Is there an image mgmt program that does all this?

I have been testing different programs, and so far not one has all the features I want.

iMatch comes the closest but lacks one key piece - the ability to select multiple categories at once (easily).

I want to :
Keep track of all images on my HD or archived to CD/DVD.

Make contact sheets that can easily include folder path in the header both to print and save to HD/DVD.

Keep track of multiple versions of the same image easily: original, working, and final (with final further divided by web, 4x6, 5x6, 8x10, etc.).
Allow me to organize my files by category for easy searching.
Handle all image file types.

Basically what I want is iMatch with ACDSee's multi category selection ability.

IE - I want to find all "Automotive" images that are "Original", or all "Automotive" images that are "Final.4x6", etc. Or I want to find all "Original" images that include "John" and "Bill".

So far, I have tried thumbs+, ACDSee, and iMatch. My images are just getting to the point where they are overwhelming me, and so far I am not happy with my options. Any other suggestions?

You could try idimager ( http://www.idimager.com ). It doesn't support versioning, but as far as I know neither of the tools you mention do. This could be solved by defining a catalog label for "Original", "Final", etc.

Bartman01 said:

I have been testing different programs, and so far not one has all
the features I want.

iMatch comes the closest but lacks one key piece - the ability to
select multiple categories at once (easily).

I want to :
Keep track of all images on my HD or archived to CD/DVD.
Make contact sheets that can easily include folder path in the
header both to print and save to HD/DVD.
Keep track of multiple versions of the same image easily:
original, working, and final (with final further divided by web,
4x6, 5x6, 8x10, etc.).
Allow me to organize my files by category for easy searching.
Handle all image file types.

Basically what I want is iMatch with ACDSee's multi category
selection ability.
IE - I want to find all "Automotive" images that are "Original", or
all "Automotive" images that are "Final.4x6", etc. Or I want to
find all "Original" images that include "John" and "Bill".

So far, I have tried thumbs+, ACDSee, and iMatch. My images are
just getting to the point where they are overwhelming me, and so
far I am not happy with my options. Any other suggestions?

Click to expand...

--
canon 10d

Bartman01 said:

I have been testing different programs, and so far not one has all
the features I want.

Click to expand...

...Extensis costs a lot ($199 USD-ouch!). But, I believe it will do exactly what you want. I've just started using it, and so far I like it. Check here for details: http://www.extensis.com/en/products/product_family.jsp?locale=en_US&id=prod60005

Download the 30-day demo and try it out. But, be prepared to shell out $199;-)

Bartman01 said:

iMatch comes the closest but lacks one key piece - the ability to
select multiple categories at once (easily).

I want to :
Keep track of all images on my HD or archived to CD/DVD.
Make contact sheets that can easily include folder path in the
header both to print and save to HD/DVD.
Keep track of multiple versions of the same image easily:
original, working, and final (with final further divided by web,
4x6, 5x6, 8x10, etc.).
Allow me to organize my files by category for easy searching.
Handle all image file types.

Basically what I want is iMatch with ACDSee's multi category
selection ability.
IE - I want to find all "Automotive" images that are "Original", or
all "Automotive" images that are "Final.4x6", etc. Or I want to
find all "Original" images that include "John" and "Bill".

So far, I have tried thumbs+, ACDSee, and iMatch. My images are
just getting to the point where they are overwhelming me, and so
far I am not happy with my options. Any other suggestions?

Click to expand...

--
Cheers,

bg

Oh I can't believe it
and people are strange
our president's crazy
did you hear what he said.

Check out my gallery at http://beerguy.smugmug.com

Bartman01 said:

iMatch comes the closest but lacks one key piece - the ability to
select multiple categories at once (easily).

Click to expand...

.

Bartman01 said:

IE - I want to find all "Automotive" images that are "Original", or
all "Automotive" images that are "Final.4x6", etc. Or I want to
find all "Original" images that include "John" and "Bill".

Click to expand...

I have IMatch and have easily created "virtual categories." For instance, I categorized a wedding with categories like "Bride" which contains any images where the bride appears, and "Grandfather" which contains any images where the Grandfather appears. I then created a virtual category called "Bride and not Grandfather." This brings up all pictures of the bride without her Grandfather. IMatch lets you do image sorts like this on the fly by choosing the categories of interest and selecting the logical operation to do. For example, choose Bride and Grandfather categories and select an AND operation and only those images with both the bride and Grandfather will be selected. As far as doing this easily, it's all done with mouse clicks. You don't need to write any equations. Is that what you are looking for?

