How can I make iPhoto change the original files?

You can not. That is not the way iPhoto works. And since there is never any reason to directly access the files (direct access is not supported) it is unnecessary

Please describe what you want to do and we can tell you how to do it if it is supported

Also note that iPhoto is a SQL database and there are no user serviceable parts in the library. It is tronly recommend that you never go into it. Doing so as no purpose and is dangerous. Any change can cause data loss.

LN

You can't. iPhoto is expressly designed to protect the master file and treat it like a film shooter treats the negative. If you don't want this then best to use a different application.

Regards

TD

No. Picassa is a decent free program that does some of what iPhoto does in a file orientated way

LN

I use Iphoto in the following way which may suit you better. Iphoto is a great app.

I always drag photos from my SD cards using Finder into "proper" folders under Pictures in the file structure. My iphoto never sees my SD card!

I then go into iphoto and "import into library the folder in my Pictures files. Iphoto then uses the folder names as "events".

If the folder has been imported before, because I have only added photos to the existing folder, iphoto creates another event of the same name. I then highlight the two events, right click and hit Merge Events. BAck to one event = one real folder.

If I use iphoto to make small corrective edits, I always immediately Export the "Current" version back to the proper folder in the file system with a suffix. That way I don't have to worry about where the heck iphoto has stored the edited version.

If I get tired of the wasted space in the iphoto library I find it and delete it, then import the whole folder structure fresh into iphoto.

By the way I unticked that Importing [] Copy to the iphoto library in advanced preferences.

For a number of reasons this is a poor work flow

First it is strongly recommend that you not uncheck the option to copy imported items to the iPhoto library. Unless the 9.3 update modified how this works uncheck inch that option is extremely problematic and makes importing and deleting photos more complicated and upgrading or replacing defective hardware extremely difficult

And it accomplishes nothing positive.

Additionally the described workflow is extremely cumbersome and time consuming and gives you no added capabilities

LN

If he's going to go to plcasa as you suggest he's going to have to export original and current versions anyway, so having done that he could try my workflow without danger or prejudice. The answer to his original question was "export current versions and save" but that advice was not offered.

How does "export current version and save" edit the Original file?

..by overwriting the original jpeg by the current version. Not necessarily what everyone woud do, and not recommended, but that's the end result the OP wanted.

Better answer than "You can not" and "You can't" because you can

Wrong. To move to Picassa you simply export JPEGs of all photos. Doing what you suggest gives two different versions of the photo which is what the OP does NOT want. They want just the current version which is exactly what exporting a JPEG gives them

LN

Answer still stands. Overwriting with the Finder is not editing the original file with iPhoto. That remains impossible.

Regards

TD

LarryHN wrote:

Wrong. To move to Picassa you simply export JPEGs of all photos. Doing what you suggest gives two different versions of the photo which is what the OP does NOT want. They want just the current version which is exactly what exporting a JPEG gives them

LN

That is what I said. They will be a mixture of unchanged and changed. Please don't argue for the sake of it.

Terence Devlin wrote:

Answer still stands. Overwriting with the Finder is not editing the original file with iPhoto. That remains impossible.

Regards

TD

Same thing, Start with original jpeg, apply changes, produce edited jpeg.

Hmm. Lets see.

File in Finder. Open file in Editor. Crop it. Save it.

Or using your amusing "workflow"

File in Finder

Import it to iphoto

Switch to edit mode

Edit it.

Export it at a medium quality setting losing metadata along the way - overwriting as you go

Return to iPhoto. Move image to iPhoto trash

Emtpy iphoto trash

Empty System Trash

Yeah, still not editing the original file - as that remains impossible. You're replacing the file with another one. But, you know, longwinded way to get what you didn't want. And you thought that up yourself? You must be very proud.

Sir, you are comparing two extremes simply to disprove the midle ground, adding detail to one process and omitting detail from the other.

And according to your philosophy it is impossible for Word to edit an original document because all it does is copy the original to its memory, then saves the edited version over the original.

It's the same thing.

Am I proud of thinking up new ways? yes, unthinking fundamentalism is not my way.