Media View
The Media View window displays the files associated with the database. Typically, these files are images, but GRAMPS allows you to attach any type of file to the database. GRAMPS refers to attached files as media objects. You can access the Media View at any time by either pressing the Media button at the top of the screen, or by choosing the View->Media entry from the menus.
Media Objects
Media objects can be either local or external to a GRAMPS database. If GRAMPS is told to import an object as alocal object, it will make its own copy of the file in the database directory. If the object is not imported as a local object, the original file is used.
There are advantages and disadvantages to both methods. If the object is local, then if the original file is moved or deleted, then GRAMPS will still have its own copy. However, this is at the price of having two copies of the file. If the file is not imported as a local object, then a copy is not made, saving disk space. However, altering or deleting the original copy will affect the GRAMPS database.
Adding a Media Object
Media objects can be imported in several ways. Adding an object to any gallery adds the object to the Media View. The gallery is will actually contain a reference to the object in the Media View.
Objects may also be added using the Add Media Object button. This will add the object to the Media View, but not to any gallery. When you select the file to be added, a preview will be displayed in the preview window. The the file is an image, the image will be displayed. Otherwise, an icon representing the file type will be displayed. In the dialog box, you may choose to either import the object as a local object, or leave it as an external object.
Finally, you may drag-and-drop an object from either a file manager or a web browser. If the object is dropped into a gallery, then a reference is made in the gallery, and the object appears in the Media View. If the object is dropped directly into the Media View, then it appears in the Media View, but will not appear in a gallery. Currently, all objects imported via drag-and-drop are imported as external (not local) objects.
Making a Reference to a Media Object
Once an object is in the Media View, it is possible to make a reference to it in any gallery. You may place the object in as many galleries as you like, and only one copy of the file will exist.
To make a reference to a media object in a gallery, you may simply drag-and-drop the object from the Media View directly to a gallery. The object will then appear in the gallery. Similarly, you may drag-and-drop from one gallery to another gallery, and a new object reference is created in the target gallery.
Changing a Media Object's Properties
Media objects have global and local properties. The title of the object is a global property. It may only be changed from the Media View, and it will affect all references. An object also has a global note and a set of user defined global attributes. A reference in a gallery may a have a local note and local attributes as well. All references share the global properties, but each gallery has its own set of notes a attributes.
The global note can be used to provide a general description. For example, in a family reunion image, you may wish to use the global note to indicate the place, date, and occasion of the photograph. In a local note in Aunt Martha's gallery, you may wish to add a local note indicating that "Aunt Martha is the third person from the right in the second row".
The global properties may be changed by selecting the Edit Media Object button.
