bob fleer Loc: Annapolis, MD

The google files were some things I found on google dealing with bird photography and outdoor and saved them to my desktop to read at a future date. I have found these since they were bookmarked. As for the six photos I wanted to import 2 photos into Lightroom I selected import as source i said desktop and add to catalog. My main catalog is my Lightroom pictures. when this happened 6 photos on the desktop showed up and checked the 2 I wanted and hit import. When I returned to the computer desktop it was changed and the other things were removed. Since then I have been finding missing stuff at their original locations on c drive. all is good. The external WD hard drives are fairly inexpensive so having extras was no great cost. I have two for the .Ircat files one I backup when leaving Lightroom and another as a backup for that which I do weekly. And I have the actual photos backed up on another WD which I also backup to a second WD weekly or monthly depending. All of this plus a backup of the entire computer done as needed usually every 2 weeks. Maybe overkill but I had a computer HD die and what a mess that was.

stillducky

Right click on your desktop, select VIEW, then make sure SHOW DESKTOP ITEMS is checked. If it isn't checked you will not see anything at all on your desktop.

stillducky

bob fleer Loc: Annapolis, MD

I use Google Chrome. I have found almost all of the missing stuff seems they went back to their original saved or bookmarked places the only ting that was gone were the shortcuts I added to the desktop all is good . But what a pain and angst.

bob fleer Loc: Annapolis, MD

Thank you all for your concern and help.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

FL Pics

The reason you see so many problems is because that is what users are most likely to write about. Not too many people just randomly post messages about how trouble-free their experiences have been (with anything) unless somehow prompted to do so.

I have gone through 4 or 5 MacOS systems on MacBooks and an iMac; LR perpetual licenses starting with LR 1 or 2 (cannot remember which) through LR 6, and now CC for several years, (3 major editions), and have never had to reinstall a MacOS or LR version, or otherwise debug LR.

Am I just one lucky dude, or...?

IowaGuy Loc: Iowa

Sounds like Sour Grapes. There is no program written that an unattentive user cannot screw up somehow.

LR works fine for many, many users. If you don't like it that's fine. But your rant is uncalled for on this topic.

IowaGuy Loc: Iowa

No, that is also my experience.

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Yes, indeed LR is a great program but possesses a steep learning curve. For me, it is not unlike my swiss army knife... does any thing .. every thing. Also, LR is not a casual user tool it requires dedication. The fun of photography is taking a photo, producing an end product.

"randomly post messages about how trouble-free their experiences have been" Now that is a super valid point, however I see few problems presented in UHH with (perhaps lesser .. less complicated) other programs. (perhaps they do not recognize that there is a problem)

I read opinions that LR is not PS... OK, because LR is geared to handle Raw Files quite well as well as many other tasks. I give credit to those continue fighting their way thru LR. If LR were suddenly replaced or completely redesigned then so many would be like Sisyphus pushing his mastery of LR up the learning curve aaaa then, god forbid it changes and they have to go back to start. Pushing self up the steep LR learning curve only to find that once mastered and feeling powerfully self-aggrandizing at their craftiness LR would change. They would then watch that immense learning boulder they had achieve roll back down the learning hill.

Worse yet their Raw files could be automatically converted in the NEW IMPROVED LIGHT ROOM so that any dunce like me could just visually chose one of 200 renditions of my photo then symbolically tweak. OH! yep... that's called JPEG with PSE tweak! Raw in reserve should we need to adjust exposure. Too early to drink... time for an grumpy ol' guy nap.

lsimpkins Loc: SE Pennsylvania

We're not de-bugging anything that is beta or patched up. With no intention to insult anyone, I think many of us feel like driving instructors trying to get someone to a level of competency where they don't injure themselves or anyone else.

tcthome Loc: NJ

I am far from experienced at this. You said short cut disappeared also? if so & you can't figure it out after a search , maybe a restore to a earlier date will help.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

The "problem" isn't with the software... it's with the users of the software.

Basically, Adobe has made it too cheap to buy into LR and PS.

Back when you had to purchase a perpetually licensed version of each, PS cost roughly $600 and LR another $150 (USD). Not cheap! So the typical buyer was a pretty damned serious and/or a fairly experienced user. Even if taking the plunge into LR and PS for the first time, spending some more $ for books and/or classes to learn to use them just made sense.

But now that users can "rent both LR and PS for $10 a month", it seems inexpensive so a lot of less serious/experienced users are jumping into the deep end of the pool, even though they don't know how to swim. Yes, Adobe has hugely expanded its market with their cloud-based subscriptions... But the type of user has changed dramatically, while the software remains just as complex and demanding as ever. Add to that, when the software "only" costs $10 a month, it doesn't seem right that it should cost a couple or few hundred $ to learn to use it well.

As a result, instead of investing in books and classes, there are now millions of relatively inexperienced "lost souls" wandering the Internet wilderness trying to figure out how to use LR and PS via YouTube tutorials and forum questions.

OP, the first thing I always do when I can't find something on my desktop is look in the trash can. More often than not, "lost" items seem to show up there (probably due to some mistake on my part). And, it's pretty easy to restore things from the trash can, until you actually "empty" it.

Also, be careful that those are shortcuts on your desktop... not actual folders full of images (or whatever) that will gobble up memory and slow down your computer.