Using digikam (here, v5.7.0) - there is a setting that allows to write metadata to a sidecar file or not. I have that option selected because generally I prefer the picture file to remain unchanged. But there is a problem when I use other programs to view the image file (e.g., as a wallpaper) - when the rotation information is stored in the sidecar, these programs are unaware of the correct rotation. Wishlist: New option (under the Settings>Metadata>Rotation tab) to "Store rotation information directly in the image file even when sidecars are used". -> If unselected, the behaviour is as currently. -> If selected, then upon rotating an image in Digikam, the rotation is applied to the image file and any rotation stored in the sidecar is reset. (Resulting in the image file on its own having the correct rotation.) (This "wish" could be generalized such that, for every item of metadata, one can choose whether to save in the sidecar or in the image file. But the problem is the rotation flag because this affects directly how other programs show the image.)
I think this bug is a duplicate of Bug 366391. Maik *** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of bug 366391 ***
Dear Maik! I disagree that this is a duplicate of the other bug. My wish is explicitly for having an option that allows me to choose whether to save the rotation information in the image file or in the sidecar. Bug 366391 is about whether the image file should be changed if the setting "save metadata in sidecar" is selected and the user resets the orientation to normal. This is much more specific than what I was asking for. I think we need an option whether to save rotation in the sidecar or in the image file - in addition to the option where to save other metadata information.
Maybe I don't understand what the options in the settings mean. Questions: 1. In the Settings>Metadata tab, there are items I can select under Write this information to meta-data (e.g., Image tags, Captions and title, Rating, ...). Am I correct that this is information that will be written to the image file when selected? (Or could it be that it is written to a sidecar instead?) 2. Why is "Rotation" not on that list? Is "Rotation" included in "Image tags" (or under one of the other items there)? 3. Under the tab "Sidecars", if I select "Write to sidecar files", does this change how digikam stores information in the image file? (My intuitive idea is that, yes, it changes it so that no information is stored in the image file if I select this option, but literally that option does not explain this.) 4. Where is the selector for which metadata to save in sidecar files (i.e., analogous to the list I referred to under question 1)? 5. Under the tab "Rotation", I have selected "Rotate by changing the content if possible". (I also have "Write flag to metadata if possible" selected.) However, when I rotate a file, it does not change the content - it only saves the sidecar file. Why? I think that the misunderstanding may be due to inaccurate texts in the English version. Apologies if my questions appear stupid to the developers!
I think that I understand your wish correctly, although English is not my language. Information is always stored in the database. The 8 options of the metadata tab and the rotation tab determine whether the information is also written in the image and / or sidecar. The sidecar combo box decides if activated: 1. Sidecar only for read-only files-> RAW or read-only images in sidecar, otherwise in the image 2. Always in sidecar-> ONLY in sidecar, never in the image. 3. sidecar and image-> always sidecar and if possible also in the image What files are you use, JPEG? Maik
Created attachment 112309 [details] rotation.png See screenshot, if this option is checked, the flag will always be written to the image. There are 2 exceptions: 1. The image is a RAW file or read-only file 2. It is activated that is written only in the sidecar. Maik
Dear Maik! Thanks. I'm using RAW files - maybe that's why the options seemed so confusing. I change the status of this bug back to "duplicate of 366391". I think I need to read up more about metadata storage and the purpose of sidecars. What I wanted to do is, always store information in the file if that changes the rotation of the picture, and store everything else in a sidecar, regardless of what the image file type is. My idea was that, this way, I can avoid "unnecessary" changes to the image file and save them in a sidecar file instead (because the backup program I use backs up the whole image file again if it has changed). But I use the images also as wallpapers, and KDE plasma programs (wallpaper desktop, also Gwenview I think) ignores the sidecars. So then the pictures aren't shown in the correct rotation outside digikam. I suppose that, if I only need digikam, I would select to save metadata only in the digikam database, except for rotation which I want in the file. Alternatively, any exchange format would work as long as it is supported by KDE apps. Maybe baloo would be a better choice for me instead of sidecar files? *** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of bug 366391 ***
Fixed with #366391