Moving (or ideally copying) iPhoto library

I want to move (or ideally copy) an iPhoto library from my eMac G4 (with iPhoto 2) to my iMac (which has iPhoto 7.1.3).

The older computer is much too slow to handle the 4GB of pictures that we have on there, so they would be more suitable on the newer iMac.

If anybody knows the cleanest and most efficient way of doing this (perhaps we need to purchase iPhoto Manager) I would be very grateful.

Another option would be to copy the libraries onto a CD (which is what we intend to do eventually anyway) and then import any albums from CDs we want on the new computer.

Thanks

Just copy the "iPhoto Library" folder that should be there in your pictures folder onto the same location on your iMac. You can do this via Firewire, ethernet or whatever else. If there is already a library on the iMac, then copy it to a different location.

When launching iPhoto, hold down option key. It will allow you to select a different iPhoto library. If you have copied and replaced the earlier library, there is no need for this step.

Is the current "iPhoto Library" on my iMac a folder or some kind of executable? I would like all the pictures in the proper place, so that when I import new ones they go to the correct place and I don't have to keep repointing iPhoto. I also don't want to replace the current "iPhoto Library" and find that the application doesn't run as it should.

Am I being over-paranoid here?

Look. If you already have pictures in your iMac, the new one, then there is no other way than to reimport the pictures from the old mac. So what is it?

goobimama said:

Look. If you already have pictures in your iMac, the new one, then there is no other way than to reimport the pictures from the old mac. So what is it?

Click to expand...

Yes there is.
It's OK I found a clean efficient way of doing it.
Thanks.

So could you please tell us how it is done? I honestly want to know.

Here's the way Apple tells you to do this: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93603

Once you have started iPhoto while holding down the option key to select the library, that will remain the default library (for importing, etc.) until you do the same thing again and change the library again. So, there is no need to keep "repointing" iPhoto. It will stay the way you left it until you change it again.

Since the boss wanted all the libraries putting onto CD at some point, I decided to simply transfer whatever projects he was working on onto the new iPhoto via the CDs.

Having to hold down the option key while iPhoto is starting is a bit of a nuisance. If I'd have known about that yesterday I would have been able to do exactly that. Why don't they have a simple option in preferences (similar to iTunes) for selecting the iPhoto library?

If you want to go third-party route, there is iPhoto Library Manager which will allow this. Offers many other options, too, like "merging" two libraries. I use that feature to make sure the library on my external (which holds ALL of my photos) also has the photos from my internal (smaller library that I can carry with me on my MB).