From the file system based on tags, we take quick access to files and selection by one or more tags for a more accurate result.
The hierarchical organization of tags helps to streamline the management of tags, because the biggest disadvantage of tags is that over
time there are too many of them, and among them it is easy to get lost or forgotten.
The advantages of such approach are more human-friendly interface, because to find a file, you only need to know one or more keywords
associated with that file (instead of the full path to the file). This way, you can get access to your files more easy.
Unlike the traditional hierarchical file system, tags kinda let you place a file, depending on its content, into several different folders at once.
And on top of that, you can add a description to the file to just remember what it is about.
Files with descriptions will be marked with an icon (configurable) and the description will appear in Windows Explorer if you hover the mouse over the file
Simple use case:
Let's assume that you have a large archive of photos, and you have it, I'm sure you have it :)
How do you sort these photos?
By date ? place ? By people are depicted on them? events ?
Is it funny , lovely or terrible?
Will you create folder for each category?
A difficult choice isn't it?
And what if you want to find photos of a certain person during an certain event ?
Or view photos for a definite year on which only you are depicted?
With TagsForAll, you can easily do this: assign to a file or photo
or even a folder, as many tags as you want. This, of course, will require some effort from you,
but later, a navigation through your photos or files archive will be pleasant and
you with ease and the main thing very quickly, will be able to find exactly what you want.
You can manage your media content for example with tags which relate to style , actor , year , rating , etc.
Or manage your books or documetation with data , author , language , genre ,
must read etc.
Quick start video.
This video demonstrates basic functionality of TagsForAll:
Adding tags to files, quick navigation through tags and managing tags.
Main Window.
1. This is the main menu of app. You can see details there Main menu2. In this text box you can add new tag: just type tag name and push Enter, and new tag will appear in a TagsFrame(6). 3. There are two mode to show tags: tree and list, by this button you can switch between both of them. 4. This button ( yes this is button ) shows how many files selected. Remember: if any files selected you will assign/remove tags to them, if no files are selected:
you will get files by tags.
Push this button if you want to deselect all selected files.
5. Here you can see currently selected or assigned tags, and also you can select deselect tags through this window. 6. In this frame you can see existing tags. Here you can select tags for getting files associated with tags, or you can select files and
assign/remove tags for selected files (about selected files please see point 4 ). Also you can manage ( move\rename\delete ) tags. 7. This is frame for files filtered by tags or you can select files in this window and change tags for them. 8. It is a fields where you can put your description for file and description will be stored inside file and will appear
if you pull mouse over this file in the Windows Explorer. ( For details read "Where stored tags data and a description.")
What colors of tags means?
When you have an open main window in tags frame ( number 1 in the picture of main window ) you can see all tags what you have.
Tags may have files associated with them, may have subtags and both of them subtags and files.
If a tag has files it has a yellow color if doesn't: pale yellow.
What the difference:
If you select tag which has files in result you will get files associated with this tag, despite if this tag has subtags or not.
If you select tag with only subtags ( pale yellow color ) as result you will get all files for all subtags.
If color of tag is grey that means you cannot filter files by this tag because result of filtration will be zero.
How to add tags to files.
Simplest way to do this: it is with Windows Explorer context menu: select one or more files or folders click right mouse button and select the "Manage Tags" menu item.
New TagsForAll window will appear. See that file automatically selected for editing. Then you can assign existing tags to a file or create new ones.
Open a main window and drag and drop files into frame for files ( number 3 in the picture of main window ), then select the files for which you want to assign tags choose tags for them.
You can easily open the main window in several ways: with file context menu, by standart way to open any application ( Desktop Icon, Windows menu) or menu in windows notification area.
How to get files associated with tags.
Open the main window of app ( It is described in previos topic ) and select tags for which you want to find files.
Even better way: push Alt+X configurable hotkey and check right-bottom corner of the screen.
There shoud appear the FastTagAccess window, just start typing tag's name and select one what you wish.
Main menu.
"Open files"\"Open directory"
This are quite obvious points: Open files or directory to manage tags for these files or files in some directory.
"Scan directory for"->"With autoassignment".
