Level 1

4 points

Rotating pictures in Preview

A co-author and I are writing a book. Research entailed visiting many archives, and photographing pages of cellar books, and of wine catalogues. Naturally enough, pages were photographed in order: at each archive, oldest books first, and within each book the pages from oldest entry to newest.

We have about fifteen thousand pictures, my folder structure on my computer being the same as that on his.

With Snow-Leopard Preview I would go to the folder for that archive, command-A command-O, and all the pictures would open. I could scroll from one picture to the next, either gesturing within the sidebar, or with appropriate keys. About half of all pictures needed rotating, done with command-R. So far, so good. Indeed, so excellent.

Now to my new Mac, a 27" beauty that came with OS Lion. The large screen is to see big pictures at the same time as editing the words of the book. And again, command-A, command-R, and scroll away. Ooooh: that picture is at ninety degrees: command-R. Annoying rhythm-breaking dialog box asks whether I want to unlock it (no, never ever change my original pictures, just never) or duplicate it (or, uselessly, cancel). Duplicate. So now there is a new window with just that picture, rotated. About half of all pictures need rotating, so quite quickly my screen is a disorganised mess of one-picture windows.

I have owned a Mac since 1988: please let this not be Apple’s Mr Clippy moment. Hi ho, hi ho, it’s off to the Apple store I go. I get some sympathy, and some agreement that for my purposes new Preview doesn’t work well. Suggestion: download the old Preview from somewhere. So to my old Mac, now somebody else’s; archive Preview (and TextEdit); FTP up; back to my machine; FTP down and unpack.

Preview has a long complicated error message, the crunchy bit perhaps being “Library not loaded: /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/MeshKit.framework/Versions/A/MeshKit”.

(Aside: TextEdit works, which I hoped was great—no more over-writing my files behind my back. Alas the new TextEdit in the applications folder is super-locked and can’t be overwritten.)

Back to Preview. Please, how can I have a bulk open of pictures, in the right order, which are not altered by Preview, which are easily rotated (no dialog box), and which post-rotation remain in the right order? No new files; and no changes to the old (=only) files. Rephrased, Snow-Leopard Preview was really good: please could I have it back?

iMac

Posted on Nov 7, 2011 11:51 AM

123 replies

Nov 26, 2011 10:13 AM in response to Yer_Man

Terence Devlin wrote:

Apple doesn't need your consent. It's their software, they own it and they can do anything they like with it. You licence it for use, that's all.

Yes, but they're my files. Or maybe the files people entrust to me.

Tony T1

Level 6

10,247 points

Nov 26, 2011 10:19 AM in response to Tom in London

Tom in London wrote:

Yes, but they're my files. Or maybe the files people entrust to me.

And by issuing a ⌘R, you instructed the OS to change the orientation of the file.

Apple has options to protect your files:

Yer_Man

Level 10

165,912 points

Nov 26, 2011 10:24 AM in response to Tom in London

What's that got to do with it? Autosave and rotation are software functions. If you don't want the software to work on the files, use a different software. The point remains that Apple - or any software developer - don't need your consent to change the software.

Nov 26, 2011 10:29 AM in response to Yer_Man

Terence Devlin wrote:

Apple - or any software developer - don't need your consent to change the software.

or (apparently) to change my files. Or files that third parties entrust to me.

What if I send someone a file and I mark it "This file is copyright and may not be altered or saved without my permission"?

jdaw1 Author

Level 1

4 points

Nov 26, 2011 12:20 PM in response to Tony T1

Nope, always was a change to the metadata, you just didn't realize it with SL.

This conversation is losing Apple a long-standing friend. By all means store elsewhere a note “file X, next time open at page n”. But an unchanged file is legally different to a changed one: do not alter.

But, there is always hope that Apple will make Versions an option. They do listen to users (i.e. a year after the buttonless iPod Shuffle, they brought back the buttons)

Hope springs eternal!

jdaw1 Author

Level 1

4 points

Nov 26, 2011 12:22 PM in response to Yer_Man

Terence Devlin wrote:

Apple doesn't need your consent. It's their software, they own it and they can do anything they like with it. You licence it for use, that's all.

Absolutely true of software firms that don’t want customers. Legally, you are absolutely correct. Indeed, if you want an expert witness, I could help.

But those who want to be seen to respect their customers should do better.

Tony T1

Level 6

10,247 points

Nov 26, 2011 2:02 PM in response to Yer_Man

Terence Devlin wrote:

What's that got to do with it? Autosave and rotation are software functions. If you don't want the software to work on the files, use a different software. The point remains that Apple - or any software developer - don't need your consent to change the software.

It answers the OP's concern that Apple is changing files that were entrusted to him without his consent. If he sets this preference, then OS X will not allow the file to be changed unless the user unlocks the file.

Tony T1

Level 6

10,247 points

Nov 26, 2011 2:07 PM in response to Tom in London

Tom in London wrote:

Terence Devlin wrote:

Apple - or any software developer - don't need your consent to change the software.

or (apparently) to change my files. Or files that third parties entrust to me.

What if I send someone a file and I mark it "This file is copyright and may not be altered or saved without my permission"?

Then if he changed it, he would be in violation of your copyright.

Did your clients that sent you these images copyright them? If so, then by rotating them, you are violating their copyright.

jdaw1 Author

Level 1

4 points

Nov 26, 2011 2:11 PM in response to Tony T1

For simplicity, assume that the original files are to be inviolate. The OS designer does not need to know—and should not rely on knowing—why this is so.

Nov 26, 2011 2:15 PM in response to jdaw1

jdaw1 wrote:

For simplicity, assume that the original files are to be inviolate.

That seems a pretty reasonable assumption. It also seems reasonable to assume that any document I create is my property. That's whether I create it with a pencil and paper, or with the Mac OS.

Or am I wrong?

Tony T1

Level 6

10,247 points

Nov 26, 2011 2:34 PM in response to jdaw1

jdaw1 wrote:

For simplicity, assume that the original files are to be inviolate. The OS designer does not need to know—and should not rely on knowing—why this is so.

That is exactly why Lion sets the lock preference "ON" by default. If you attempt to change the file by rotating the image, OS X asks if you want to Duplicate, or Unlock and change the file.

Nov 26, 2011 3:05 PM in response to Tony T1

Tony T1 wrote:

Lion sets the lock preference "ON" by default.

OK where do I turn it "OFF" by default ?

Tony T1

Level 6

10,247 points

Nov 26, 2011 3:13 PM in response to Tom in London

Tom in London wrote:

Tony T1 wrote:

Lion sets the lock preference "ON" by default.

OK where do I turn it "OFF" by default ?

You can't. It's Not an option in Snow Leopard.

Nov 26, 2011 3:15 PM in response to Tony T1

It's not a problem in Snow Leopard. It doesn't even happen in SL.

Tony T1

Level 6

10,247 points

Nov 26, 2011 3:16 PM in response to Tom in London

Tom in London wrote:

It's not a problem in Snow Leopard. It doesn't even happen in SL.

I'm happy to hear that 😁

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Rotating pictures in Preview