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Last Post:
29 Dec 18, 22:50
Last Post By: RobM
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Posts:
7
Registered:
28-Nov-2015
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Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
6 Dec 15, 06:05
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I'm loving jAlbum so far. Is there a way in the 'Explore' view to multi-select multiple images at once, and then set (eg) IPTC 'Caption' for all selected items at once to the entered caption? I'm doing this now successfully with IrfanView, but it would be nice if I could do it directly in jAlbum. (I know how to multi-select ... it's the setting of caption I'm unclear on )
Thanks!
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Posts:
8,039
Registered:
31-Jan-2006
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
6 Dec 15, 06:19
in response to: Steerpike58
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You can't enter any IPTC information for an image from within jAlbum. You can enter a jAlbum Comment or Title, and you can tell jAlbum to copy its own comments and titles to the xmp metadata for the image, but not to the IPTC.
If you want to enter the same Comment or Title for multiple images, enter it for one image, then right-click and choose Title.... Copy or Comment.... Copy (the choice will depend upon whether you're looking at the Titles or the Comments). Then choose the other images you want to change, right-click, and choose Title... Paste or Comment... Paste.
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Posts:
7
Registered:
28-Nov-2015
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
6 Dec 15, 18:47
in response to: JeffTucker
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Ah- got it - I have the 'Explore' view set to display 'comment', and the 'comment' is being fed from the IPTC 'Caption' field. But when I update that 'comment' in jAlbum, I see that it does not get stored in the IPTC area of the file. You say "you can tell jAlbum to copy its own comments and titles to the xmp metadata for the image". I poked around and found the updated text in the 'comments.properties' file in the image folder; I presume that 'comments.properties' file is the 'xmp metadata' repository?
Having been burned multiple times, committing captions to proprietary repositories, I'll never again put captions / titles / etc anywhere but in the IPTC for the image itself, as it is self-contained and highly transportable in that manner. Are you avoiding the IPTC area because it does not exist for all image types, or are you maintaining a 'do not touch the original' approach?
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Posts:
8,039
Registered:
31-Jan-2006
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
6 Dec 15, 18:56
in response to: Steerpike58
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I poked around and found the updated text in the 'comments.properties' file in the image folder; I presume that 'comments.properties' file is the 'xmp metadata' repository?
No. The comments.properties file is the comment source choice labeled jAlbum (Text file). The xmp metadata is actual, buried-in-the JPG metadata. It's not something kept in a separate file somewhere. Under Tools, Preferences, Album, Image editing, if you choose Write xmp metadata to files, things like comments you enter will be written out to the image metadata.
Having been burned multiple times, committing captions to proprietary repositories, I'll never again put captions / titles / etc anywhere but in the IPTC for the image itself, as it is self-contained and highly transportable in that manner. Are you avoiding the IPTC area because it does not exist for all image types....
No. It's being avoided because it's rapidly being superseded. IPTC metadata has a limited set of defined fields. On the other hand, xmp metadata is infinitely extensible, making it much more future-proof.
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Posts:
7
Registered:
28-Nov-2015
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
6 Dec 15, 21:17
in response to: JeffTucker
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Oh wow this is exciting information indeed (and I apologize for not keeping up to date with metadata!). I checked my settings, and I see that 'write xmp metadata to files' is checked. So I entered a sample 'comment' in the explore view of jAlbum, and I see that comment in Photoshop Elements - 'File Info' / Raw shows the entered comment within the 'description' tag. But also, 'File Info' / IPTC, 'IPTC Content' section, shows the same comment within the 'Description' field. I'll need to play around more with that to see what is getting set where. And IrfanView doesn't show it at all, sadly.
I guess I have some work ahead of me to get a better understanding of XMP tags. Crucial to my workflow is the ability to bulk-enter this metadata, and it seems like jAlbum can do that for me.
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Posts:
7
Registered:
28-Nov-2015
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
28 Dec 18, 19:55
in response to: Steerpike58
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Hello there!
Three years later … I never did embark on my project and I'm back looking at jAlbum!
Looking at the latest version, I see that I can set "Preferences->Album->Write XMP Metadata to Files" in order to get my comments saved in the JPG image file, XMP metadata area. Great! And then, for my specific album, I need to set "Settings->Advanced->Metadata->Comment Sources" to 'xmp' in order for comments to be 'pulled' from the xmp area of the jpeg image.
Is there a workflow you can suggest that will allow me to migrate all my existing IPTC comments over to the xmp area in my thousands of jpg files? Can jAlbum do this? If I pull up an existing JPG in jAlbum, and have jAlbum display the comments from the IPTC area, I seem to have to 'touch' (change) the comment before it will write the comment back to the XMP area. I tried adding a period, saving, and then deleting the period and saving; that effectively moved the comment to xmp. But is there a way to automate that in any fashion?
Thanks!
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Posts:
8,039
Registered:
31-Jan-2006
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
28 Dec 18, 21:13
in response to: JeffTucker
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Just in case RobM is already out there tinkering with an external tool to do this, there's a hint in the API, a method called: copyFileMetadataToXmp()
It returns true if it was successful.
