The Linguist's Shoebox
Integrated data management and analysis for the field linguist
User settings folder
In Shoebox, settings are secondary data that describe the contents of your databases. For example, the font that you select for displaying data in a particular language is a setting. The Shoebox Setup/Installer program automatically creates a user settings folder for the Shoebox-specific settings files that relate directly to your databases. By default, the name of this folder is similar to My Computer and My Documents in Windows 95 and later. If you wish, you can change the name or location of the user settings folder.
| System | User settings folder (default) |
|---|---|
| Macintosh | My Shoebox Settings |
| Windows 3.1 | C:\MyShSet |
| Windows 95 and later | C:\My Shoebox Settings |
Locations of three important kinds of files
- You should think of Shoebox as the "owner" of
all the files in the Shoebox folder and its subfolders. It contains:
- program files
- subfolders that contain sample files
- The user settings folder
contains the following kinds of files:
- project (.prj)
- database type (.typ)
- language encoding (.lng)
- Consistent Change table (.cct)
- Shoebox lets you open databases from one or more data folders. You must create these folders and you are free to organize them in any way that is convenient. We recommend that you put the folders that contain Shoebox databases near the folders that contain your other (non-Shoebox) data files.
Important: Do not put your data and settings files in the Shoebox folder or any of its subfolders. You (the user) are the "owner" of your databases and the related settings files. If you keep your files out of the Shoebox folder, you avoid the risk of losing them if you ever
- install a new version of Shoebox (or reinstall)
- remove the sample folders after finishing the Shoebox Tutorial
- remove Shoebox from your computer
Current settings folder
When you open a project file in Shoebox, the folder that contains it becomes the current settings folder. All the database type and language encoding files in that folder are available. Although you can open databases from multiple data folders, you should not put copies of settings files in different data folders (duplication increases the risk of inconsistencies). In Shoebox, you must keep related settings files together in one folder to ensure that all the databases in a project refer to a common and consistent list of settings files.
Most Shoebox users can use one settings folder for all their work—the user settings folder.
Note that a settings folder can contain multiple project files. Those projects share the same list of database types and language encodings. Each project defines a "workspace" or "desktop" for particular data management and analysis tasks. It can have a subset of the databases open or have a special arrangement of data windows—using features like sorting, filtering, and displaying browse fields.
Multiple settings folders
Some Shoebox users must have multiple settings folders:
- researchers who work on multiple projects that have no data or settings files in common
- members of a research team who share a subset of their data and settings files with others and frequently copy those files to and from multiple computers (it might be useful to keep the shared and non-shared files in separate projects)
- consultants who work with multiple research teams
If you have disjoint sets of data on your computer, you should create multiple data and settings folders that correspond to the separate research projects. If the folder that is named "My Shoebox Settings" seems appropriate for one of the projects, use it; if it doesn't, delete it.
Data files
You might have noticed that some sample folders contain both data and settings files. Most Shoebox users should not set up Shoebox that way for their own work. Instead, they should keep databases in one or more separate data folders, not in the user settings folder.
However, consultants who work with multiple research teams (and others who frequently copy projects to and from multiple computers) do have reasons to put data and settings together in the same folder:
- It is more obvious to the consultant which files belong to which team.
- After files have been copied from one computer to another, it is easier for Shoebox to locate the data files to open automatically, to index for jumping, and to use for interlinear parsing and lookup.
Reorganizing your settings files
Are you not keeping your settings files in the user settings folder, even though you could use it for your work?
Here are some benefits you might gain by reorganizing your files:
- Diagnosing and correcting problems with settings files tends to be easier.
- It is easier to remember to back up these valuable files periodically.
- The Shoebox Setup/Installer program automatically copies generic files to the user settings folder that you can customize for your data.
- Because your settings files aren't in the Shoebox folder, you avoid the risk of losing information whenever you add and remove versions of Shoebox. (This is also a benefit of not putting your data files in the Shoebox folder.)
Customizing a generic settings file
Shoebox installs several generic settings files for you to use in your work. Before you customize any of them, we recommend that you make a copy. However, do not just copy a file that is installed in the user settings folder using Explorer, File Manager, or the Finder. In Shoebox, use the following procedure:
- Choose Database Types or Language Encodings on the Project menu.
- Select the settings file.
- Choose Copy.
- Change its name (and thus take "ownership" of it).
Important: Just changing the file name is not adequate. There is also an internal name (on the first line of the settings file) that must also be changed. The Copy command in Shoebox changes both names.
Note: Some generic settings files that you might want to use for your work are not automatically installed in the user settings folder. For example, the Anthropology Notes database type AnthNote.typ is installed in the Anthro subfolder (that is in the Shoebox folder). With Shoebox not running, copy such a file to the user settings folder using Explorer, File Manager, or the Finder. Then use the preceding procedure to copy it in Shoebox.