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Keywords, notes, captions - lost after re-install !

(9 posts)
  • Started by mrwul
  • Started on December 13, 2008 - 08:12 AM (6 months ago)
  • Latest reply from mrwul (6 months ago)

  • mrwul
    Member

    Great! I have a new pc, installed ACDSee 2.0 there. Exported database from the old PC, ran backup database on the old PC. Copied the files to the new pc. Imported the database there and discovered that keywords, notes, captions were lost! Then I tried to restore the backup that I just made and got this error "Multiple drives cannot be mapped to the same local drive. Select a different local drive or create a new drive root for each incoming drive".

    ACDSee is on F:\ (both on the old pc and the new one), the database is under F:\ACDSee Pro 2\Database, both pc's.  I selected incoming drive 'F'. But that did not work. So, all the work with these captions, keywords, categories, notes over the last years are gone....??

    I have to identical ACDSee's now, idential drives, idential folders, etc. However, on the new one caption, keywords, etc are missing.    Optimizing does not help, deleting fpt, cdx neither.

    Why is it that ACDSee always has such huge problems when converting/importing databases? There are thousands of postings about this and it seems the developpers are simply unable to tackle this problem!

    Now what ???

    rgds

    ==

    Posted On December 13, 2008 - 08:12 AM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • Marc Sabatella
    Moderator

    mrwul said:

    Great! I have a new pc, installed ACDSee 2.0 there. Exported database from the old PC, ran backup database on the old PC.

    What version of ACDSee was the old PC running?

    What options did you use during the export?  I would suggest starting with "Entire database to read-only compressed version".  When you try to import it, you will probably be greeted by some dialogs sugesting you remap drives since the ids have changed.  If you don't give the correct responses there, that would result in ACDSee having the db info but not being able to find the files.

    So first step is to see if that is what happened.  When you say you've lost the keywords, captions, and so forth, I assume you mean you browsed to the files but found no info when selecting a file.  What happens if you try searching for info you know should be there (using the Organize, Search, or Calendar windows, for example)?  If a search for a given keyword produces thumbs, but then double-clicking a thumb produces an error that the file could not be found, then your database is fine; you just need to tell ACDSee where the images are.  You do that via Database->Database Maintenance.  You select the folders where the images *used* to live, then hit Change Binding, then select the new location (even if the drive *letter* is the same, they are different drives, and ACDSee knows it).

    So, all the work with these captions, keywords, categories, notes over the last years are gone....??

    Very unlikely.  If the above doesn't get you back up and running, there are still plenty of other options.  Such as to upgrade to 2.5 (free), use it on the old computer to embed all your metadata in the files themselves, then run Catalog Files on the new one to read in th db info that way.

     

    Posted On December 14, 2008 - 08:06 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • mrwul
    Member

    Sorry for the late reply. I was busy with my new pc and encountered some hardware issues. Anyway, I now have a spare pc that I can use, fresh XP installation.

    I installed ACDSee pro 2.5 latest version. On an USB flash drive I had (1) a copy of the database (of 2.0), (2) an exported version of it, (3) a backup version of the 2.0 database.

    After installation of 2.5 I went to import database, selected the folder with the 2.0 database and encountered an error ""Database was exported with a different version..."

    Then I selected the 2.0 exported version, same error.

    Then I tried to restore the 2.0 backup - zipped version (ACDSee.bkup) and there ACDSee tells me : "Could not read selected backup file. Select a backup file to continue".

    Within ACDSee 2.5 options I pointed the database folder from c:\bla bla  where it is installed by default to the folder with 2.0-database, ACDSee had to be re-started again, but after that, ACDSee 2.5 would not launch at all

    By the way, as for the above problem of lost keywords, etc.  I did a "batch set info" copying metadata from IPTC to Exif and so on and could recreate the lost data.

    Having said this, I think all these database conversion problems are really unacceptable. In fact I have spent many, many hours to go from 8.0 to 8.1 and in fact had to go back to 8.0, then after purchasing 2.0, again problems and now I simply want to upgrade to 2.5, again spending sooo much time.

    Am seriously considering to swith to LightRoom -I know it has higher pricetag, but  I donot want to be considered to be a beta tester for ACDSee or at least it will save me a LOT of time...

    ==

    Posted On December 22, 2008 - 12:25 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • mrwul
    Member

    Later - I re-installed an image of Windows XP, so back to the situation before the 2.5 issues. Installed version 2.0 than went to import database, selected the 2.0 database-folder that I copied from my other pc. Import went without problems ... "The database wizard has successfully completed".