ETA: And it works if I simply plant this at the beginning of slide.htt in Minimal, for example: <%currentObject.copyFileMetadataToXmp();%>
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Posts:
3,815
Registered:
4-Aug-2006
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
28 Dec 18, 22:05
in response to: JeffTucker
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Just in case RobM is already out there tinkering with an external tool to do this, there's a hint in the API, a method called: copyFileMetadataToXmp()
It returns true if it was successful.
ETA: And it works if I simply plant this at the beginning of slide.htt in Minimal, for example: <%currentObject.copyFileMetadataToXmp();%>
No, not yet as I'm not sure what exactly is needed.
Out of curiosity I edited an image to add some IPTC metadata and then looked at the metadata listed in jAlbum. All of the IPTC data I entered is already copied into an XMP field e.g. Iptc.By-line=IPTC Author >> xmp.dc:creator[1]=IPTC Author
Iptc.Caption/Abstract=IPTC Description >> xmp.dc:description[1]=IPTC Description
Iptc.Headline=IPTC Content Headline >> xmp.photoshop:Headline=IPTC Content Headline AND xmp.Iptc4xmpCore:Caption=IPTC Description
Iptc.Object Name=IPTC Status Title >> xmp.dc:title[1]=IPTC Status Title
Iptc.Subject Reference=IPTC Content Subject >> xmp.Iptc4xmpCore:SubjectCode[1]=IPTC Content Subject
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Posts:
8,039
Registered:
31-Jan-2006
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
28 Dec 18, 22:15
in response to: RobM
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Out of curiosity I edited an image to add some IPTC metadata and then looked at the metadata listed in jAlbum. All of the IPTC data I entered is already copied into an XMP field ....
Yes, that does happen if you add images to an album project, and have your preferences set to copy metadata to the xmp.
Where things get tricky is when you have an existing project in which those options had not been selected when the images were added.
Outside of jAlbum, add an IPTC Caption to an image file. Then in jAlbum, do not tell it to copy metadata to xmp (in the Preferences). Add the image, choose IPTC Caption as the comment source, and refresh the display to satisfy yourself that the comment is being picked up. Now turn the "copy to xmp" preference back on. At this point, the only way to get jAlbum to write out the xmp comment is to make a change to the comment. Even switching comment sources back and forth doesn't do the trick.
The method is pretty simple: private void writeXMP(AlbumObject ao) {
for(AlbumObject obj : ao.getChildren()) {
if(obj.isIncluded()) {
if(obj.isFolder()) writeXMP(obj);
else if(obj.getCategory() == Category.image) {
obj.copyFileMetadataToXmp();
}
}
}
}
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Posts:
3,815
Registered:
4-Aug-2006
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
29 Dec 18, 00:08
in response to: JeffTucker
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Your script converted to an external tool, as attached.
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Posts:
8,039
Registered:
31-Jan-2006
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
29 Dec 18, 00:40
in response to: JeffTucker
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We'll get back to you shortly. Maybe towards the end of 2021.
So I lied. A nice little tool to take care of the job, and it's still 2018! It's another Festivus Miracle!!
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Posts:
7
Registered:
28-Nov-2015
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
29 Dec 18, 20:25
in response to: RobM
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Sounds promising!
I'm familiar with bash scrips from when I do work on Linux boxes, but I use a windows 10 box for all my imaging work. A quick search suggests a variety of tools to get bash support on windows, the most promising seems to be "At //Build 2016, Microsoft announced the ability to run native Bash and GNU/Linux command-line tools directly on the new Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), " (from:
https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/commandline/2016/04/06/bash-on-ubuntu-on-windows-download-now-3/ )
Would that be the most expedient way forward or is there an easier way staring me in the face?
I'm encouraged to read in this thread, though, that if I ADD a new project to jAlbum, the IPTC comments DO get copied to the XMP area automatically. I had tested with an existing project, hence I didn't see this. Since I don't have many existing jAlbum projects (yet), that may just be the best path forward. I just created a new test project, and linked to a new directory full of images. I wrote IPTC comments to all those images before starting. Despite having 'write xmp metadata to files', and also 'IPTC Caption' as my comment source, no XMP data was written to my jpeg files. So what exactly is the sequence to follow to get IPTC data written to XMP for a 'new' project?
Thanks for the help!
Edited by: Steerpike58 on 29-Dec-2018 11:26
Edit to Add - rereading the entire thread, I see that you corrected yourself: "I take that back. I added an IPTC Caption to an image outside of jAlbum. Then in jAlbum, I told it to copy the file metadata to xmp, and to use IPTC Caption as the comment source. I added the image, and my IPTC Caption showed up as the comment. But "List metadata" shows no xmp comment."
So that's not going to work. OK, so I just need to figure how to run the bash script then …
Edited by: Steerpike58 on 29-Dec-2018 11:28
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Posts:
7
Registered:
28-Nov-2015
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Re: Updating IPTC data for multiple images at once in 'Explore' view
Posted:
29 Dec 18, 21:00
in response to: JeffTucker
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Will do - thanks!
Edit To Add - worked like a charm! Whether I choose to use jAlbum or not for my future projects, I just bought a license to say 'thanks' for the great support! Awesome product, Awesome support!
Edited by: Steerpike58 on 29-Dec-2018 12:10
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