Dewdrop

I am doing the same thing with iMatch.

For the record, this is the one shortcoming (other than interface, which you can get over by just putting a little time in) that iMatch has. A quick way to select multiple categories and a quick way to pick multiple dates...

Mario, fix these and your program will simply be unstoppable!

Dewdrop1 said:

Bartman01 said:

iMatch comes the closest but lacks one key piece - the ability to
select multiple categories at once (easily).

Click to expand...

.

Dewdrop1 said:

IE - I want to find all "Automotive" images that are "Original", or
all "Automotive" images that are "Final.4x6", etc. Or I want to
find all "Original" images that include "John" and "Bill".

Click to expand...

I have IMatch and have easily created "virtual categories." For
instance, I categorized a wedding with categories like "Bride"
which contains any images where the bride appears, and
"Grandfather" which contains any images where the Grandfather
appears. I then created a virtual category called "Bride and not
Grandfather." This brings up all pictures of the bride without her
Grandfather. IMatch lets you do image sorts like this on the fly
by choosing the categories of interest and selecting the logical
operation to do. For example, choose Bride and Grandfather
categories and select an AND operation and only those images with
both the bride and Grandfather will be selected. As far as doing
this easily, it's all done with mouse clicks. You don't need to
write any equations. Is that what you are looking for?

Dewdrop

Click to expand...

Dewdrop1 wrote:
As far as doing

Dewdrop1 said:

this easily, it's all done with mouse clicks. You don't need to
write any equations. Is that what you are looking for?

Click to expand...

IMHO - the process in IMatch is extremely cumbersome compared to the other products I have looked at. I don't want to have to build a selection or virtual category for every possible combo I want. I will either have to build it every time or quickly be overwhelmed by my category/selection lists. I want to be able to click on two or more different categories in the category list and have it filter that way. IMatch only allows one selection at a time. This is the biggest weakness I have seen so far in this program.

beerguy said:

...Extensis costs a lot ($199 USD-ouch!). But, I believe it will do
exactly what you want. I've just started using it, and so far I
like it. Check here for details:
http://www.extensis.com/en/products/product_family.jsp?locale=en_US&id=prod60005

Download the 30-day demo and try it out. But, be prepared to shell
out $199;-)

Click to expand...

Thanks, I will check it out. The price is steep, but if it does everything I want it will be worth it. I need to get my workflow/data under control before it starts to control me.

I clearly see your point. I'm using IMatch, but was very impressed by ACDSee 6 and the quick selection of categories to filter on. However, I'm working on a script that will emulate this funcionality. Basically the script calls up a category selection tree, you select the categories (logical AND) and the script then modifies the formula of a dedicated filter category (always the same category) which is then displayed. Putting the script in the one-click bar to the right make combined category filtering less cumbersome.
My only wish is that I will find the time to complete the script.

Bartman01 said:

Bartman01 said:

this easily, it's all done with mouse clicks. You don't need to
write any equations. Is that what you are looking for?

Click to expand...

IMHO - the process in IMatch is extremely cumbersome compared to
the other products I have looked at. I don't want to have to build
a selection or virtual category for every possible combo I want. I
will either have to build it every time or quickly be overwhelmed
by my category/selection lists. I want to be able to click on two
or more different categories in the category list and have it
filter that way. IMatch only allows one selection at a time. This
is the biggest weakness I have seen so far in this program.

Click to expand...

--
/ Paj

http://paj.smugmug.com

Bartman01 said:

Keep track of multiple versions of the same image easily:
original, working, and final

Click to expand...

Have you found any applications that can do that in a good way? I want to display the raw version, the converted tif version and the psd version as one photo. iMatch can't do that.

--
Jahn Otto
Pixort developer ( http://www.pixort.com )

Portfolio is what I use, but follow the advice to try them all out. I don't think there's one that's the "must have". The better ones allow scripting (Portfolio, iMatch, iView) which can allow you to get round many limitations - if you can script.

Note that Portfolio is on the verge of releasing 7.0.4 - registered users like me already have it, and for all I know it may be public now. The issue is that it supports a lot more new image formats.

If you try it, here are two good urls:
The independent FAQ: http://www.portfoliofaq.com/pfaq/
Its User to User forum: http://www.portfoliofaq.com/forum/index.php

John

Bartman01 said:

beerguy said:

...Extensis costs a lot ($199 USD-ouch!). But, I believe it will do
exactly what you want. I've just started using it, and so far I
like it. Check here for details:
http://www.extensis.com/en/products/product_family.jsp?locale=en_US&id=prod60005

Download the 30-day demo and try it out. But, be prepared to shell
out $199;-)

Click to expand...

