Date Taken Attribute

[nicholasglen]

Hi,

I use videowave and slideshow to create mostly chronological slideshows and movies. The problem is date created and date modified are the only attributes available. Date taken is what I really need, as date created is just when it is saved on the computer, and date modified is updated if I make small changes, such as adding light or doing some cropping. Those obviously don't change when the picture was taken. I find doing anything with a lot of pictures to be useless without the date taken attribute to sort on. I am using Vista. I thought there would be a way to add attributes. If other people have this problem I did find a workaround via a free application called JPGDateChanger, which replaces date modified with date taken, which doesn't hurt a lot as I don't use date modified with anything else. I think I must be missing some place where I can add attributes to sort on, otherwise it is really inflexible. I also tried to drag and drop from explorer to videowave as I had them sorted by date taken, but it decided to not do them in a sequential order.

[gi7omy]

Date/time stamps on a computer file are set by the operating system and I'm afraid you're stuck with that. Basically what it does is set the date and time to when the file was installed (not the date that it was originally made)

 

If you edit the file by hand, the date WILL change and, again, this is a function of the OS

[nicholasglen]

Date/time stamps on a computer file are set by the operating system and I'm afraid you're stuck with that. Basically what it does is set the date and time to when the file was installed (not the date that it was originally made)

 

If you edit the file by hand, the date WILL change and, again, this is a function of the OS

Understood. What I am really asking is whether Roxio programs can use the attribute "Date Taken", in addition to Date Created and Date Modified. After all, Date Taken is probably the most relevant when working with multimedia, as the most common usage is not when it is saved to a computer, or modified by the computer, but when the actual picture was taken.

[karri]

nicholas, have you tried the Date/Time Update Tool in Media Manager? I think you can batch reset Date Created to any date and then sort by that filter in lieu of Date Taken. Go to Roxio Creator Home Page Screen > Videos/Movies > Enjoy > Browse and Manage Media. Select the images you want to change the dates of and right click and select Date/Time Update Tool.

[nicholasglen]

nicholas, have you tried the Date/Time Update Tool in Media Manager? I think you can batch reset Date Created to any date and then sort by that filter in lieu of Date Taken. Go to Roxio Creator Home Page Screen > Videos/Movies > Enjoy > Browse and Manage Media. Select the images you want to change the dates of and right click and select Date/Time Update Tool.

Thanks. Looks like to would have to be done 1 at a time with Explorer open matching each date, since each picture would have a diffferent date time stamp.. JPGDateChanger.exe(free program) is a much easier program as you drag multiple files onto the application and Date Taken updates Date Modified. Sounds like there is no easy way within Roxio to extend the attribute set (or use the attributes from Camera metadata).

[nicholasglen]

Thanks. Looks like to would have to be done 1 at a time with Explorer open matching each date, since each picture would have a diffferent date time stamp.. JPGDateChanger.exe(free program) is a much easier program as you drag multiple files onto the application and Date Taken updates Date Modified. Sounds like there is no easy way within Roxio to extend the attribute set (or use the attributes from Camera metadata).

It appears no easy option in Roxio but for those who want to easily sort I did the following (and you could modify a bit to support your needs):

1) I use Picasa for organization so I put all the pictures I want in an album and export it.

2) Assuming all pictures have a date taken attribute that is accurate (i.e. it isn't a scanned photo or video snapshot) then use File Renamer Basic which can be downloaded at http://download.cnet.com/File-Renamer-Basic/3000-2248_4-10306538.html?tag=contentMain;contentBody;4d and is free! Although other programs can do basically the same thing.

3) I use the advanced tab as I can get EXIF data and use <exif_keyword,Photo.DateTimeOriginal>-<filename>-<unique_in,#,1,1>.<ext> which basically pulls the Date/Time stamp from the picture, adds the file name, a unique ascending number, and the extension. If it looks complicated it is not as the EXIF data can be selected.

4) Import into Roxio product and sort by file name.

This process takes minutes!

* For pictures that don't have a date taken attribute I find setting this in Explorer is easiest, especially when many of the photos are the same date, as the case of scanning in old photos, as it will support multiple updates.

Hopefully in the future Roxio will support sorting and extracting EXIF data, but if not, this works very well.

Cheers!

[karri]

It sounds like you have found a workable alternative, although I seem to be able to use the Date Created as the Date Taken. If I save a picture in PhotoSuite the Date Created (when I took the pic) stays the same and the Date Modified (when I edited the pic) changes to reflect the time it is changed. I can then still sort by Date Created in VideoWave.

 

In any event, I am glad you have found something that works for you.

[nicholasglen]

It sounds like you have found a workable alternative, although I seem to be able to use the Date Created as the Date Taken. If I save a picture in PhotoSuite the Date Created (when I took the pic) stays the same and the Date Modified (when I edited the pic) changes to reflect the time it is changed. I can then still sort by Date Created in VideoWave.

 

In any event, I am glad you have found something that works for you.

Thanks. The problem with the above is that the Date Created might not be the date taken(and certainly not the time), at least on Vista, as the date is when it is stored on the computer. But I do have a workable solution. The bigger point is that the camera metadata would be nice to have access too!

[karri]

Nicholas, I discussed this further with some more experienced users. What I find is that if I transfer the images from my cards with Explorer, the Date Taken becomes the Date transferred in Roxio, but if I transfer images straight from card to Roxio Media Manager, the Date Created retains the Date Taken date and time and then I can sort on Date Created as the Date Taken.

 

I've also been cautioned that EXIF info and its transferability depends on varying factors, so your mileage may vary.

[nicholasglen]

Thanks for looking into it. I will try it out.