More and more photos progressively disappearing from the Book

Question

Hi,
Please help me! I've invested a ton of time into this book and am hoping that someone can have a fix instead of me doing the book over. I've bought Apeture for the next time I do one, but please, please tell me there is something that can be done to fix this!
I uploaded about 700 photos to my library. Some of the photos came from the same camera and thus had the same names. I assumed this would be okay as I figured that iPhoto would append something to the name/not use the file name as the key/or however this thing works. I've also posted this as a bug and have tried all the things the genius bar people told me to do/had them do some of the things for me, though this didn't help.
Basically, after importing the photos, I put them in an album, sorted them, and deleted some of them, then I made a Book with about 170 photos in it, about 60 pages long, with several intro pages in there. During this process, I weeded out more photos from the book - I started out with more pictures then 170 and I got down to 170 by looking to see which look nicer in the layout and deleting the ones that were not as nice, just from the book, not from the album. I've also emptied my trash since then, both in iPhoto and in the trash on the macbookpro, to make room for the back up library later, to try to fix the problem as below.
Symptoms:
1. Thumbnail images in Book above page display when in page mode not updating the text on intro pages for days on end, despite a restart of the app, computer, rebuilding library, etc.
2. Pictures are progressively disappearing from my Book
Pages not updating - Thumbnail shows a page filled with pictures when in page mode, but when you are looking at the page itself, below the thumbnails, the picture is missing
3. The pictures in the thumbnails and the pictures on the pages when in page mode went missing - in both places
4. When you try to drag a picture that has disappeared into the book from the album, it "bounces back" - thinks that it's already in there. When you make a duplicate, you can drag the duplicate in (and this has been my pathetic workaround, which I am hoping not to do if you have something better!) And in any case, this is a bug and you should be able to replicate it by uploading pics with the same name, then moving some into the trash with the same name but a different photo then those in the book.
Anyway, I think that what's happening is that the Book is "confused" and thinks that the pictures deleted have been moved to the trash, when they really have not, they just have the same name. Somehow, the book is possibly ignoring the _copy that it's supposed to have in the name. Good grief! Help!

Answer 1

Ben:
Welcome to the Apple Discussions.
Thumbnail shows a page filled with pictures when in page mode, but when you are looking at the page itself, below the thumbnails, the picture is missing
What do you see if you try to view one of those "missing" image in the main library in the edit mode? Do you see a blank window with an exclamation mark in the middle?
If that's the case, that means that iPhoto has lost the link to the original file. Since you've rebuild the library and that didn't bring them back, I'm afraid your only option is to start over with a new library and import the original files from the old one as follows:
Creating a new library while preserving the rolls from the original.
Move the existing library folder to the desktop.
Launch iPhoto and, when asked, select the option to create a new library.
Drag the Originals folder from the desktop into the open iPhoto window.
This will create a new library with the same rolls as the original library. However dates on the rolls may be different but can be edited as you would the roll title.
Once this is completed you can delete the Originals folder from the desktop and the iPhoto Llibrary folder. If desired, you can keep the older library folder to try other fixes on it.
In the future I recommend you make a backup copy of the Library6.iPhoto file after each import and after doing a lot of editing and organizing in the library. Then if you experience a similar crash all you need to do is replace the damaged database file with the backup copy and you'll be back to the same place in the library as when you make the backup. See the tip at the end of my signature.
Hint: I create a separate library for each book that I create using iPhoto Library Manager. Then, like you, I put all of the photos I think I want into an album in my primary library and copy it to the book library with iPLM. I can add more at a later date the same way if necessary.
When the book is complete, ordered and delivered I burn that book library folder intact to a CD in the Finder. This gives me an archived copy of the library that I can use at a later date to order another exact copy of the book regardless of what I do to my primary library.
Do you Twango?
TIP: For insurance against the iPhoto database corruption that many users have experienced I recommend making a backup copy of the Library6.iPhoto database file and keep it current. If problems crop up where iPhoto suddenly can't see any photos or thinks there are no photos in the library, replacing the working Library6.iPhoto file with the backup will often get the library back. By keeping it current I mean backup after each import and/or any serious editing or work on books, slideshows, calendars, cards, etc. That insures that if a problem pops up and you do need to replace the database file, you'll retain all those efforts. It doesn't take long to make the backup and it's good insurance.
I've written an Automator workflow application (requires Tiger), iPhoto dB File Backup, that will copy the selected Library6.iPhoto file from your iPhoto Library folder to the Pictures folder, replacing any previous version of it. You can download it at Toad's Cellar. Be sure to read the Read Me pdf file.
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