Iphoto thumbnails

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Level 1

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Iphoto thumbnails

My iphoto thumbnails from 2006 are whited out. I have tried a manual rebuild and that did not fix the problem. Also Iphoto moves very slow and freezes up now.

imac, Mac OS X (10.3.x)

Posted on Jan 5, 2009 8:24 PM

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Answer 1

Yer_Man

Level 10

162,260 points

Jan 6, 2009 12:56 PM in response to julesaw

Download iPhoto Library Manager and use its rebuild function. This will create a new library based on data in the albumdata.xml file. Not everything will be brought over - no slideshows, books or calendars, for instance - but it should get all your albums and keywords back.

Because this process creates an entirely new library and leaves your old one untouched, it is non-destructive, and if you're not happy with the results you can simply return to your old one.

Regards

TD

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Answer 2

Old Toad

Level 10

207,361 points

Jan 6, 2009 3:15 PM in response to julesaw

Welcome to the Apple Discussions. Regarding the slowness and frezzing up, how much free space do you have on your boot drive? It's strongly recommended to have a minimum of 10-15 GB free.

TIP: For insurance against the iPhoto database corruption that many users have experienced I recommend making a backup copy of the Library6.iPhoto (iPhoto.Library for iPhoto 5 and earlier) database file and keep it current. If problems crop up where iPhoto suddenly can't see any photos or thinks there are no photos in the library, replacing the working Library6.iPhoto file with the backup will often get the library back. By keeping it current I mean backup after each import and/or any serious editing or work on books, slideshows, calendars, cards, etc. That insures that if a problem pops up and you do need to replace the database file, you'll retain all those efforts. It doesn't take long to make the backup and it's good insurance.
I've created an Automator workflow application (requires Tiger or later), iPhoto dB File Backup, that will copy the selected Library6.iPhoto file from your iPhoto Library folder to the Pictures folder, replacing any previous version of it. It's compatible with iPhoto 6 and 7 libraries and Tiger and Leopard. Just put the application in the Dock and click on it whenever you want to backup the dB file. iPhoto does not have to be closed to run the application, just idle. You can download it at Toad's Cellar. Be sure to read the Read Me pdf file.

Note: There's now an Automator backup application for iPhoto 5 that will work with Tiger or Leopard.

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