"some files in the show are missing" WHY?

Post your tips & tricks here for creating slide shows with ProShow Gold. This could include suggestions for style and content in addition to working with the software itself
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Postby briancbb » Sat Dec 22, 2007 12:36 pm

John

Not having done a 'collect show files' has not lead to the problem. It is just a way of getting all the files contained in a show together, that can then be backed up to a harddrive or Disc, restored to any harddrive position and all the links from the .psh file still work.

The only time this has arisen on the forum before, as far as my memory is concerned, is when people have used a USB drive, or over a home network, or they have moved files.

I don't think anyone else has found this bug, I certainly haven't since revision 2.6 thru 3.2 latest build and 70 odd shows.

Brian

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Postby DickK » Sat Dec 22, 2007 1:27 pm

JohnForrester wrote:I am still not clear as to whether you and/or Photodex are saying that I have inadvertently moved the files to were they should not be? I claim that I haven't. If it isn't me it must be the programme?! Therefore my assertion that it is buggy remains!

Personally, I'd bet the program is fine. It isn't a question of "where they should not be," just where they are. Keep in mind that it isn't just moving the files that will do this. You could have deleted one or more, renamed one or more, renamed one or more of the directories involved, moved the PSH file, or renamed the PSH file. Doing any of those things to even one file (picture or sound) will get this prompt.

Trust me, it's really easy to have it happen. But it's rarely much of a problem. When you encounter this again, just follow the prompt and it will show you exactly which file(s) it can't find. Then you'll be able to show it where the file(s) it needs are.

JohnForrester wrote:Interestingly, after repairing the missing file show with all the correct images manually inserted, I seem to now have all my 6 shows, all able to be loaded up with no missing files anywhere. Thus the problem seems to have at cured itself for the moment.

Exactly the result that would be expected in fact. By manually "repairing" it you located the missing file(s) and put them back, so ProShow knows where they are.

Dick
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Collecting Show Files

Postby Cherie Curtis » Wed Dec 26, 2007 4:41 pm

I'm a new member to the forum, but have been using PSG and PSP for quite some time now. And, before the forum, EVERYTHING I learned, was the hard way. (I truly, deeply love this forum.) One valuable lesson I learned by trial and heart-rending error, was that collecting show files is a very easy way to ensure that your pictures, music and videos all reside in one spot and that PS (G and P) like it that way.

Usually, shortly after starting to put together a show, I collect the show files in a new folder (with a name matching my show)...in a logical place that I can find easily later. After the initial collecting of show files, I do things like put a copy of all the music I'm going to use directly into the audio file that PS created. Then, when I'm ready to add music, when I click to do so...all of the music I picked out is there...all neatly listed. As to the images that were missing, sometimes when editing pictures, the editor creates a slightly different name than that of the original picture if you've done a cut out or such..maybe a GIF file. Just an added underscore or alpha, will make PS spasm. Make a conscious effort to watch exactly what your editor does with the picture you are altering. Sometimes it is so subtle that it goes unnoticed unless you're watching for it.

Anyway...back to "collecting show files." I highly recommend it and both PSG and PSP will reward you for using it. When you've added more pictures to your show, click on collect show files and then "overwrite existing files" so you don't get duplicates...BUT CAUTION...this will be the default folder for any future shows, so the next show you create...you'll want a new folder for the new show. I hope this didn't muddy the waters, but I believe that once you start collecting show files, you'll find it a very helpful tool.
~~Cherie

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Postby Jerry Cole » Wed Dec 26, 2007 5:03 pm

Cherie,
Happy New Year and welcome to what you have already found out to be the best problem solving users group that there is. I use the same methodology that you do, and it has saved my butt more than once. I know the frustration of finishing a show, changing names or locations of files and then confusing the dickens out of ProShow. Once wasn't enough (guess I'm a slow learner) ... but since I started using collect as you suggest, all has been well.

Others have more elaborate methods of tracking files, but collect works for me ... I'm too lazy to do it the way gpsmikey does, though I will readily admit his file organization is much superior.
Cheers,
Jerry
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Postby Lozboz » Mon Dec 31, 2007 3:25 am

I have had similar problems, in having collected the files and then just moving the location of the collective folder, which has resulted in PSG steadfastly refusing to find the 'missing files'. I corresponded with the support team about a year ago for some time and they couldn't find a solution and were reluctant to accept that there was an issue. I gave up in the end and rebuilt the show in question.

I now also have an issue in that PSG really doesn't like collected files residing on a server, claiming that all image and sound files are an invalid format, despite every other program and utility being able to open them. I'm now resigned to the fact that I need to collect all show files on a specific PC's hard drive and leave them there.

I believe that as home networks become more common, especially as hardware based homeservers increase in popularity with Windows Home Server bundled on the hard disk, PSG is going to have to sort this out.

Laurie

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Postby gpsmikey » Mon Dec 31, 2007 8:34 am

I believe this is a known issue - your files can not be on a network
(yes, I know it should know how to handle it, however, I don't make
the rules - only Photodex knows what is "right" (takings lessons from
Bill Gates).

While the "collect files" seems to mostly work, I keep seeing enough
of these problems to stay with my method: 1 directory for the show with
subfolders under that for the sounds, pictures etc. All the pictures and
sounds etc are copies from my master directory of images and sounds
etc. Any "tweaks" to the pix etc are local to that folder. When I am
done, I always know where all the files are for the show (I often keep
an ISO of the show as well). Makes it easy to back up etc. There is
nothing worse than some sort of "backup utility" that only works 90%
and most of the time. :?

mikey
You can't have too many gadgets or too much disk space !!
mikey (PSP6, Photoshop CS6, Vegas Pro 14, Acid 7, BluffTitler, Nikon D300s, D810)
Lots of PIC and Arduino microprocessor stuff too !!

macman2006uk

Postby macman2006uk » Mon Dec 31, 2007 11:08 am

I always use the same method for collecting all my show files as Mikey, as in the early days of me using PSG, I had them all over the place, and it was a nightmare, trying to collect (Relocate) these files if I started moving folders around.
Once I read what everyone was doing to keep/locate all their files, it took me some time to set up my folder directory, but since then I have never looked back.

Here is Best Wishes for a great New Year 2008 to each and everyone of you, from Newcastle on Tyne, United Kingdom.
John Mac
John Robert McNally
31/12/2007
19:08 hrs GMT
PS: Catch you all next year. :D

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Postby TracyB » Tue Jan 01, 2008 8:56 pm

Feel free to kick me in the butt if I'm out of line here.

I agree the best way to prevent this problem from occuring in the first place is to "collect show files" as recommended. However, on more then one occasion I've had this happen - and twice - for absolutely certain, it is not because I've inadvertantly moved the files. Other pictures in the same folder are visible in the show - yet a couple have gone MIA. At the same time;

An entire folder went missing. When I looked for it through PS it wasn't showing up - yet I can view it through explorer. In my case - I suspect the anomoly has to do with downgrading back to version 3.0.

I did see in here somewhere about deleting the following files - cpic.opt def.phd - that did the trick - thanks to rjl2gal3 for that tidbit. At the same time - I was having problems with not being able to see the files below the folder list directory in PS - but could see the files as thumbnails. It fixed that as well. Maybe this is not the same scenerio as above though?

I'm happy that it fixed the problem in any case. We can't backup our files enough to prevent the torture of having to hunt down files can we.
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