Hello there, I am using scrivener in conjunction with Aeon Timeline 3 to write my articles. Can I ask, is it possible to store the above mentioned files in DT3? I am wondering where is the file path and just to be certain, how do I check that the files are properly imported into DT3 before I discard the old copies of the original files?
Kind regards,
Dov.
That’s probably something the DevonThink community can say more about. I think DT stores files in a specific container. Not sure how the file path works for that. You could just try it out with a copy of your project files or with a dummy test project.
Maybe there isn’t much of an advantage in storing it in DT, but that’s if course something you must decide for yourself.
I can’t say I’ve got an authoritative answer, but this is something I’ve done a number of times without issue.
Aeon Timeline stores a timeline as a regular file, and Devonthink is friendly to any kind of file. I think it’s accurate to say Aeon is completely safe in Devonthink.
I don’t use Scrivener any more. It’s a great program, I got a lot of good out of it, and I keep an active license to support the effort. I’ve discovered Devonthink plus other tools is more to my taste.
Scrivener stores a project as a package, which is a directory of files and subdirectories. The Finder displays it as a single entity, unless you use the show package contents option.
Even so, I’ve never had trouble with Scrivener projects or other applications (like MindNode) that store output as packages.
Keep backups, but that’s always good karma.
The reason I keep work files in DT is to leverage DT’s sync features.
Fun fact - if you add custom metadata fields in DT for Aeon’s parameters, then you can do a pretty automatic export of Devonthink into Aeon.
Add metadata to Devonthink for start, end, duration, participant, observer, arc, and whatever else you want to track. As you add documents to DT, fill in the metadata.
Highlight the documents you want to export to Aeon. Use Tools->Create metadata overview in Devonthink. That makes a tab separated file of the metadata in your highlighted files.
Drag the newly created Metadata Overview document out of Devonthink to your desktop, or someplace you can find it easily. You could also use it in place, but it’s easier to find if you drag it somewhere.
Over in Aeon, use the import feature to read your tab separated values file. Associate the Devonthink metadata values with Aeon’s parameters.
No human intervention required. Devonthink to Aeon, on autopilot. The same kind of trick can be done with extra columns in OmniOutliner.
Thank you for your reply. Sorry tech idiot here. I am googling what is meta data. The reason why I am using DT3 is to help me find files with a few words that my adhd mind can think about. Very poor memory.
I will research on your proposition. I think based on what you are telling me there are a myriad of functions for efficient retrieval. Can I ask are you on Dt3 pro or Dt3 pro server?
One silly question - Do I keep my Scrivener closed when I update my Aeon file or do I keep both open at the same time. I am worried that entries are not saved in either programs.
Thank you for your time in this.
Dov.
I’m using DT3 Pro Server, but custom metadata is there in Pro, as well.
Go into Devonthink->Preferences and click the Data icon on the toolbar. That will let you add or remove custom variables that will appear for each document and group in every DT database you use.
I already had start and end variables, but they are for scripts (I think) so I added startdate and enddate.
Once you add variables in preferences, click on the “i” in the inspector and choose the “custom” button at the top. That’s where you can enter values per-document.
I don’t use this all the time, but it’s quick, easy, and is an excellent example of how Aeon’s import function can really help.
Edited to add a screen shot:
Regarding Scrivener, I think it should be closed - but it’s been a long time since I used Scrivener.
Aeon writes to the Scrivener XML file, so I think having Scrivener closed would be the safest. I’ll defer to anyone with more current knowledge, though.
If you’re interested in how apps like Aeon interface with Scrivener, contact L&L for their document on the Scrivener XML. Or, just explore. I found everything worked exactly how I suspected it should. Very transparent structure in Scrivener.
In regards to Scrivener syncing, in version 2 you had to have it closed to sync to it, but in the latest version (version 3), you now can have it open. Scrivener needs to be closed in order to write the file, but what Aeon Timeline now does is close the file for you, syncs the changes, then reopens it.
This is amazing to me, it’s always been in the back of my mind that’d be nice if these applications could sync/integrate (it would save a lot of manual input).
Thanks for the handy post
