Iphoto hangs on start up so bad that it crashes other applications and the finder

Question

OK here goes.
I had several applications running and everything froze so badly that I had to reboot. I eventually worked out that the problem was iphoto. If I leave iphoto closed everything seems to work fine. When I launch iphoto the ap starts to open but no photos appear just a wheel which keeps going round. I left it for a bout an hour but no joy. It seems to mess everything else up including the finder.
I deleted the ap and all the pkg files as per another discussion and reinstalled but the problem is still there. I seemed to get a little further when iphoto said it had noticed some discrepencies and asked me if I wanted to repair. I said yes it did it and showed percentages up to 100% but then just hung again.
I started the ap again holding down the option key, created a new library, imported a couple of photos and it seems OK but when I switch back I know the problem will not have gone away.
I have time machine but I dont really want to go back as Im not sure how long the problem has been there.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

Again, your point is? Do you think Apple (or Microsoft or Adobe or anyone) makes perfect software?
And you realise that about 99% of apps on the App Store are 3rd party apps, right?
How on earth can an extra tool be a bad thing?
iPhoto has tools to tackle some database damage. It can fix some problems. But sometimes the corruption is too serious. So, If those tools don't work: then restore from back up.
There. That's the Apple way. Fixed. Restoring from a known-good back up will fix pretty much anything.
However, not every one has a back up. Everyone should. Everyone should always wear a seat belt too. But they don't. They meant to but never got around to it...
So what then? Well no back up, you option is to recover the Master files from the Library, make a new one and start over from scratch. Lose all your edits, all your albums, keywords and so on. But at least you have a new uncorrupted database and your photos as imported from camera.
However, one guy noticed another way of doing this. He noticed that you could leverage the sharing system and make a new library but not lose as much data. If the main db has gone west, but the sharing system is intact, then with a bit of luck and his skill in scripting you get a new uncorrupted Library, preserve all your edits and albums and keywords.
Don't want to use it? Don't. But there's nothing wrong with using a third party app. It's not immoral. It's not an indictment of anything. It's just an opportunity.