I have not used Gramps for ages and have got very confused with adding images and media objects in general.
If I click on gallery and then on +, I can add an image which could be a file anywhere on my computer. If I then move that file Gramps no longer accesses it. Obviously I need to keep the images in a sensible folder like /home/steve/genealogy/gramps/media/
If that is what I am aiming to achieve, should I move the file into that …/media/ directory before clicking on gallery and then on +?
If not then what is a sensible workflow for adding images to my family tree?
Obviously, if you add the media object to its proper hard drive folder before adding it to Gramps you have removed the steps of moving the file and then updating its Gramps record.
This is why I try to keep the folder structure on my hard drive shallow, only one folder deep. I come back from the library, I dump the files from my thumb drive to the media folder. As I deal with each record, I will move it to its final folder then add it to Gramps. Then on to the next record. By keeping the folder structure shallow, it keeps folder navigation to a minimum. As you add media, it helps to set the media file selector to sort by Modified. This keeps most recent files and folders up front again minimizing the search for the correct file.
One feature of Gramps is that for image files, as it is added to Gramps its checksum information is also stored. Then, if you later decide to move or rename the file, the addon Media Verify can find them and update their Gramps media record. Verify will scour the folders within the Base media path stored in Preferences so this path must be set.
As an example, I had all my census images stored in one folder. It got too unwieldy so I broke it apart by country and for the U.S. also by year. I moved all the files to the new locations and renamed most records. I did not need the file named US 1850... it it was now in that folder. If a media record is edited after being added to Gramps (cropped, resized, etc) , the checksums will no longer agree. Verify has a Generate option to reset all the checksums so before a move/rename endeavor, make sure to update the checksums. The Check and Repair tool will also update all checksums.
As an added feature, you can drag-n-drop a raw media file into any Gallery tab. Its Media record will be created.
After migrating to a newer version of Gramps I had an incredibly deep directory structure to get to my media directory. I put the media directory in a much more sensible place and then used Tools → Utilities → Media Manager to alter all the paths of my media objects to point them to the new location of the media directory. It did take a lot of head scratching to get there but eventually made it.
Good to have it confirmed about moving the file to the media directory before updating the Gramps record. Also I can see it makes sense to order the files so the newest one appears at the top so you don’t wast time trying to find it and remember what it was called
At the moment I have just one folder for media but I can see your strategy for dealing with more would be useful if I end up needing more. I am currently avoiding plugins to keep life simple but it is good to know about Media Verify for the future.
I think that you might be complicating your life (certainly your data entry) by avoiding add-ons.
It is a natural assumption that the base/built-in features cover the needs of the average user.
But add-ons serve 3 very different purposes. The 1st is obvious: special needs for a minority of users. The second is simplifying where the standard Gramps implementation is too labor intensive. The third is counterintuitive: key features that most users need but where the tool requires frequent tuning to remain relevant.