Good points, Jeremiah.
I'm working on a hybrid setup, using renamed files
(Date_Proj_RedorderSeqNum) and adding subject, species,location,mics,sample
rate etc., etc. in an iMatch database. This allows me to rename or move
files, re-categorize or add categories without losing existing database
attributes and the smart rename feature makes batch renaming to a template
very fast and easy. (Heh, some of these operations were a lot easier in the
DOS days, back when I knew how to use it!).
This will give me a folder hierarchy by date -easily expanded to include
some of the other ideas presented. I had to add a project number to keep
the HDP2 filenames unique (eg 121117_26_take3.wav) since it creates folders
by Proj number (which also defines recording parameters) and then just
makes the files Take00, Take01 etc.. Marantz files are just Date_Filenum as
of right now -could change before the day is out.
I have a hell of a mess of gps tracks that need to be sorted (photo trips
and audio trips that weren't differentiated and those where both things are
going on -probably the new norm. Raimunds SASLab Lite works well for
geotagging, but iMatch can't extract the coordinates from a BWF, and so it
can't display them as it does with a jpeg. No worries, I'll have the gpx
files created by SAS for that. Since I'm still in the file renaming stage,
I'll leave that, since a filename change after creating the gpx waypoints
will muck thing up.
I'm only dealing with about 400 audio files right now including quite a bit
of utter garbage, so it's a good time to get things straightened out.
(Heads up Peter)
I suspect the metadata tools on Mac are fairly well ahead of Win at this
time. One lucky accident was to try and open a wave file with Phil Harvey's
exiftool(-k).exe. So far this is the best BWF header-reader I've been able
to find. It works inside iMatch, so it's a single click to find the real
creation date, no matter what windows thinks and also see GPS data,
samplerate etc.
There are command line and GUI versions here:
http://freeweb.siol.net/hrastni3/foto/exif/exiftoolgui.htm
I tried an edit, but it reported that it can't write a wave file 'yet'.
Fingers crossed. Until then, I'll prefer the command line version.
I sound like I'm pumping iMatch here, but only because I'm still impressed
after 5 years of it -and I haven't paid for an update yet. They also have a
very helpful forum and serious userbase. As mentioned earlier, if you
already have Adobe Bridge you'll find much the same functionality. Their
friendly pricing structure scares me off ;)
cheers,
Keith
On Sat, Nov 17, 2012 at 2:32 PM, Jeremiah Moore <>wr=
ote:
> This is a pretty deep and important subject -- and has many, many right
> answers.
>
> Consistency is key, as is a system that's considered according to how it
> will be used, with plenty of attention toward how it will be actually use=
d
> in practice.
>
> I, too, have arrived at the basic hierarchic organizing principle of:
> - Date first (because this is always a known quantity, and serves as a
> basic organizing principle)
> - Location or Subject Next
> - Filename structure somewhat flexible, focused on what I think the
> specific sounds might be used for. (i.e. the librarians principle of "pu=
t
> it where it will be found.")
> - Metadata in files in standardized chunk formats (BWAV BEXT)
> - Also a good bit of info in filename and folder path.
>
> A single flat database, keyword searchable by filename, description and
> filepath, allows quick drilling into any sound by keyword.
>
> As for categories: I'm mainly concerned w/ film sound effects editing. =
So
> I use a short list of top level categories developed by a bunch of smart
> editors over many years of work. To get this I stripped all the category
> data out of the SoundStorm library and use the same conventions myself.
> However, this is very use-specific. i.e. it's terrible for scientific
> use. And it could easily lead to that favorite error of putting birds fr=
om
> the wrong continent into a scene ;)
>
> Haven't tried Avisoft... I'm mac based and don't have a windows VM up and
> running (though perhaps I will set one up on new machine... probably Win =
XP
> because I have it sitting around.)
>
>
>
>
>
> On Sat, Nov 17, 2012 at 9:10 AM, Chris Harrison <>
> wrote:
>
> > **
> >
> >
> > I find that it is most useful to me to keep my recordings organized in
> > folders based on the location but name them based on the particular
> > subject.
> >
> > So I have a folder for each trip/location I record, but then the files
> are
> > named for the species present in that recording.
> >
> > If I need to search for a recording of the frog Eleutherodactylus
> > cystignathoides, I can search for that species name and find all my
> > recordings of that species.
> >
> > If I need to find my recordings from Atascosa County, Texas, I can sear=
ch
> > for Atascosa and get those folders that way.
> >
> > As an aside, there is an excellent free file renaming utility that I us=
e
> > that is really absolutely free, works well on all Windows and doesn't n=
ag
> > you to upgrade or get the paid version since there isn't one. There is =
a
> > new command line version for those of you still living the DOS life.
> There
> > is a portable version which you can run on a computer without having
> > administrator privileges. I actually have a copy of the program on a
> flash
> > drive which I can run from a hotel computer if I need to change file
> names
> > as I travel.
> >
> > The program is called Bulk Rename Utility -
> > http://www.bulkrenameutility.co.uk/Main_Intro.php. I have no affiliatio=
n
> > with the program or people, I just like it.
> >
> > CNET didn't like the interface
> > (http://download.cnet.com/Bulk-Rename-Utility/3000-2248_4-11434534.html
> ),
> > but I found I could learn to use it very quickly within a few minutes.
> >
> > Chris Harrison
> >
> > San Antonio, TX, USA
> >
> > From:
> > On Behalf Of Scott Fraser
> > Sent: Saturday, November 17, 2012 10:40 AM
> > To:
> > Subject: [Nature Recordists] Re: Filing systems/software
> >
> >
> > For those of you who categorize according to subject, how do you define
> the
> > actual subject? Most of my recordings can fit into at least several
> easily
> > identifiable subject categories, i.e. birds, rain forest ambience,
> insects,
> > water, etc, simultaneously. Thus far my folders are arranged by locatio=
n,
> > but that requires a lot of memory on my part. So if someone asks if I
> have
> > any train sounds I need to know to look in the Australia, Germany,
> France &
> > Massachusetts folders. I try to name WAV files with meaningful
> descriptive
> > titles, & I wonder if perhaps appending some additional relevant sortin=
g
> > tags to the titles would be all that is needed for good OSX searches. S=
o
> > instead of "Stream-Zakopane-Poland" it would be
> > "Stream-Zakopane-Poland-Alpine Forest Ambience-Birds BG" or some such.
> >
> > Scott Fraser
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>
>
> --
> -----------------------------------------------------------
> jeremiah moore | SOUND |
> http://www.jeremiahmoore.com/
>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> "While a picture is worth a thousand words, a
> sound is worth a thousand pictures." R. Murray Schafer via Bernie Krause.
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
--
Keith Smith
Keith Smith Trio, Northern Lights =96 Altai Khangai - www.keithsmith.ca
Photography - www.mymountains.ca
|