iphoto: more on unreadable files

Question

Level 1

0 points

iphoto: more on unreadable files

My photos were sitting in my iphoto library: no problemo. Then, after months of their being visualizable, I clicked on the iphoto icon and about 90% of the photos in the library did not display, but just appeared as blanks, spookily having the dimensions of the croppings I'd done on them.

If I highlight one of these blanks and click "get info", I get the info on the image [file name etc.] But, if I try to open them in:

Preview: “Cldn’t open the file. It may be corrupt or a file format that Preview doesn’t recognize.”

Photoshop: “cld not cmplete yr request bec a JPEG marker segment length is too short [the file may be truncated or incomplete]"

Adobe Image Ready” “Could not complete this operation. The end of this file was reached unexpectably.”

HELP!

G5, Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Posted on Jan 15, 2007 8:37 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Brie Fly

Level 5

7,925 points

Jan 16, 2007 11:24 AM in response to pinhead33

Before trying to open your iPhoto library with every other application you can imagine, try rebuilding the apparently corrupt photo database.

Start iPhoto while holding the shift+option keys. Don't release them until you're prompted to confirm the intent to rebuild. Click "Yes", then click "Save".

To avoid corrupting your iPhoto database, stay out of the iPhoto Library folder. The only application that should read from, or write to the iPhoto Library folder is the iPhoto application.

Reply

Answer 2

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 16, 2007 8:23 PM in response to Brie Fly

Thank you for taking your time to try to assist a techlessly unsavvy IPhoto user out of a corrupted data file problem. Unfortunately, I seem to have botched the operation.

When I held down the shift+option keys, I got a dialogue box which read:
"IPHOTO needs a Photo Library to continue. You may choose an existing Library or create a new one."

I took your warning to heart: :

To avoid corrupting your iPhoto database, stay out of the iPhoto Library folder. The only application that should read from, or write to the iPhoto Library folder is the iPhoto application.

However, since I did not get the "intent to rebuild" prompt, and thinking that "creating a new library" would not involve the existing Library [the one with all the corrupted files" I chose to create a new one. Just as creating a new empty folder in many other programs does not affect an existing folder's contents.

However, sadly, the creation of this second library [which is, naturally, empty] seems to have made my original library vanish entirely.

Reply

Answer 3

Brie Fly

Level 5

7,925 points

Jan 16, 2007 8:56 PM in response to pinhead33

Unless you moved the original iPhoto Library folder, you now simply have two. See the iPhoto Help topic, "switching between photo libraries" for instructions on how to switch back to the old one.

Reply

Answer 4

Smtr

Level 5

5,450 points

Jan 16, 2007 8:56 PM in response to pinhead33

It's okay: when you created a new iPhoto library you likely did not overwrite the old one. Look in the Finder in your Pictures folder and see if you have a folder called "iPhoto library" and another folder called "iPhoto library_2".

To switch back to your original library launch iPhoto while holding the Option key. When you get that message to choose an existing library or create a new one, click choose (or find). Then navigate to your original iPhoto library folder and choose it. You should see your library in the state is was before.

When you tried to activate the rebuild, perhaps the Shift key wasn't all the way depressed, because it behaved like an Option-launch.

What version of iPhoto are you using? The article that describes the auto-rebuild says it works with version 4 or later. See http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107947

Sorry, Brie Fly. I thought you'd turned in for the night. Didn't mean to interrupt.

Message was edited by: Smtr

Reply

Answer 5

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 18, 2007 6:27 AM in response to Smtr

Dear Brie Fly,
All I can say is: aaargh. I just spent an hour on this problem and ended up with seemingly my computer behaving strangely in a # of ways...e.g, when I tried to access the hyperlink to your message from my mail I got this URL not found. So I shut the computer down and at least that mail thing got cured.
I still have the original iPhoto Library folder but it seems to have shrunk to just a few shreds of its former self. Furthermore, when I open it, almost every item is greyed out. I tried to burn a copy, but when I press the SHARE option on the iPhoto drop-down, only one of the items is bolded. All the others are greyed out.
Also, I now see why the REBUILD dialogue box did not appear when I tried to follow your original instructions. [holding down SHIIFT plus OPTION when opening iPhoto. I should have instead pressed COMMAND plus OPTION bec. I have iPhoto 5.
BTW, I see other postings in the forum from frantic iPHOTO users who have corrupted files. I wonder if iPH. is hinky - particularly vulnerable to such disasters.
Again, thank you for your help. Joanna
[Hey, what's the story on your handle? Fly on your cheese?]

