Comments on: Managing Multiple iPhoto Libraries

By: Jen

Jen — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 02:27:32 +0000

My iPhoto library on my MacBook has gotten way too large and I need to get some of it moved to my external HD. Deciding to put all movie clips on my EHD. Or, after reading your post, maybe I should consider splitting them by years.

Anyway – I’ve been trying to decide whether it would be useful for me to purchase iPhoto Library ($19). What are your thoughts on this program vs. just doing what you can from iPhoto.

Thanks.

By: kidologist

kidologist — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 04:55:08 +0000

That is a good point. When you double click on any file, it references what program it is associated with and simply opens that program. Then the program is in charge, and as mentioned above iPhoto will open the last library used. I never open programs from data files (except Word) because there are other issues with opening data that way. It is always better to open a program first and then open data files from within the program to minimize issues, and thats true on Mac or PC. There is no way for a program to “know” what file was double clicked after it opens, unless it IS a file being opened. Like when you click on a word doc or powerpoint file, you are clicking on a direct file. When you double click on an iPhoto libary, you are clicking on a folder, which technically can’t be ‘opened.’ So the software then proceses the last librar folder it opened. Confusing? Sorry.

Related Tip: DONT EVER OPEN A FILE IN AN EMAIL BY DOUBLE CLICKING!!! ALWAYS SAVE AND THEN OPEN. If you open from within your mail, you are opening a file buried in your mail attachments and if you hit “save” you often will never see those changes. The next time you “open” the file in your email, the changes will not be there. IF YOU DO open a file from within an email, BE SURE to use SAVE-AS when you save, and navigate to where you want the file. Otherwise you can lose everything you do with that file. Again, this is neither PC or Mac, it is a principle of how computers work.

By: Dave Friederich

Dave Friederich — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 04:29:08 +0000

Note: If you have a few iPhoto libraries and double click one of them (from Finder), it opens iPhoto with your previously opened library… …NOT necessarily the one you double clicked.

For example, if you have a library called ONE and another called TWO…

You open ONE in iPhoto. Then close iPhoto. If you then double click on TWO it will open up ONE in iPhoto…

It’s a… ummm… feature.