To what extent can PE2020's catalog be updated after initial creation?

[trwalp]

I've used Picasa as a front-end photo library viewer since before Google bought it, and am spoiled by it. You can mark any folder to be continually watched so everytime Picasa runs it picks up changes. That has enabled me to use Photoshop for editing, Photomover to automatically add images following a user-defined folder structure, Duplicate Cleaner Pro for eliminating dupes, and EXIFtool for its stuff. Each of those tools is very good at its specialty, whereas my initial impression with PE2020 is it's a "Jack of all trades, master of none."  (e.g., PE2020's duplicate finder requires manual selection of files to be deleted!?!)

But my wife wants access to our family photos and a single program like PE2020 seems appropriate.

The hurdle for me is: I do not understand the extent to which its catalog can be updated. At first, I got the impression that once the catalog is built the user must do everything in PE: moves, renames, dupe removals, etc. Am I wrong? For example, can I still use Duplicate Cleaner Pro to eliminate dupes in my Photos folder and then tell PE2020 to scan that folder and update its catalog?

[Greg_S. · Accepted solution]

Once you start using the Organizer, it has several tools that will allow you to "update" the catalog and avoid some of the problems that you mention.  I have been using the Organizer for many years, so I am used to it being a database for the organization of my media library rather than a file browser.  With this in mind, it is important not to undertake any file management (delete, move or copy) outside of the program, as the catalog will lose track of where the files are stored.

Yes, the Organizer has a strong watched folder presence.  So, as you add new media to your hard drive(s) storage, it will be picked up automatically in the catalog.  If you add media to an unwatched folder, it is easy to point the importer to the folder for import. 

Part of your concern seems to be that if you add media to a folder that has already been imported into the catalog, will you end up with duplicates of those files?  The answer is no.  It is very difficult to import duplicates of files into a catalog.  So if you have imported a folder into the catalog and add files to the folder (which is not a watched folder), you can import the folder again and only the new files will be added - thereby updating the catalog.

You can send a file to the Elements Photo Editor (or other external editor), edit it and then save it as a copy.  You also have an option to save the copy in the Organizer, as well as save it as a version set.  If you use these options, the edited copy of a file will be automatcally entered in the database and appear in the catalog.  If you save it as a version set, the edited file will be shown in a stack with the original image.  If you only want to keep the edited copy, you would then delete the original from the catalog (and optionally from your hard drive).

If you use a duplicate removal tool outside of Elements, and delete files that you consider to be duplicates (or for any other reason), the file will become a "missing file" in the catalog.  It is fairly easy to find these missing files, select them, and then delete them from the catalog if you no longer have any use for them.

In order to satisfy yourself (and, more importantly, your wife 😊) that Elements meets your needs, I suggest you download the 30 day free trial which can be found here.

[trwalp]

Wow, an incredibly clear and thorough explanation, Greg_S. "Thank you" barely covers it.

I bought the program after a brief trial period, and these questions arose after I started to really use it.

Except for continuing to use Photoshop as my primary editor (run from within PE2020, of course), the only external program I might occasionally use is Duplicate Cleaner Pro. PE2020's dupe checker seems pretty sophisticated but after it finds the dupes, the only way I see to delete them is to manually select each one. That's okay for a few but not for a bunch. Thank you for the tip about using the "missing file" feature to rid the catalog of externally deleted files!