Reply

Answer 6

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 18, 2007 6:37 AM in response to Smtr

Oh, and another problem: When I put in a back up disc [of a few of the files originally in the iPhoto Library] IPhoto opened and, when I clicked to open the CD nothing happens.

Reply

Answer 7

Smtr

Level 5

5,450 points

Jan 18, 2007 7:04 AM in response to pinhead33

As long as you still have your original iPhoto library you can still recover. Look at this thread and read lori_diloreto's post about how to manually rebuild an iPhoto 5 library. http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=3603714&#3603714 As she explains, you will get back your photos in their rolls, but other data (albums, keywords, etc.) will be lost. You can also read the Manual rebuild section of this Apple KB article: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107947

What is the structure of your backup CD? Does it contain an iPhoto library folder with year-based folders, image files, database files, folders named Modified and Thumbnails? Or does it just contain image files, with or without folders and subfolders? Look at it in Finder and copy it over to your desktop. (Create a folder for it with an obvious name.)

Reply

Answer 8

Brie Fly

Level 5

7,925 points

Jan 18, 2007 10:00 AM in response to pinhead33

I have iPhoto 5.

... a rather significant bit of information that was not disclosed in your earlier posts.

When your question is posted to the "iPhoto 4 and earlier" discussion, the responses will generally be made with respect to those earlier versions, and may not be applicable if you're using a later version.

When that turns out to be the case, the best course of action is to start over with your question in the appropriate discussion forum (although, in this case, I suspect Smtr may have covered the appropriate bases).

Reply

Answer 9

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 18, 2007 7:48 PM in response to Brie Fly

Right, Brie...I did not notice that I was in iphoto 4 and earlier forum...
Thanks for your suggestions

Reply

Answer 10

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 18, 2007 8:10 PM in response to Smtr

Thank you smtr; I will follow your suggestions when I next have time - over the weekend. I have, meanwhile, a furthur mystery: when I perform a search for "iphoto library" my original iphoto library is listed, as well as the new blank one which I created : iphotolibrary_1 PLUS two I'd never seen before:
iphoto library_3 and iphoto library_3t -
neither of which are openable. Weirder and weirder.

Reply

Answer 11

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 20, 2007 6:41 AM in response to Smtr

As long as you still have your original iPhoto
library you can still recover. Look at this thread
and read lori_diloreto's post about how to manually
rebuild an iPhoto 5 library.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=360
3714&#3603714 As she explains, you will get back
your photos in their rolls, but other data (albums,
keywords, etc.) will be lost. You can also read the
Manual rebuild section of this Apple KB article:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107947

Dismal results. I tried both the Lori method and the Manual Rebuild method and there appears to be only one photo in the entire old library file. [that's what appeared when I did the search for "files greater than 30 KB" in the old library. BTW the alleged Back Up File does not in fact, exist. For some newbie reason, it never occurred to me that the iphoto files would get corrupted. From the # of users reporting this problem on the forum, I can see that corruption is not, in fact, that rare. sigh. Thank you for your help.

Reply

Answer 12

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 20, 2007 6:49 AM in response to Smtr

addendum. I also searched in the old library for files with no size stipulated - that generated only another 10 IMG files...none of which wld open bec. they were described as unreadable, corrupt.

Reply

Answer 13

Brie Fly

Level 5

7,925 points

Jan 20, 2007 11:20 AM in response to pinhead33

Your iPhoto 5 library may or may not be beyond repair, but I will suggest again that your problem is likely to be seen by a larger, more appropriate audience if you move it to the iPhoto 5 discussion area.

Some iPhoto 5 recovery techniques are either ineffective (or not appropriate) for users with iPhoto 4 and earlier installations.

Reply

Answer 14

Smtr

Level 5

5,450 points

Jan 20, 2007 1:26 PM in response to pinhead33

I agree with Brie Fly. Why don't you begin with a new topic in the iPhoto 5 forum? You can give a summary of what you have done and what happened, and even post a link to this thread if you like.

Unless you have thrown away files into the Trash, there's a good chance your pictures are still there. Sometimes Spotlight is not good at finding files inside the iPhoto library and you have to go looking around yourself. I wouldn't throw in the towel just yet.

Reply

Answer 15

pinhead33 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 20, 2007 4:59 PM in response to Brie Fly

Brie, Sorry again for posting to the wrong forum. Thanks

Reply