Select and scan directory with autoassignment. Read more here: Tags autoassignment
"Scan directory for"->"Files with non indexed tags"
This feature need in cases:
1. If you connect new drive or memory stick and want to check if files there contains some tags.
2. If you reinstall Windows and want to restore your local tag's database from existing files.
3. Local database has been broken.
"Scan directory for"->"Non indexed files"
If you want to be sure that all files in some directory tagged, this feature will be useful for you:
It will find all files without tags in selected directory. You can use filter of files extension to find images or documents etc.
Settings.
There are few simple settings: 1. You can change hotkey for "FastTagAccess" feature, but please choose one which is not taken by Windows or other software.
2. If you have only one file filtered in FastAccess window when you click to it it will be opened in a default windows application
instead of TagsForAll window.
3. This option shows TagsForAll overlay icon for files with description 4. The same overlay icon will be shown for files with tags when you move mouse over a file.
5. Description will be shown in a popup window in the Windows Explorer how it is depicted on the image above.
6. After connecting the new drive, it will be tracked by TagsForAll or not, depending on your choice. Your selection will be saved,
and if you want to reset your selection for drives, clear the default behavior for drives that you connected earlier.
7. Check if there is new version of TagsForAll.
How to use autoassignment for files.
First of all there is two places where autoassignment is used:
DirectoryWatcher: You can configure autoassignment for directories added to DirectoryWatcher and tags will be assigned
automatically to new files in these directories.
You can scan a directory with auto assignment and new tags will be added to existing for files in that directory.
Types of autoassignment:
By extension:
It is simplest case. Just choose "By extension" option and enter extension
to the "Ext\Pattern\Regex" field. Then put tag what you want to assign for file with this extension in the "Tags separated by ;" field.
For example: "By extension":jpg "Tags":image.
Note: You can assign several tags for one pattern, just split them by semicolon ";"
By pattern:
It is also simple case of usage: Just enter pattern to find in a file name
or full file path (optional) to the "Ext\Pattern\Regex" field and assign tag/tags for this pattern in the "Tags separated by ;" field.
By regex:
As it is stated in name this option dedicated to assign tags by regex expression. You can assign tags by matching some
expression and by extracting tags from a file name.
Lets consider both of them in examples:
Suppose I want to assign tag books/deep_learning to books where words deep and learning are appear and these file names
have extensions pdf, doc, djvu or epub.
For this case I create regex : (?i)deep.*learning.*\.(pdf|epub|doc|djvu) which means (?i): ignore case. Next .*: means any symbols
between "deep" and "learning" and the same .* between "learning" and a file extension. File extension filtered by "\.(pdf|epub|doc|djvu)".
You can play with your own regexps here: https://regex101.com/
Second case: extract tag from a file name. You can define postfix and prefix markers to extract tags from name.
For example: lets suppose we want to extract all tags which start from '@' then we can create pattern "@"@([^@^.]*)"". It will
extract tags when it starts from '@' untill it meet '.'. For example for a file name C:\test\@root'tag1@root'tag2.jpg
it will extract tags root\tag1, root\tag2.
With a python script:
Enter the file extension to "Extension" field for which you want to apply python script.
Python script have to return tags for a file separated by semicolon ";".
To see simple example of parser script you can check script to parse mp3 files here: mp3 python parser script
DirectoryWatcher
If you wants to watch some directory, in my case it is "Downloads", for adding tags to new files: Just choose directory to watch.
Where stored tags data and a description.
Data for tags and description stored in two places:
1. In files itself as ADS ( Alternate Data Stream for NTFS ). So you can move and transfer you files with memory stick to other computers or removable drives
but these drives or memory sticks have to have NTFS file system..
If your memory stick is not NTFS format, you can use WinRAR to archive files with ADS streams.
And even if something happens to the local database: It is easy to restore from files itself by scanning disc or directory with tagged files. 2. In local "database". Local data base is needed to facilitate and speedup access to tags and files.
Can I move, rename, delete tagged files?
Yes you can.
The software tracks changes in the file system and if something happens with tagged files it will update local database respectively.
Moreover: if you connect new drive the software will propose you to tracks changes in this drive. Choose what you want: if it is just temporary
memory stick better to choose "No". This choise will remember by software for this drive. If you want reset this you can do it in settings.
Free version limitation.
Free version of TagsForAll is limited by 70 tags. No other limitations in sowtware exists.
Extremely fast access to the files what you need by tags.(Hotkey Alt+X)
