Timeline not showing - why?

jfriend · May 5, 2006

When you first implemented the timeline feature, I remember hearing that over time you would index all the accounts and then the timeline would show up for them. Unless I did something that I fail to remember, I don't think I've ever turned off the timeline feature, yet my account still doesn't show that feature and it seems like it's been a really long time since you announced it and said you were going to make it show up for everyone.

Is this still happening? When should I expect my account to get this feature? Is there something I need to do to enable it?

My account is http://jfriend.smugmug.com

rainforest1155 · May 5, 2006

You can still access your timeline by following the instructions over here. This shows you the pictures by the date you uploaded them, but to sort them by the dae you took them you'll have to wait until all your pictures are indexed.
I wonder how much longer this will take for me?

Sebastian

Andy · May 5, 2006

jfriend wrote:

When you first implemented the timeline feature, I remember hearing that over time you would index all the accounts and then the timeline would show up for them. Unless I did something that I fail to remember, I don't think I've ever turned off the timeline feature, yet my account still doesn't show that feature and it seems like it's been a really long time since you announced it and said you were going to make it show up for everyone.

Is this still happening? When should I expect my account to get this feature? Is there something I need to do to enable it?

My account is http://jfriend.smugmug.com

Yes, it's still happening. Can't say when it'll appear in your control panel to go on your homepage. In the meantime you can do this:

http://jfriend.smugmug.com/date

http://www.smugmug.com/help/timeline

smugmug help wrote:

Home page: Timeline

Can't find the photos you shot last March? Timeline to the rescue.
Timeline

Timeline is based on Date Taken, which most cameras embed in your photo.

It's not yet available to all SmugMug users because the feature was implemented after millions of photos were already in our database. It's taking months to search old photos and get the date from them. The consequence is the feature appears for newer SmugMug subscibers, but not yet for everyone.

It's inaccurate if your camera's clock was not set (it could say 1980, for example). It will be missing if you use the Save For Web feature of Photoshop because it strips your photos of camera details. If you've uploaded scans, your scanner may not have embedded the date they were scanned.

There should be a Date Uploaded for every image, the date it was received at smugmug.
Want a sneak peek?

If Timeline isn't showing up on your home page yet, you can copy this URL into your browser's address bar:

http://yoursmugmugname.smugmug.com/date/

Then, before you click enter, replace the text in red, above, with your SmugMug nickname.

I hope this helps!

jfriend · May 5, 2006

When will timeline indexing actually be done?

Andy wrote:

Yes, it's still happening. Can't say when it'll appear in your control panel to go on your homepage. In the meantime you can do this:

http://jfriend.smugmug.com/date

http://www.smugmug.com/help/timeline

I hope this helps!

In a search of older threads here and here, I discovered that you've been working on the timeline indexing for more than a year now (references to it in Jan 2005). It seems a bit bizarre to me that all new Smugmug accounts seem to have it on their home page (and I'd presumably have it if I reuploaded a dup copy of all my photos to my 2nd account where the timeline shows), but apparently some older accounts like mine still don't get the feature. I'd understand a delay of a few months, but it looks like we're talking about a year.

I know you don't normally promise dates for anything, but this is one question where it seems like you kind of owe us longer-term users an answer for when the feature is really going to show up on our home page, particularly since newer customers all have it and the discussion has been going on for more than a year.

Andy · May 5, 2006

jfriend wrote:

I know you don't normally promise dates for anything, but this is one question where it seems like you kind of owe us longer-term users an answer for when the feature is really going to show up on our home page, particularly since newer customers all have it and the discussion has been going on for more than a year.

Dunno what the rub is, John - it takes time, what can I say? You've been around long enough to know that nothing is as easy as you or I think it is

The feature is there, it's available for your use in many different ways.

Why not put your own link for http://jfriend.smugmug.com/date on your homepage? It's a snap to do... If you want any help with that, just let me know. As far as when the feature will be on your jfriend homepage itself, well, you know we won't say an ETA - but you're welcome to ask Onethumb!

jfriend · May 6, 2006

Are all my images indexed?

Andy wrote:

Dunno what the rub is, John - it takes time, what can I say? You've been around long enough to know that nothing is as easy as you or I think it is The feature is there, it's available for your use in many different ways.

Why not put your own link for http://jfriend.smugmug.com/date on your homepage? It's a snap to do... If you want any help with that, just let me know. As far as when the feature will be on your jfriend homepage itself, well, you know we won't say an ETA - but you're welcome to ask Onethumb!

I'm led to believe that the reason it's not on my home page is that all my images are not yet indexed, therefore some won't show up in the timeline. I don't want to expose it if it's only partially complete - that will just confuse or mislead people. If, on the other hand, all my images are indexed and will show up in the timeline, then I'm at a loss for why it isn't just a config option to show up on my home page (e.g. what work is left to do).

As for not discussing an ETA, I think this is a pretty different issue than future features. You've given the feature to some users already - it seems like good customer service to give the existing customers who don't have it yet some concrete guidance for when they will get the feature too.

rainforest1155 · March 22, 2007

It´s almost a year since I last asked in this thread. So how is it going with the data collection for the timeline feature? I still haven´t gotten it.

Thanks,
Sebastian

Andy · March 22, 2007

rainforest1155 wrote:

It´s almost a year since I last asked in this thread. So how is it going with the data collection for the timeline feature? I still haven´t gotten it.

Thanks,
Sebastian

Darn good question, Sebastian - and I'm sorry I don't know. I've asked the SmugSorcerers, "what's up?"

Thanks for your continued patience.

Reminding all that you can append /date to your homepage and get the feature

Andy · March 22, 2007

Andy wrote:

Darn good question, Sebastian - and I'm sorry I don't know. I've asked the SmugSorcerers, "what's up?"

Thanks for your continued patience.

Reminding all that you can append /date to your homepage and get the feature

Sebastian, Onethumb says "hang in there..."

I'm sorry I don't have a definitive answer for you :cry

rainforest1155 · March 28, 2007

Andy wrote:

Sebastian, Onethumb says "hang in there..."

I'm sorry I don't have a definitive answer for you :cry

Thanks for checking, Andy. I don't need it right now, so it's not a biggy.

Sebastian

Timeline not showing - why?

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