Is there a way to create a group that will show only documents created during a specific date range, for example, all documents that were created during September 2008? The available options for a smart group do not allow arbitrary date ranges.
I figure I could probably do it with an attached script, but using the search command does not appear to be an option because it does not let a minimum age be specified. I would imagine going through all the records manually in AppleScript would be very slow. Not to mention the complexity added by duplicates and replicants.
Wondering if/when this (very basic) feature will be implemented? Not being able to search by date in any way is crippling for how I want to use DT 2. (My need is more for smart groups than plain searching, so the script solution does not really apply.)
Before smart groups my workaround was to use the History window for locating documents in certain time ranges regardless of where they’re hierarchically stored. With smart groups, I can create one that matches all (or specific) documents so dates will be displayed in much-more-preferable-to-me absolute format instead of relative. From there I can search a selection or replicate to a temporary group and limit searching to that. Not elegant but functional unless/until DT supports arbitrary date range searching.
Since I think things are winding down for v1 of the iPhone/iPad version (which I am super-excited about, by the way ), I thought there might be a little more bandwidth for user requests so I would like to re-request this as it would be quite useful for me. Thanks.
this functionality would be especially useful once a user date field is added per another request; then the smart folder could be based on date ranges of document internal dates as well as file creation dates…
There was a time when I was really on board with this request. But lately I’ve come to the conclusion that DT is a potent combination with iCal. Adding date specific items to iCal and going back and forth with DT is pretty easy with the templates and scripts provided with the program. Lately I’ve found little need for date specific data fields. Just a thought.
In any case, I’m totally on board for better date specific searching of DT for creation and modification dates and the like.
Tom- I saw your other post on this suggestion and I like the functionality in general between iCal and DT (more scripts that create the doc link in iCal would be useful). Unfortunately I have 1000s of documents that span over many years of time for my DT application. Really need something that works within the database drawing search criteria intersections with other parameters (and smart folders etc.).
Right now I’m using Spotlight Comment field to create a Date string that’s searchable (Document Date Nov 17, 2004: = ‘DD2004-11-17’ for example); I can do some pseudo date range searches and smart folders with this technique - but would really like user date field with range searching on full database for proper sorting and other functionality…
I do like your iCal suggestion though and intend to use it for certain aspects. thanks for the excellent thought…
Agree. Seems like such a feature would have been implemented by this point in a sophisticated program where finding information efficiently is one of its primary objectives.
It’s probably a bit harder to implement then one would think, or at least to implement it in a way that’s both fast and accurate and deals well with large document collections, it’s a feature that has been requested here many times by people including myself.
This one along with the ability to sort tags from most to least are two features whose absence puzzles me in such a high power, high end application as DevonThink. Both seem like no brainers to add to the program. By no brainers I mean ‘features that obviously should exist’ not no brainers to implement, because obviously if it were easy to program they’d already be there.
I get the feeling that both are coming, although I don’t know when they fit into the development schedule.
Not quite the same, but related: I would love to be able to make a smart group for “Date Added” “is” “Within the last month”. (“Date Opened”, etc).
I can do “This Month”, but that’s not much use when it’s the first week of the month, so I need a second one for “Last Month” as well - bit clumsy, just seems to make more sense to have one that shows all the recent stuff in one folder.
Count me as another one who wants this feature. I want to be able to create a smart group for documents with a modified date of “earlier than 1 week ago”
The lack of this feature makes me have to jump through lots of hoops to organize the way I want to. It is especially painful now with DTTG because I would love to sync stuff based on date, but the current options are no where near flexible enough.
(On a side note, it would be a little better if I could at least script this stuff, but smart group conditions are not scriptable.)
), I thought there might be a little more bandwidth for user requests so I would like to re-request this as it would be quite useful for me. Thanks.
Thanks, it makes a big difference in terms of being able to create effective smart groups for a lot of different purposes.