Hi Al, Okay yes, I think I took care of this in that last post. But all the pages in the left and right folders are in correct order. Just every other page 2, 4, 6 etc. And 1, 3, 5 in the other. Those are actual 'page' numbers I'm talking. Now if I could just get the file names to match that then we'd be all set !
Let me know if I've missed anything. Thanks! ~Rita --- In
gcmac@yahoogroups.com, Alfred J Treder <altreder@...> wrote: > > Rita, > > Something else to clarify, which just occurred to me. It's the rest of the story on the subject of the current sequence order of files in folders. > > When you look at one of the folders of images, either left-hand or right-hand, are the files in correct page order? The Mac Finder and GC use the same sort of rules for ordering the list of files. If the files are in correct page order, and the files (images) are named as you indicated with IMG_ as the first part and a four-digit number as the second part, then they will be listed in the numerical order based on the number part of the filename. If that order is the correct page order, then the only thing wrong with the filenames right now is that some of the sequence numbers are missing, so that a folder does not contain all odd numbers or all even numbers. If that is the case, then GC will (when we get the details ironed out) help you get a neat index number sequence into the filenames, with no missing numbers. It also helps you get the BookName into the filename, of course. > > However, if the folders list filenames in order (which they must) but then the pages are NOT in order, doing the process we described will simply preserve the incorrect page sequence but give you neat sequential index numbers and BookName. You would still have to rearrange the pages to get them into correct page order. GC can't figure out the page order from the content of the image like your brain can; you should do that first by looking at the images themselves and adjusting their filenames so they automatically list in the right page order within the folder. THEN you can run the renaming process to neaten everything up. > > Al > > " Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. " > > -- Scott Adams > > Begin forwarded message: > > From: Alfred J Treder <altreder@...> > Date: February 11, 2012 9:14:11 PM PST > To:
gcmac@yahoogroups.com > Subject: Re: [gcmac] Re: Renaming and combining files ? > Reply-To:
gcmac@yahoogroups.com > > Rita, > > > Now I have a better calibration on how you're thinking, so this may sound a little different. > > First, let's clarify a term you are using. Actually, two terms. What you call "images" are that, but they are in the form of "files". You can properly call them "image files". Each image is a file. A collection of files is put in a folder, so you have a folder of files. These are the terms as GC uses them. > > In another post I saw you talk (isn't that a strange phrase? but it's true) about your images as named IMG_2345, IMG_2346, etc. Each image is a file with that name, of course. I have seen that format before, and I understand it. The camera names each image file as the concatenation of the prefix "IMG_" and an index number that must have started as 0001 when the camera was brand new, and will go back to 0001 after it reaches 9999. The camera always assigns such indices in numerical sequence, but only for new exposures, so if any exposure was deleted the sequence number for that frame would seem to be skipped when you look at what is left in the camera. When the book was photographed page by page, I would think it was done in sequence, so if NO frames were deleted in that process, all the odd-numbered files would be one side (left or right) and the even-numbered files would be the other side. You probably aren't that lucky with 300 exposures, but it's possible. If it were true, you could just put all the image files in one folder and they would automatically sort into what you want. > > But you have what must be two folders of about 150 files each, which have somehow been segregated into left-hand pages and right-hand pages. And that was done probably because the image file numbers as they came out of the camera were not all neatly odd-numbered for left side and even-numbered for right side (or vice versa). They might even have had to go back and reshoot some pages which didn't turn out well enough the first time, so some of the final images may have index numbers that look out of sequence. You haven't talked about that yet, but it seems it must be part of your problem. So, in your reply, please tell me about the apparent order of the image files in the two folders, and how you know which is a left page and which is on the right. Is that determined only by the appearance of the imaged page? If so, somebody must have sorted through the images visually, and put left-looking pages in one folder and right-looking pages in the other folder. Given that the folders are correctly filled, what does a list of image filenames look like? Are the indices all either odd or even, with no apparent gaps in sequence? How are the pages, either left or right, put into correct numerical page sequence? Inquiring minds crave details like these. > > Now, in GC: > There is no need to "Remove Existing Index", although part of your existing filename is an index. That option should be unchecked, to reduce any confusion. GC does not need to look at the existing filename and decide that part of it is an index to be removed. If you are using "Change Name", GC will gladly replace the entire name (including the numbers in it) with whatever you put in the little window, so those numbers disappear. > > Under the "Extension" Menu, you don't need to choose anything, I think, and the extension will remain what it was (you said it was "tif"). You do not want to change the extension at all, since that is sacred info. > > When you start the renaming process, the files are already in some order, probably numerical order of the numbers in the filename. GC will preserve exactly that sequence of files and give them the neat index numbers you specify. But it will do that