I’ve been using Eaglefiler for a couple of months now, storing notes, bookmarks etc., and like it so much I want to use it for more things.
Specifically, for projects I’m actively working on, but also archived projects. I often need to refer to these archived projects, so using the search function in EF would be a huge boon. However, this is a lot of data, at least 800 Gb, comprised of lots and lots of small files. As the SSD of my Mac is only 500 Gb, these archived projects are stored on a Synology Diskstation.
I have no doubt EF can handle this amount of data just fine, but I would have to store active projects (on my SSD) and archived projects (on the NAS) in separate libraries. And as far as I know, EF can’t search across multiple libraries. (I do know Spotlight can, but I would like to use smart folders in EF.)
Based on previous posts in this forum, I’m hoping this is something that is planned for an upcoming version. My question is basically: is this bound to be added in the foreseeable future? Or shouldn’t I be holding my breath? I know software developers are usually very reluctant to comment on future versions, but thought I would try my luck anyway.
I realise adding this functionality is a major job. Building an interface for it that won’t confuse users is probably not simple either…
Any suggestions for workarounds are very welcome too, of course.
Previous posts have asked about searching across multiple libraries at once, e.g. something akin to EagleFiler’s main search field that would find records from all the libraries that are currently open. This is a feature that I will likely add, although I can’t say when.
It sounds like you’re asking about something more, smart folders that work across libraries. This is an intriguing idea that I haven’t given much thought to. This would require more interface work and a place to save them. Would you want this to search across a predefined set of libraries or whichever ones were open at the time? What are some example search criteria that you would want to use?
I basically think of smart folders as saved searches. I know that is oversimplifying things, but the step from searching multiple libraries to smart folders that work across libraries seems very logical.
I was thinking of searching a predefined set of libraries, In this case: only two libraries, Work and Archive. An example would be a smart folder that shows all the work I did for a specific client during the past year, both active and archived projects. Or simply a list of projects (active and archived) with a specific tag.
Come to think of it, tags that work across multiple libraries would be very helpful as well.
But don’t get me wrong: searching across multiple libraries is my main request, smart folders would be the cherry on top.
Thanks for explaining. When you say “projects” are you referring to folders within the libraries? I agree that this would be very useful, and it seems technically possible. There are some interface issues to figure out.
In the meantime, Finder smart folders can search by tag and folder name.
Sorry, I could have been clearer. My projects are indeed folders (with subfolders, and sometimes hundreds of files).
Thanks for reminding me about Finder smart folders. I never thought of using them for this sort of thing, but I could probably also achieve what I’m looking for that way. Being able to handle all this from within EF would be more elegant, of course.
Reading this back, I realised I may have sounded a bit dismissive. That is certainly not what I meant! (English is not my first language.)
I just downloaded FoxTrot Search, and it looks very interesting. Thanks for the tip!
This request sounds like a lot of work for you, Michael, and I wonder if it would be worth it. When I add another library, it is only because I have a subject that has little to nothing in common with my existing libraries. When I move files to an “archive” type of library, it is only because the information is old or obsolete and does not need to be kept at the forefront anymore. Following this practice, I don’t need to search more than one library at a time.
