I recently upgraded my machine from 10.6.8 to 10.9.3.
I am trying to find out if 10.9.3 will import all my saved iChat transcripts from ~/Documents/iChats so that I can view them in the chat window. If it doesn't does anyone know of a way to do the import or how one can view them? Thanks.
Mac Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9.3)
Hi,
Navigate to ~/Documents/iChats and then to a specific chat in a dated folder.
Double clicking it will open in in Messages in it's own window.
In Messages beta (during the last part of Lion as the only/Current OS) the app did read both the new and the old places for storing iChats and the newer saved chats.
Mountain Lion and Messages 7 did not do so good a job.
In Messages 8 in Mavericks the storage position as been moved again.
The current position is in ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.iChat/Data/Library/Messages/Archive
This contains dated folders for Saved chats like the iChats folder became in later iChat versions.
I have tried adding an Alias to the original iChats folder but this does not seem to work.
I would try making a copy (Duplicate) or the iChats Folder and then try moving the contents to the Archive folder.
8:50 pm Sunday; June 15, 2014
Thanks for the history on Messages there. I am really suprised they didn't built an import feature for the old transcripts.
I did some poking around on my system and the path that you specified doesn't exist for me. Do I need to create it and then add a copy of the transcript there or did you mean the following path:
/Users/__USER__/Library/Containers/com.apple.iChat/Data/Library/Messages/Archive
By doing this will I be able to scroll though the message history like I can with new chats? Thanks.
Hi,
Yes ~/Library... is the same as /Users/(your account name)/Library...
And Opps, I did mean the Containers folder.
See Path Bar (Finder > View Menu > Show Path Bar)
9:16 pm Sunday; June 15, 2014
So I went ahead and moved them, quit Messages, launched Messages, and I can only scroll back as far as the first chat that I conducted after upgrading. Does it require a reboot? Thanks.
Humm,
I am not entirely sure.
As I said in Messages beta it worked flawlessly and in Mountain Lion (Messages 7) it seemed to work with just the Alias.
Now it seems it may not work at all despite double clicking them does open them.
I would expect it to work after restarting the app (I also moved mine with the app closed down) but my results are not clear at the moment.
It is late where I am at the moment and I will not be able to test further until my tomorrow.
9:40 pm Sunday; June 15, 2014
Many thanks Ralph. I will mess around with some more and see. I wonder if there is some background process that runs even if one quits Messages that prevents it from rescanning. I will let you know if I find anything.
So I left the chats in place overnight (not sure if that matters) and when I came by this morning and started chatting with someone it seemed to load all the old transcripts. I wonder if spotlight or something of that nature needs to scan over it before it starts working. Thanks for all the help.
Acutally I might have spoke to soon. It is loading chats but it goes from present history and then loads the history from 7/08 even though more recent history is contained in the folder. I wonder if the backfilling process just takes a long *** time?
Hi,
I have seen in the past that scrolling up does take some time to fill in with some people.
Currently I am displaying one chat in the Messages window with a Buddy that I know goes back to at least 2008.
At the moment they are Off line and it will not scroll back and show me older messages.
7:24 pm Tuesday; June 17, 2014
iChat Message History 10.6.8 -> 10.9.3
