I have some full book pdfs imported in my DT database;
is it wise to export a copy of them (sometimes I prefer to have books related to a subject in the same folder…)
OR
is better to export them and indexing them?
Is there a safe way to migrate an imported database to an indexed one?
I use importing, unless I have a specific need for access external to Devonthink
Explain your rationale for indexing.
my database is (for me) huge
sometimes I prefer to have books related to a subject in the same folder…
I assume you are choosing not to use DEVONthink Groups and Smart Grouos with the imported (not indexed) files? Seems by not doing this you are missing a trick
That is what I do with my books on the “Books” database.
Subject tags work well in Devonthink
what are your rules for your Books Group? thanks
What happens is that I find too many duplicates of the same files that naturally take up space; to use the metaphor of the bookshelf… if I use a book for several different researches it always remains on the same shelf it is not “duplicated” every time; surely it’s my fault, but…
Say the Baseball Smart Group rule looks for titles and or content with words like “MLB”, “Baseball” and Kind is any document. Just standard DEVONthink techniques. And of course I have Groups defined. Just standard and powerful DEVONthink stuff.
- my database is (for me) huge
Database “hugeness” doesn’t require indexing nor does indexing make it less huge.
- sometimes I prefer to have books related to a subject in the same folder…
Sometimes ? Please clarify this. At a glance, this appears to be something tags could address. For example, I may have a PDF document about kayaking. I tag them boating, outdoor activities, and exercise. One day, I could be thinking about boating and search for tags:boating and find the document. A week later, I’m thinking I need to exercise more and search for tags:exercise and find the same document.
And as @rmschne suggests, you can even save these as smart groups, like Exercise or Boating docs.
and for this…?
When you export, the exported file is a copy of the file in DT. Any editing changes made to one (the original in DT or the copy at the Finder) are no longer synchronized with the other (the copy at the Finder or the original in DT)
When you index the file, any changes you make in either working environment, Finder or DT, will be syncronized.
Importing and indexing the same file is a way of trying to have your cake and eat it too. Except that DT will allow you to do this. And then, at some later point in time, you may have to decide whether you just ate the original and kept the copy, or you ate the original and kept the copy. Or both. Or neither.
Yes. Decide first why you want to do this and whether you really must do this. See also the discussions at this thread. And search for phrases such as convert import to indexed.
–
JJW
It’s not impossible to clean up duplicates and switching to an indexed database doesn’t alleviate them either.
To deal with the duplicates, you can:
PS: If you deleted the Duplicates smart group, it’s trivial to recreate.
In the database, select Data > New > Smart Group and add these criteria…
I hope I understood your use case correctly.
Would the following setup help?
for every new research, create a new group in DT.
In that group, you can create a text file and reference all the documents / pdfs / books you use for the research, using DT links.
This way, you don’t need to duplicate / copy books every time you do a new project.
I thank you all; I’ll try your suggestion then I come back
done!
but… if the same item shows two instances, first as imported, then as indexed…
they are not seen as duplicates, correctly, can I get rid of one of them?
Those are search results, not a smart group. Duplicates are not detected across databases. You can delete whichever one you wish.
but is not a better practice to have or imported or indexed files?
There is no one-size-fits-all approach.
Indexing is not the default mechanism for good reasons. Indexing:
Importing creates a portable, self-contained package of your documents and data. No dangling wires or assembly required on another device.
therefore if I find two identical files one imported and the other one indexed, I better trash the second one?