Thanks, I will check it out. The price is steep, but if it does
everything I want it will be worth it. I need to get my
workflow/data under control before it starts to control me.

Click to expand...

jefflins wrote re iMatch:

jefflins said:

....the one shortcoming (other than interface,
which you can get over by just putting a little time in)

Click to expand...

There's a lot I like about iMatch, and it's great value for money, but I've put that time in, and more, and it's still a real pain to work with.

Bartman01 said:

I have been testing different programs, and so far not one has all
the features I want.

iMatch comes the closest but lacks one key piece - the ability to
select multiple categories at once (easily).

Click to expand...

Considering that almost nothing in IMatch is "easy", selecting multiple categories isn't much harder than anything else.

You can create a "selection" category that refers to other category selections. Create a new category "A" and then right-click and choose "Properties".

Now in the "Expression" field, you can enter a boolean expression that combines whatever categories you want. Now whenever you select that category, you'll see those images that match the expression.

And you can nest them too. Once you have "A" setup as desired, you can use "A" as a category in an expression attached to another category.

If there's a few combinations of categories that you use all the time, then create a few new categories and assign each one an expression for a particular combination. Then create a new category with a name like "Current Selection" or something like that. Now whenever you want to view images matching some particular combination of categories, simply go edit the "expression" for the "Current Selection".

Mike

I am glad there are a lot of iMatch users. I am a fan of this SW since it does everything I need (why bother with Photoshop).

The only problem with this kind of SW (not only iMatch) is that you need to invest a lot of time classifying your Portfolio (mine with 5.000 images) and that creates a lock in (you do not want to do it again to use a different SW).

Two questions: (1) Do you also use iMatch to do everything e.g. converting RAW images and (2) do you think that iMatch has enough customer base to survive in the market?

--
Hipólito
http://www.hip-visual.com

Where's the lock in? You can export all the data from Portfolio and import it into another image database. The same applies to iMatch and all the others.

Sooner or later a multi-developer package will get enough features right that it will swallow the rest of the market. Good luck to iMatch - maybe it will get major improvement of its interface, go Mac-too, and be the one.

Use it for raw conversion? Why?

John

Hipólito said:

I am glad there are a lot of iMatch users. I am a fan of this SW
since it does everything I need (why bother with Photoshop).

The only problem with this kind of SW (not only iMatch) is that you
need to invest a lot of time classifying your Portfolio (mine with
5.000 images) and that creates a lock in (you do not want to do it
again to use a different SW).

Two questions: (1) Do you also use iMatch to do everything e.g.
converting RAW images and (2) do you think that iMatch has enough
customer base to survive in the market?

--
Hipólito
http://www.hip-visual.com

Click to expand...

Jotto said:

Have you found any applications that can do that in a good way? I
want to display the raw version, the converted tif version and the
psd version as one photo. iMatch can't do that.

Click to expand...

Not yet. So far the best way I have tought to handle it would be to add a category called "Processing Step" with children of "Original", "In Process", and "Final" (having further "Final" children of "4x6", "5x7", "8x10", "Web", etc.). Not sure how this will fall out long term, but it is a starting point.

The ideal would be as you state for the program to treat it was one image with multiple states.

Bartman01 said:

beerguy said:

...Extensis costs a lot ($199 USD-ouch!). But, I believe it will do
exactly what you want. I've just started using it, and so far I
like it. Check here for details:
http://www.extensis.com/en/products/product_family.jsp?locale=en_US&id=prod60005

Download the 30-day demo and try it out. But, be prepared to shell
out $199;-)

Click to expand...

Thanks, I will check it out. The price is steep, but if it does
everything I want it will be worth it. I need to get my
workflow/data under control before it starts to control me.

Click to expand...

That Portfolio FAQ page is outstanding, BUT BWIW I stopped using Extensis products several years ago. I found them way overpriced, including the updates which is a real shame because its the best way to send people to competitors (see Qimage's examplary policy here.) At the time the company was also incredibly skimpy on customer support, bordering rude actually. I would MOST definitely try the demo first...

Hope this helps.

Bartman01 said:

IMHO - the process in IMatch is extremely cumbersome compared to
the other products I have looked at. I don't want to have to build
a selection or virtual category for every possible combo I want. I
will either have to build it every time or quickly be overwhelmed
by my category/selection lists.

