Export / Import

Export Metadata… (⌥⌘E)

The sheet is titled Export Metadata. The line under the title says how many videos will be written, for example when a filter is on.

1. Choose File → Export Metadata… (⌥⌘E) to export every video currently shown. Search and filters are included. Right-click → Export Metadata… exports only the videos you have selected.
2. Under Format, choose CSV for a spreadsheet, or JSON Lines for scripts and other tools.
3. Under Fields, check the columns you want. Match keys are how a later import finds each video: Content Fingerprint and Path. The note under that heading says they are used to find videos when applying the file.
4. Importable fields are written back by Import Metadata…. That group includes Title, Rating, Notes, Tags, Resume Position (seconds), Plays, and Subtitles, plus custom fields you have defined. Export only fields are read-only facts, including Original File Name.
5. Checked fields stay at the top of their section. Drag a row to reorder it within its section. Click Export…. Skagway remembers the format and the field checks for the next export.

Import Metadata… (⌥⌘I)

Import reads a file you previously exported, or a file in that same shape. It updates the open library. Have a Save Copy… of the catalog first if you want a way back.

1. Choose File → Import Metadata… (⌥⌘I) and open a CSV or JSON Lines file. Skagway detects which format it is.
2. Each row is matched by Path first, then by Content Fingerprint. A file that has moved can still match when the fingerprint is the same.
3. Importable values change when the file disagrees with the library. Tags in the file are added to the tags already on the video. Tags you leave out of the file stay on the video.
4. An unknown column can be skipped, or imported as a new custom field. When the import finishes, a summary reports Matched, Updated, and Unmatched.
5. Videos the import changed appear in the Last Metadata Import smart library.

Save Copy… — back up the catalog

1. Choose File → Save Copy… and pick a folder. Skagway writes a timestamped duplicate of the .machii file.
2. The library you had open stays open. The copy keeps the original cache pointer. It does not create a second thumbnail cache.
3. Open that copy later with File → Open Library….

When to use which

1. Use Save Copy… before a large rename, reconnect, or import, when you want the whole catalog file set aside.
2. Use Export Metadata… and then Import Metadata… to move ratings and tags between libraries or Macs, or to edit metadata in a spreadsheet and bring it back.
3. Use Export Metadata… on its own when another tool needs the library’s metadata.