    So, are we then facing incompatibility issues between 2.0 and 2.5.

    Again, note that both versions have been installed on clean pc, without prior ACDSee products.

    ==

    Posted On December 22, 2008 - 12:54 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • mrwul
    Member

    Ooops, sorry, ignore the above, also here, keywords notes captions are lost from the ACDSee database. Great eh!

    BUT...  I am lucky(!)  The IPTC and Exif details notes are still there...

    =

    Posted On December 22, 2008 - 01:01 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • Marc Sabatella
    Moderator

    mrwul said:

    Ooops, sorry, ignore the above, also here, keywords notes captions are lost from the ACDSee database. Great eh!

    In that case, it sounds like a plain and simple case of ACDSee having lost the association between its database and your files, which should not be surprising when moving from one machine to another.  It expects the files to live on the same exact drive (same device id), not jus the same drive *letter*.  This is what Database->Database Maintenance is for - to resolve issues like this after changing systems.  It isn't normally needed when simply upgrading the software on one system.  If you run that utility, after it is done collecting information, you should see your computer / drive / folder tree, anmd you should see two versions of the place your images are: one for the old drive, and one for the new one.  The folders on the old drive will have icons showing the images themselves as orphans.  Select the highest level folder with orphans, then hit Change Binding and navigate to the actual location where the files live.  Then ACDSee should be happy.

     

     

    Posted On December 22, 2008 - 07:53 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • mrwul
    Member

    I don't know, this also has happened when updating ACDSee on the same pc. Coindicidentally, I checked and many many older collections (so photos from 2003 onwards) that were described in the ACDSee database, those descriptions are gone, as well as the keywords, notes, catagories. It took me _days_ to add keywords, notes, categories and so on. Everything has gone.

    Now, maybe this is also caused by the user, but then again, any database conversion should be foolproof, in fact, ACDSee should put effort in it to make it foolproof, simple, easy. Needcase they should create a databaseconversion tool: ask where the previous database is/was, ask where images are stored - click on okay and everything is done by ACDSee.

    No worries about device id or drive letters... end users should not worry about those things and make mistakes, loosing all their hard work!

    I think I am not the only one having problems with the database.

    =

     

    Posted On December 23, 2008 - 07:17 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • mrwul
    Member

    Further to the above: Now I have photos -say- 2003-2008. In the latest database 2003-july 2007 ACDSee database base info has gone, IPTC and EXIF as well.

    From 2007 onwards the database info is available.

    This might have something to do with me trying to update to 2.5 and getting back to 2.0 and importing database in the wrong way ?

    I have a backup dtd dec.6 and one I just made. I cud give it a try to check out/restore the dec.6 database and see if the old metadata is still there. What happens when I restore the old databasebackup.

    Just tried, but select the drive on the right side.

    Incoming drive (F:) - whatever I select on the right pull down selection, I constantly get: "Multiple drives cannot be mapped to the same local drive. Select a different local drive or create a new drive root for each incoming drive".

    Now, the database backup resides on F:\ACDSee2\Backup.

    I also went to database maintenance, you can see what I get there (attachment). Optimizing did not make any difference. A lot of stuff were used in the past, Kingston, Buffalo (USB Flashdrives), he Powershot I donot have it anymore since 2007.

    What a mess...

    ==

     

    Attached Files

    1. SnagIt-23-12-2008 20.49.11.jpg
    Posted On December 23, 2008 - 07:54 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

  • mrwul
    Member

    I might be coming closer to a solution ...  found that I had a LOT of so-called 'Unmounted' files, that might cause some problems

    • a) go to Database Maintenance
    • b) selected each individual unmounted drive
    • c) the click on "Rove all DB info" at the bottom
    • d) then click on "Optimize Database"

    It quick check shows that a lot of unmounted files have gone, likely all. In the database maintenance view, there are still quite some drives shown (not 'unmounted though). ACDSee program and database resides on my 'F'-drive and the photos reside on my N-drive.

    Three questions now:

    • should I better remove all the other drives as well, i.e. only F and N (and C) to remain.
    • the photos on my N-drive are stored under \Nikon and \Canon. If I want to backup the database AND want to include the images as well (I know it takes a lo space and time) how am I to proceed as only 1 folder can be assigned, i.e. either Nikon or Canon, but I want the photos from both folders included.
    •  if, by doing so, are all the details saved, such as filename and will this avoid any future database problems?

    brgds

    =

    Posted On December 24, 2008 - 01:09 PM (6 months ago) (Permalink to this post)

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