Multimedia Files and using DEVONthink Pro3

[Michael Duffy]

Excuse me if this seems like a Reunion-101 question, but I’m trying to reorganize my Reunion 12 database and the multimedia files I have linked to it and a couple of other programs (Heredis and MacFamily Tree). I need some simple "Dick and Jane" advice on how to do what I'd like to do, if it can be dome!

Right now, my Reunion family file is stored in a Reunion folder in a Genealogy folder (User/Documents/iGenealogy). In the Genealogy folder I also have a master media folder in which I keep my source documents. Those documents appear in the multimedia for people in the Reunion tree and, where appropriate, are cited as source documents for events and facts. In addition to the master media folder in which the contents are arranged by category (births/baptisms, marriages, deaths, military, land, wills, directories, etc.), I have started a second media folder in which retain a copy of documents arranged by the person to whom they relate. That allows me to keep track of what media or source documents I have for each person.

Now my question.

I have just acquired DEVONthink Pro3 and want to store my genealogical documents, including media and source documents, in it. Obviously, I would prefer not to duplicate what I am currently doing with my existing folders by maintaining them and also creating a set of the documents in DEVONthink Pro3. Is anyone using DEVONthink to store Reunion media files? If they are, can those files be used as multimedia in a Reunion tree and can they be linked to sources referred to in that tree?

I am using Dropbox with Reunion. I gather it is not recommended to place DEVONthink inside Dropbox, but you can sync DEVONthink files to Dropbox. Would this mean both my Reunion family file and DEVONthink files should remain on my laptop, but both synced to Dropbox so I could access them on whatever computer I was using?

My intention is to simplify things, but I realize I may be complicating matters. Any comments or suggestion would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Michael

[Michael Talibard]

Since you have already devised a good storage system, which you know and understand, I am wondering why you want to use Devonthink at all.

[eric.vanbeest]

Michael:–

I use DEVONthink also, but differently from what you are trying to achieve.

DEVONthink usually keeps its documents within its own database (essentially a database with a folder structure internally). So, it would not be simple to keep the original documents in the central folder where they are now, unless you let DEVONthink make copies into its own database, in which you break the link between the two. What you can do is make bookmarks within DEVONthink to the original files: eg. file://your/document/path. This keeps the original files in their own place. The downside to this is that file paths are necessarily absolute, so if the folder is moved or you move to a new computer or a different account name all links are broken.
(If you are handy with AppleScript, it is relatively "easy" to fix this in DEVONthink, though)

DEVONthink protests if you put a database in Dropbox. It likes to control the syncing operation for itself, not leaving it to less-dependable parties like Dropbox, although it does allow for syncing via Dropbox where DEVONthink’s own syncing engine does the version control. DEVONthink saves, and saves often, and Dropbox would have a tough keeping up with making sure everything is up to date.

For my own part, I use DEVONthink as the repository for (HTML text of) web pages, especially since full source material is available on the internet and I need only reference documents numbers and links in Reunion. I then use DEVONthink aliases to identify the source number in Reunion, so that there is a link between the two. Using rubber-bands, paper-clips and sticky-tape as well as AppleScript and Keyboard Maestro, when I try to paste a new link into Reunion, there is a check if this link already exists in the DEVONthink database and if so it enters that source number instead of making a new one.