Click to expand...

No, you don't have to do any of that at all in IMatch.

Bartman01 said:

I want to be able to click on two
or more different categories in the category list and have it
filter that way. IMatch only allows one selection at a time. This
is the biggest weakness I have seen so far in this program.

Click to expand...

Yes, you can do it this way, read on and I'll show you how...

What you do (once only) is create a selection template. Then, whenever you want to hunt for those elusive images, run the template, click on the required categories and hit OK.

So you don't think this is BS, here are the instructions you need (you do steps 1-7 once only):

1. In IMatch, click on the Selections tab.

2. Click the New Template button (or press the Ins key). A new template
called "New Template 1" will be created.

3. In the template editor (on the right hand side of the IMatch window)
under Pre-Selectors, click on Categories.

4. In the Categories editor (far right of the window) click on Enable, make
sure Interactive is checked, and finally, uncheck Same Categories as
original image(s).

5. Now click on Result Set Options under Basic Selectors.

6. In the Result Set Options editor, click on Enable, make sure "Minimum
number of images to show" is selected and has a value of, say, 50. Then set
the "Maximum number of images to show" field to, say, 20000 (or whatever
large number you wish).

7. Right click on "New Template 1" and rename it to something more useful. I've called mine "Find images in Categories".

Now you're ready to find images in categories whenever you want.

8. Run this selection (Right-Click Run, or use the Run Selection button).
You will see a window appear allowing you to choose the categories and
whether to "and" or "or" them. Then click the OK button and the IMatch
window will change to show all the thumbnails of the images maching your
selection criteria.

OK, so it's not intuitive. Well, actually, running the selection template is intuitive, it's creating it in the first place that's as clear as mud.

-----
tfl.

Bartman01 said:

Bartman01 said:

this easily, it's all done with mouse clicks. You don't need to
write any equations. Is that what you are looking for?

Click to expand...

IMHO - the process in IMatch is extremely cumbersome compared to
the other products I have looked at. I don't want to have to build
a selection or virtual category for every possible combo I want. I
will either have to build it every time or quickly be overwhelmed
by my category/selection lists. I want to be able to click on two
or more different categories in the category list and have it
filter that way. IMatch only allows one selection at a time. This
is the biggest weakness I have seen so far in this program.

Click to expand...

I have not used the other products, but IMatch, once you learn it, can do what you want. Actually, maybe I don't understand your frustration. The search/open selection menu allows you to click on the category list and select logical AND or OR to select the images you want. This is remembered in selection view until you exit the program. Are you saying that you want the selection criteria remembered for future sessions? How is that different from adding a virtual category? It would be in a different screen than the category list, but it, too, would quickly get cluttered. I'll agree that, with IMatch, you have to click a few times to get to the category selection screen, but you can do it. It would be nice if that were a bit easier to get to. The problem, IMO, is that the product tries to be all things to all people. That's never a good idea. Mario would do well to drop some of the options which serve mainly to complicate the interface.

I, myself, am trying to learn and appreciate the value of good image management software. So please continue this discussion. I know that Mario monitors these forums and suggestions from his customers may motivate him to improve his software.

Dewdrop

Dewdrop1 said:

I know that Mario monitors these forums and suggestions from his
customers may motivate him to improve his software.

Click to expand...

Not to single Mario and iMatch out, maybe all cataloguing software vendors should really listen to their NON-customers?

Maybe I am missing what you want to do, but if I understand your needs, multiple category selections are very easy to do in Imatch - and without having to save a lot of different combinations of categories or inputting boolean expressions! Here's how: Just create a new selection template. In the Pre-selectors, select Categories and then check the Enable box on the right side. Click on "Interactive Mode" and "Files in selected categories" Make sure to UNcheck "same categories as original images". Check "Logical And". Then every time you run the selection, just check the categoroes you want to see. It's my most used selection and makes selecting multiple categories VERY easy. You can also enable the date selector or other Basic Selections with just a click.

Hope that helps!

John L

Bartman01 said:

IMHO - the process in IMatch is extremely cumbersome compared to
the other products I have looked at. I don't want to have to build
a selection or virtual category for every possible combo I want. I
will either have to build it every time or quickly be overwhelmed
by my category/selection lists. I want to be able to click on two
or more different categories in the category list and have it
filter that way. IMatch only allows one selection at a time. This
is the biggest weakness I have seen so far in this program.

Click to expand...