How to use PhotoLab on multiple Apple Computers

[mikemyers]

@BHAYT

At some point the Photos, DOPs and ‘xmp’ sidecars etc. can be copied to the main system and PL5 navigated to the directory and iff (if and only if) the database has never seen those photos in that directory before all can be imported successfully into the second/main database, which appears to be what @mikemyers is describing in the post that came in while I was writing this!

@Joanna

If you ingest your camera’s files onto your laptop and work on them in PL there, as long as they have never been seen before on your desktop computer, all you have to do is to copy them, together with their DOP (and XMP) files to the desktop machine. Your desktop will then add them to its database and function perfectly normally.

I think I understand now, and thanks for all the above. Apparently there are two (or more) scenarios. What I will not do, is have two (or more) computers, each with PhotoLab, which I use back and forth, each containing new PL information ever time I do this. I might very well end up with a folder on each computer with the same name, as the folder names are generated by Photo Mechanic. I have no intention to do anything like this.

For me, I will always use my desktop computer when I am at home, and always use my laptop when I’m away from home. Since Photo Mechanic names folders based on the date, thanks to what you’ve all written I will refrain from editing photos on any given day with both computers. This means I will not have the problem we are discussing up above… and means anyone in this forum that uses two computers can avoid any issues as long as they don’t ever end up with the same folder names on both computers. PhotoMechanic can prevent this issue, if we allow PhotoMechanic to name folders in a logical manner.

(Not sure what happens when I visit India, and the “time” photos are taken is based on local time, but I suspect PhotoLab only applies to the TIME, and ignores the TIME ZONE.)

@BHAYT

The date time check could be made optional i.e. always accept the incoming DOP and overwrite the database editing details etc.

Is there a potential problem if someone crosses time zones, as in when I travel to/from India, or others travel to different countries? Does PhotoLab use the local time, or does it consider the time zone?