only for the files that are selected in the folder. If you want to rename all the files in the folder you have to select all of them. > > I do not understand the results you got. Maybe you didn't completely spell out those results. It looks like there is no Bookname in the new names, unless you meant Bookname is to be implied as showing up either before or after the numbers you listed. You said the first result was 001, followed by 1341, 1343, 1345, which is very strange since the first result is three digits and the others are four, besides the fact that the four digits don't seem to have followed from 001 or even 0001. Then the Right file starts with a three digit 002 and proceeds normally except with an unwanted 1 at the front. This confuses me. Show me a list of the old filenames and the corresponding new filenames. > > This is a workable problem. Let's keep going here. > > Al > > " The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat." > > -- Lily Tomlin > > > > On Feb 11, 2012, at 7:37 PM, Rita wrote: > > > Hi Al, > Okay this looks great! And just to confirm these are all individual images in two files. Each file about 150 each. > > Now, I did a test file. and not sure if this worked. > > My GC is not formated like yours, so I tried to match up what your wrote with. It's a bit different but I'm pretty sure I got the settings correct. > > I used: > Under Index: Add Index > Offset was -1 (to get the numbering to start at 1) > Digits 3 (for 000 spaces) > Step 2 > Also checked here was Remove Existing Index, Begin, Before Name > > Then under another window called Name: > I checked Change Name > and put the new Bookname in the box > > Under Extention, I checked: Rename only files (not folders) > > What I got when I said GO > > The left side started with 001 > but everything after that is > 1341 > 1343 > 1345 > 1347 and so on. > > Then Right file looks like: > 002 > 1004 > 1008 > 1010 > 1012 > > The only thing I changed on the second run Right Side was under Index I removed the checkmark for Change Index (as I thought this was ruining it) > So, now I'm really stumped. > Why would the both numbering start with 001 or 002 correctly but then go on to use other numbers ? > > I can't see how these numbers would sort these two files so not going to try them. > Maybe it's just too late for my brain, but I guess I'll just wait for you to chime in for this one. > I was so excited at first! I guess it was easier to read than to 'do' correctly !
> > THanks and will wait to hear from you, > > sigh
> ~Rita > > --- In
gcmac@yahoogroups.com, Alfred J Treder <altreder@> wrote: > > > > Rita, > > > > That should be easy. Since you're trying something for the first time, make sure that you retain a separate set of originals, and work only with copies. > > > > You probably meant that you have two folders of files, one folder of left-hand pages and one of right-hand pages. That's what I will assume, since dealing with multipage files is much more cumbersome, I think. If you do have multipage files, and just two of them, my first step would be to separate the pages into individual files first. > > > > With GC, you can use Rename to add an index to either the front or the back of the filename, and you can make the core filename whatever you want. I would make the core filename for all the files exactly the same, something like BookName. Remember that the index you add should have the same number of digits for every file, so it will sort correctly. So if you have hundreds of pages, all the indices should be three digits. A typical result will be of the form 001BookName, 002BookName, etc. or BookName_p001, BookName_p002, etc. But when you do the Rename operation, number all the left-hand pages with odd numbers and all the right-hand pages with even numbers. Then you can mix the two folders of renamed files and they will sort into the appropriate sequence. Details are in the next paragraph. > > > > [I have the latest version of GC, so the window I see is probably a little different from the one you see. However, I believe the same options and operations were there in many earlier versions, which I have also used over the years.] There are many kinds of things you can do with the name in Rename, but you need only two kinds, "Name & Extension", and "Index", which are two of the submenu names you will see once you screw up your courage and hit the Rename button (after selecting the files you want to rename). The renamed files will stay in the folders they are in, so you want to have these as copies of the originals, in a separate folder. Go for the "Name & Extension" menu and select "Change filename", and then enter whatever you want for BookName in the little text window. Next select the menu "Index" and select "Add new". Further down that menu you can pick "Index Position", "Offset", and "Step". You want to select 2 as the Step value, so the renumbering will give you every other number in sequence. Pick "Number of Digits" to equal those of your largest page number (3 for hundreds, 2 for tens). You should see a window with your selected files listed and how they will look after the changes are made. When you like what you see, hit "Rename" in the lower part of the menu window. > > > > This should work. > > > > Al > > > > " Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. " > > > > -- Scott Adams > > > > On Feb 11, 2012, at 3:22 PM, Rita wrote: > > > > I have two files > > > > one with left side images of a book > > the other > > with right side images of the same book > > > > Is there a way to rename these files so when put together they will all land in order ? > > > > The two files would need to have a way to have the files to be named such as ? > > 1 > > 1a > > or > > 2a > > 2b or something more creative ? Anyone have any ideas ? > > > > And what tool would I use to accomplish this ? > > I've tried Rename, and it 'looks' like it might work, but I can't figure out the settings. > > > > And after what should I use to combine, unless I could safely just throw them in a file together ? > > > > I'm using GC 6.7 it looks like > > > > Thanks! > > Rita > > >