Holiday Kits onto a DVD, create a Photo Disk, you will be able to find those items when searching for holiday kits/elements.

HTH!

[cooljam2000]

Thanks to all for the information and links. All I can say is"OH MY". They are expensive compared to flash drives. Being a senior and on a fixed income,that will have to wait for awhile.I will check out the ACDSee update.Then I can copy to a dvd and see what happens.I do appreciate all the help.