Feature request: Spotlight index of files with Apple tags

When Create Spotlight index is chosen in a database properties, the files inside a DT database are accesible to the Finder and other apps.

This is a major motivation to move files inside DT databases. There is just one impediment: those files appear devoid of tags. Tagging is a major classification criteria, particularly when working with DT.

I believe those files are visible from ~/Library/Caches/Metadata. Even if they are not, would it be possible for them not only to be visible to Spotlight but to carry their Apple tags as well?

Thanks for the suggestion, we’ll consider this for future releases.

On top of the inconvenience of performing each search twice, inside and outside of DT, I work in two languages, so this makes it four times for every search. Since I tag heavily and only in one language, this feature would reduce each search to just one. Therefore, I look forward to this feature. Thanks.

I need to use my tagging in DT to filter files as badly as 6 months ago. I was happy to find out that Leap is capable of including a DevonThink database among the places it looks for tags. This means that when I set its preferences to look into interior.dtBase2/Files.noindex, it is capable of showing the files, and the tags of each file when a it is selected.

But it doesn’t show the tags for all files of the said DT database in Leap’s tag cloud. This is no Leap’s fault: I assume it happens because DT doesn’t let Spotlight to access the tags of files. If this is so, is there any way now to achieve tag filtering of files tagged inside DT?

  1. "I assume this is because DT doesn’t permit Spotlight to access the tags of the files.” :: Actually, this is incorrect. Spotlight doesn’t index inside packages. It also won’t index inside ANY directory with .noindex appended to the name.

  2. Tags are NOT applied to the files until they are exported out of the database (or if you are tagging indexed files).

  3. Have you looked at Ammonite: soma-zone.com/Ammonite/ ?

Thanks for your reply.

  1. I take it that there is no other way to have tags in DT available for other apps than if DT’s cache would contain the tags as well.

  2. I don’t know why but Leap seems to show tags which have not been exported for individual files inside a DT database. I attach an image.

  3. Ammonite seems fine but it shows all my rtf annotations quadruple. I have file replicates, nested tags and Spotlight index on -for Foxtrot searches.
    DT-tags-Leap.png

You pointed Leap at the .noindex folder inside your database, which is why Leap is seeing the tags.

Just speaking personally, I would never point any program – Leap or anything – at the .noindex folder unless I wanted to court disaster and have that app rip apart my database from the inside. Just saying. Even Ammonite and Foxtrot are intruding into the database.

Korm,

I thought it would be alright to view files at the .noindex folder, without altering them. But I realize they might be altered by the app, so I will not do it.

I don’t know how Ammonite behaves. As for Foxtrot, I think it is alright because I have pointed it to index ~/Library/Caches/Metadata/DEVONthink Pro 2 -although unfortunately there are no tags there.