Two Aperture 3 questions

[thekb]

I have been working toward organizing my photos into a managed Aperture library. I have about 130k pictures from the last 14 years of digital photography so the sins of disorganization are coming home to roost. It's a tedious process, but I am making progress. I have 3 questions:

1. Is there an advantage to using the Aperture Vault if I backup my hard drive using Carbon Copy Cloner? I haven't done a backup yet since importing my photos into the managed library, and I wonder if CCC will be a very lengthy process every time I back up from now on, since the Aperture library is basically just one big file.

2. Why doesn't the Aperture library work like itunes? iTunes has a front end library and manages the files in the Finder structure automatically, but the individual songs are still readily accessible individual files. Aperture does essentially the same thing, but insists on using one big, non-user accessible structure (for all intents and purposes) for the file structure. Seems like they could have implemented it the same way in Aperture to have the best of both worlds (referenced and managed).

3. Quitting Aperture seldom works correctly and I often have to 'force quit'. It usually hangs on "Updating information for sharing previews". Is this a common problem? Would repairing the database help?

Thanks

EDIT: Title should be "3 Aperture 3 questions". Thought of another one mid post.

 

[flynz4]

I have been working toward organizing my photos into a managed Aperture library. I have about 130k pictures from the last 14 years of digital photography so the sins of disorganization are coming home to roost. It's a tedious process, but I am making progress. I have 3 questions:

1. Is there an advantage to using the Aperture Vault if I backup my hard drive using Carbon Copy Cloner? I haven't done a backup yet since importing my photos into the managed library, and I wonder if CCC will be a very lengthy process every time I back up from now on, since the Aperture library is basically just one big file.

2. Why doesn't the Aperture library work like itunes? iTunes has a front end library and manages the files in the Finder structure automatically, but the individual songs are still readily accessible individual files. Aperture does essentially the same thing, but insists on using one big, non-user accessible structure (for all intents and purposes) for the file structure. Seems like they could have implemented it the same way in Aperture to have the best of both worlds (referenced and managed).

3. Quitting Aperture seldom works correctly and I often have to 'force quit'. It usually hangs on "Updating information for sharing previews". Is this a common problem? Would repairing the database help?

Thanks

EDIT: Title should be "3 Aperture 3 questions". Thought of another one mid post.

Your A3 library is NOT 1 big file. It is a "package"... which is just a folder that "looks" like an object. Right click on your A3 library... choose "show package contents"... and you will see that all the files are there.

They do this because there is no good reason to ever edit your library.

I strongly recommend that you buy Robert Boyers ebooks. They can be found on http://photo.rwboyer.com/ and they are excellent. I just spent a few hours re-reading them this weekend. I always learn tons every time I re-read them.

/Jim

 

[snberk103]

....I have 3 questions:

1. Is there an advantage ...

2. Why doesn't the Aperture library work like itunes? ...

3. Quitting Aperture seldom works ....

1) Don't know if takes longer or not, but I have my SD! (SuperDuper, much like CCC) to clone at 1:00 am or something. I have no idea how long it takes because whatever it does is done by the time I start work.

2) Because people don't tend to move their songs around, resize and crop their songs, etc etc. Generally, if people can see their photos they want to manage those photos directly... which messes with the Aperture database.

3) That's a bit of an issue. Let it go over-night - perhaps it just needs to work through all of your photos just once.

Good Luck.

 

[maflynn]

1. Is there an advantage to using the Aperture Vault if I backup my hard drive using Carbon Copy Cloner?

[/QUOTE]
The Vault is one huge advanage and provides you with additional backup strategies. I use TM, but its good to keep a Vault (on a different drive), you cannot be too safe when it comes to your images.

2. Why doesn't the Aperture library work like itunes? iTunes has a front end library and manages the files in the Finder structure automatically, but the individual songs are still readily accessible individual files.

Mostly because apple originally intended to have the Library as a self managed file structure. They prefer not allowing too much flexibility. You can opt for the managed images and not use their library but risk breaking things by moving the images around.

3. Quitting Aperture seldom works correctly and I often have to 'force quit'. It usually hangs on "Updating information for sharing previews". Is this a common problem? Would repairing the database help?

No, this is not a common issue, Aperture has been rock solid for me and from what I gather other users. In fact force quitting the app could be risky as it could corrupt the Library and perhaps that's what already occurred.

 

[thekb]

Thanks all for the responses ...

1. So it sounds like SD (which does the same thing as CCC, after all) is a viable alternative to the vault. If I have more than one backup using CCC, I don't think I would gain much advantage with the vault, but I may get an extra drive and give it a try.

2. I hadn't thought of it that way. Yes, pictures get edited, but songs generally do not.

3. So maybe the library is already a little damaged. Would you recommend running a repair utility? Or is there another alternative?

Thanks

 

[Mac In School]

I've never bothered with the Vault or something that copies the whole HD.

I use time machine, and back up to Backblaze. I can't imagine needing more.

Now video is a different story. I back that up to a Drobo, but I don't clone the whole drive. I use ChronoSync to just backup what I want to save.

 

[flynz4]

The biggest problem with the vault is that it is fully manual. You must start each backup. Generally, I do not like any manual backup. I use dual automatic backup... once locally (TM/TC), and a second to the cloud (Crashplan+).

Despite my previous comment about A3 vault being manual... I do actually use it occasionally. I have an A3 vault on an external USB HDD. About every 3-6 months, I will update the A3 vault on that HDD, plus add any new home videos, and bring it back to my office. Of everything I own... my pictures are by far my most valuable digital assets. I sleep better at night knowing that it is backed up a 3rd time in a 2nd offsite location. It is the only significant data that I own that is not irreplaceable.

/Jim

 

[snberk103]

Thanks all for the responses ...

...
3. So maybe the library is already a little damaged. Would you recommend running a repair utility? Or is there another alternative?

Thanks

It kinda sounds that way.... but I don't have the experience to say for sure. As long as you have a good backup of the library it can't hurt to try a repair utility. Note that a repair utility will only repair the database... and leave the photos alone.... so you really only need to a good backup of the database.

Check over at the Apple Support Forums. They are a bit more focusses there, and you may get better advice there. MacRumours is more fun - but for technical issues I tend to have better luck at the Apple Forums.

 

[flynz4]

Before you rebuild your library:

Do you have faces enabled? I would shut that off. It is a resource hog, and has extremely limited practical value.

Then... I would attempt to let A3 run for a prolonged period. Let it run overnight or longer.

/Jim