Different Catalogs/Multiple Elements Versions

[amazos]

I'm using pse14 but I also have older versions: pse8 and pse12. When I use pse12 to edit a photo, the pse12 Organizer seems to have a different collection of photos than the one in pse14. Do I somehow have a catalog for each version? Would that explain why, when I pull up a photo to edit it in my newest version (pse14), I sometimes get a message that says something like, there are elements in this photo that can't be read and they will be ignored, or something like that?

Thanks for any thoughts on this

[michelb]

Feb 24, 2017 19:14:59 GMT amazos said:

I'm using pse14 but I also have older versions: pse8 and pse12. When I use pse12 to edit a photo, the pse12 Organizer seems to have a different collection of photos than the one in pse14. Do I somehow have a catalog for each version?

Yes, each Organizer version has its own catalog format. That's why when  you install a new version, you are prompted to 'upgrade' your current catalog of the older version. A copy is made in the new format, leaving the old catalog available for the old organizer version.
Note that you can have different catalogs in a single Organizer version.
And what is absolutely necessary to understand is that the information in a catalog is totally ignored by other catalogs, even in the same version format.
As a result, you should only keep the most recent version for the organizing...
You can always 'convert' an old catalog format into the new one, not the other way round.
Is there a reason for you to keep both v12 and v14  catalogs versions?

[amazos]

Thanks for the reply. I kept pse12 in order to use ScanGear instead of the WIA interface but I've since found a workaround so I can uninstall pse12 now.

I'm pretty sure I "upgraded" my catalog every time I got a new version of pse. If I uninstall pse12, does the old catalog go along with it? If not, how will I know which catalog is the current "upgraded" version?

Forgive my obvious confusion!

[michelb]

Feb 25, 2017 16:27:10 GMT amazos said:

If I uninstall pse12, does the old catalog go along with it? If not, how will I know which catalog is the current "upgraded" version?

Your old catalogs are NEVER deleted when you uninstall that old version.

If they have been converted, they appear in the catalog manager as available ones, otherwise they should show in the 'convert' button dialog as possible sources for conversion.
To find the location of the catalog folders, use the menu Help >> System Information. Those folders are hidden by default in Windows Explorer, you have to set your Windows preferences to show hidden files and folders.
All the catalog folders are under the same master folder. If you have a look at what is inside, you'll see the database catalog: catalog.pse15db for version 15 etc.

[amazos]

ok, I'm off to poke around!

[amazos]

Okay, this is what I found under C:\ProgramData\Adobe\Elements Organizer\Catalogs

>My Catalog...........(contains catalog.pse14db)
>My Catalog 1........(contains catalog.pse10db)
>My Catalog 2........(contains catalog.pse12db)
My Catalog 2syncdb
>My Catalog 3........(contains catalog.pse13db)

And that seems to match with my catalog manager which shows the Current Catalog is My Catalog and the "Previously Converted Catalogs” are

Name             Created By                       Last Modified     Media Items
My Catalog 1 Elements 10 Organizer     2014/10/23         3693
My Catalog 2 Elements 12 Organizer     2017/02/24         5157
My Catalog 3 Elements 13 Organizer     2015/11/18         5297


Sooo, if I uninstall my old pse12, should then I go into my ProgramData file and delete catalogs 1, 2 & 3 in order to free up space on my computer?
Or should I keep them?

[michelb]

Feb 25, 2017 18:57:32 GMT amazos said:

Sooo, if I uninstall my old pse12, should then I go into my ProgramData file and delete catalogs 1, 2 & 3 in order to free up space on my computer?
Or should I keep them?

Yes, you can.
You could also archive those folders somewhere else to free space and still have the possibility to copy them back if needed.

[amazos]

Great - thanks for the help, really appreciate it

[fishrman]

This question brought up my question. I have several Elements programs on my computer. I am always fearful to delete them as I don't want to delete the photos forever. It appears I can get into all of them except Elements 14. When I try to get into the catalog it says "Failed to open catalog." "Default catalog could not be found-please open or create a different catalog." I am wonder if that may be because I imported those photos to Elements 15 when I got that version or is there another reason?