Chapter 8: Batch Operations

Photocatalyst provides efficient batch operation tools to help you process multiple photos simultaneously.

8.1 Cross-Page Selection

Cross-page selection is Photocatalyst's core batch operation mechanism, allowing selections to persist across different views.

Enabling Cross-Page Selection

Click the layer icon at the top of the sidebar to enable cross-page selection mode.

Selection Methods

Status Bar Display

After enabling cross-page selection, the status bar displays:

• Current Page Selected: Number selected in the current view
• Cross-Page Total: Cumulative total selected across all pages
• Click to view the detailed selection list
• Supports removing specific photos from the selection list

Typical Usage Scenarios

1. Collect interesting photos across various views
2. Switch to a target page for batch operations
3. Perform export, album creation, and other operations in one go

8.2 Batch Delete & Restore

Batch Soft Delete (Move to Recycle Bin)

1. Select multiple photos
2. Right-click menu → Move to Recycle Bin (or the toolbar batch button)
3. Confirm deletion
4. Photos are moved to the Recycle Bin and can be restored

Batch Restore

In the Recycle Bin view:

1. Select photos to restore
2. Click the Restore button
3. Photos are restored to their original locations

Delete from Hard Drive

1. Select photos
2. Right-click → Delete from Hard Drive
3. After confirmation, photo files are moved to the operating system's Recycle Bin

8.3 Batch Rename

The batch rename feature supports both template variables and regular expression modes.

Entering Batch Rename

1. Select multiple photos
2. Right-click menu → Edit → Rename
3. Open the rename dialog

Template-Based Renaming

Available Template Variables:

Common Template Examples:

Empty Field Handling: When a template variable has no corresponding data (e.g., {location} is empty when there is no GPS information), you can choose:

• Keep as Is: Empty fields retain the template text
• Use Unknown: Empty fields display "Unknown"

Regular Expression Renaming

Used for batch find-and-replace on existing filenames:

Basic Mode:

1. Select the regular expression mode
2. Enter the search expression
3. Enter the replacement text
4. Use $1, $2, etc. to reference capture groups

Regex Options:

• Ignore Case: Case-insensitive matching
• Global Replace: Replace all matches (not just the first)

Common Regular Expressions:

Rename Preview

Before confirming execution, the system displays a rename preview:

• Shows original filename → new filename line by line
• Supports sorting by original or new filename
• Highlights filename differences
• Option to set whether to overwrite existing filenames

8.4 Batch Export

Selecting Photos

1. Use cross-page selection to collect photos for export
2. Or select photos in select-all mode

Configuring Export

1. Right-click menu → Export (or the toolbar export button)
2. Configure export parameters (see Chapter 9)
3. Choose the target folder
4. Confirm export

Export Progress

• Real-time export progress display
• Supports large batch exports
• Error handling and retry mechanism

8.5 Batch AI Analysis

You can run AI analysis on selected photos:

1. Select multiple photos
2. Right-click menu:
   • Tools → Group by Similarity / Group by Semantic
   • Edit → OCR Recognition
3. Wait for analysis to complete
4. View the grouping results

8.6 Batch Tag Operations

Batch Add Tags

1. Select multiple photos
2. Right-click menu → Edit → Write Tags
3. Enter or select tags
4. Confirm to add

Next: Read Chapter 9 to learn about export and sharing features.