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I’m sitting here with hundreds of A-10 files and pictures and wondering just how to organize them in a logical matter so I can find what I want (easily) when I need it?? It’s not as simple as putting them by date or subject matter because they can be organized in some many different ways, this can be a nightmare if not done right! <img src=newicons/tard.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=newicons/tard.gif border=0 align=middle>

Ugly But Well Hung

Yeah that is an big problem Dice-Man.
Is it paperwork (books, articles etc) or PC work?
I work in an archive, so maybe you can tell me what it is. Than I can tell you a way to do.

Salute
Dutchy

Termites do it in the dark!
(47FS Barksdale afb)

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73-1664

Dutchy, it's both, I have about 8-10 (gig) of digital files which include pictures, documents, and my website stuff. I can handle the "hard material" like papers and books it's the digital files I'm wondering about.

Ugly But Well Hung

10GB is alot, but by no means too much to organize. How big is your HDD? I would do it by letting there be duplicates, you know? If somethign can go into 2 folders, let there be 2 copies of it. Even if everythign gets copied 3x, you have 30GB. Still a very managable size.

They say that the only two things certain in life are death and taxes. I prefer them in that order.

THis just occured to me also though. If copying all the fiels is not an available option, try this. Create a folder (preferably not on your C: drive in case it ever takes a dump and you have to format/reinstall your OS), lets call it "A-10 Shit". In this folder, create a subfolder "All Files" put, duh, all the files in that subfolder, all of them. Now, back in the folder "A-10 Shit" you can create all the folders you can organize the files into, even if there woudl be duplicated. Then, drag the icon for the actual file from "All Files" into the folder it could be organized into, but instead of copying it, just go "create shortcut here"
This way you will have one folder will all your files and a million shortcuts to said files. Since the shortcuts take up virtually no space, you coudl have every file displayed in 20 different folders without using hardly any space.

They say that the only two things certain in life are death and taxes. I prefer them in that order.

Dice,

What you need to get your head round is the Metadata related to the actual information.

Metadata is information about the information.

For example, you might have a magazine with a Hog article in it. The information will be the article itself.

The Metadata will be the type of media (magazine, book, picture, video), issue number, issue date, publisher, where you got it from, level of technical detail, tail numbers, pilot names, how and where it's stored etc.

All of this is then held in some form of database so you can then run a query like "Every book & engine & diagram & high detail". The database will then return the records for every bit of stuff you have whose metadata matches your search.

The search results can include a clickable link that will open the actual file on your HDD if you require.

The best advice is jot down how you are likely to want to retrieve the information in other words the search criteria your would use to find stuff.

This can then be used to build a list of metadata fields. Once you have this list, depending on the number of fields, you can then select a tool to do this electronically.

Most times the tool is selected first and then you (or a 50,000 employee corporation) finds out the tool needs the metadata to be stored in such a way that they would never actually look for anything.

Disapointment follows closely behind... Along with a PC with a .45 hole in it...

There is a department in our organisation who job is to manage metadata. Whilst these guys select multi million $ systems, they will also know what is available for the domestic market. I'm happy to take your requirments to them for a recomendation. But the first question they will ask is about your metadata requirements (because they are geeks).

If any of the above is of interest drop me a line and I'm happy to go through it in even more boring detail.

Or you can call me a boring bastard and go and have a beer instead <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>...

You're born, you keep your head down and you die. If you're lucky...

Edited by - 44hollowpoint on Sep 19 2005 07:59 AM

Jackb, I have a 108gig HDD so space is not an issue. Like you said I do want multi-copies of some files like my door art. I want one main file with all the art I have no matter where I got it from. I should be able to go to this folder and find if I have a door art image for a specific tail number. I also want to place art that I’ve taken in one folder, ones sent to me by others in another folder (named for the person who sent them) and ones I’ve copied from other sources in another.

44, you bring-up a great point to organize my files so they can be “searched” in a logical way, something I haven’t thought about. When you say “Metadata” are you talking about the file extensions or renaming my files?

Ugly But Well Hung

Dice,

Unfortunately it's not that simple.

You leave your files as they are in a big folder, you no longer worry about where they are.

You then take a piece of software (or if you know somebody local who can use Microsoft Access Database do it in that).

You set up your metadata fields in (say) Access, they might look like this -
Tail Number
Pilot(s)
Crew
Media Type (paper, video, picture etc)
Diagrams (Yes, No)
Detail level (High, Med, Low)
Location on HDD

Then look at your first electronical file, fill in the details into access according to the above criteria and then the final bit is the location of the data on your HDD.

When you are then looking for something, you don't go to the folder on the HDD, but to the Database. You call up a search field for Tail number and put something in like *166*.

When you run the search, it will return all the file location on your HDD whose Tail Number field contains the numbers 166.

You can then click on the file location link and the file(s) will open.

Be warned there is a monsterous amount of work involved in completing the metadata in the first place (it does have the plus side that it makes you clear out all the crap) but once its in place keeping it up to date is a piece of piss.

You then never have to keep clicking through files looking for something. The first point of call is always the database.

If you want to go down this route the decision is usually, do I want it to be a DIY program (i.e. Access) or shall I buy something off the shelf.

Google and Microsoft are both pushing desktop search engines (think of them as Google searches of your PC, not the internet). I'll try and find some time to check these out for you to see if they will do the job.

You're born, you keep your head down and you die. If you're lucky...

WOW 44, you are talking some work here! <img src=newicons/anim_shock.gif border=0 align=middle> just the files I have on my computer now, not counting the disks I haven't loaded, number 10,646 indiviual files! Sounds like it would be a great system once the work was done.

Ugly But Well Hung

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>10,646 indiviual files! <hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>

OMG...

That's not a hobby, it's an obsession <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>...

Joking apart, how many of them are images and how many others are documents (Word, PDF, text files etc)?

I've had a quick look at the MSN Search bar tool (Despite my boss screaming for his already week late report, what can he do, he's in a different country to me) and it appears to be able to automatically scan all the words in files kept on your HDD.

If you had a word file containing Maverick, this would find it for you. If you had a image file called maverick.jpg it would find it, but if the image file was a picture of a Maverick but called picture.jpg it wouldn't. That is where the metadata you would enter would ace it.

You could record not only that it was a maverick, but the hog it was loaded on, pylon number etc.

Check your email...

You're born, you keep your head down and you die. If you're lucky...

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>
OMG...

That's not a hobby, it's an obsession <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>...

Check your email...

<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>

ROFL, yea I guess so! <img src=icon_smile_blush.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_approve.gif border=0 align=middle> I figure once I load the rest of my files, then clean them up, I should be in the 15,000 range. I would say 75% are picture and video files.

received email and answered.

Ugly But Well Hung

Dice,

I'll see what I can figure out on my boring shifts in the Helpdesk and maybe I'll get what what 44 is suggesting down. That way I could do it after I get my "Pet Friendly Lodging" @ Hill.

You might be a "Bulldog" if: You bend over and grab your ankles when you hear: "EXERCISE, EXERCISE, EXERCISE!"

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Put on your tinfoil hats, the black choppers are coming, and I'm calling them in.
Former DCC OA-10A T/N 80-278

Great talk we had today 44, you gave me a lot to think about! <img src=newicons/tard.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_approve.gif border=0 align=middle>

Ugly But Well Hung

Dice,

No worries, apologies it went on so long.

The problem is not starting to think about what you need to do, but stopping <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>...

You know when you're going to far when the spoon stops halfway between the cereal bowl and your mouth <img src=newicons/anim_lol.gif border=0 align=middle>

Good luck and keep all that history safe...

You're born, you keep your head down and you die. If you're lucky...