How To Use

Click on the category that you have questions about. Then click on the specific question for the answer.


General Information

I imported photos from my iPhone into Memory Manager. The Date field is showing the time/date that I imported the photo, rather than the time/date the photo was taken. Is this an error?

Not all iPhone camera apps store the time/date the photo was taken as part of the photo metadata. If the information is not stored in the photo’s metadata, the time/date of import into Memory Manager will be used instead.

What image file formats does Memory Manager support?

Memory Manager accepts JPEG, TIFF, BMP, PNG, and GIF image formats. Digital photographs are best rendered as TIFF or JPEG files. It is important to note that a TIFF file requires significantly more disk space than a JPEG file.

The software will allow images in certain RAW formats to be imported into the vault and edited (see “Can I import RAW images into Memory Manager 4.0?” for additional information). However, the software will save edits to RAW images in one of the standard vault formats rather than in the original RAW format. In order to keep an edited RAW image in RAW format, the user will have to use an external editor.

I have a lot of images already arranged in folders and subfolders. Is there a way to quickly import images from multiple folders?

If you’d like to import a lot of photos at once, especially photos in sub – (sub –sub –) folders, choose Get Media › Files. In the “Select items to import” box, browse to the main folder with images/subfolders. In the top right corner of the dialog box, there’s a search field. Type .jpg in that search field. It will search the folder and all subfolders for files with the .jpg extension. You can then select them all (Ctrl + A) and import them.

Can I import RAW images into Memory Manager 4.0?

Memory Manager 4.0 supports images in camera RAW format on Windows Vista or Windows 7 (XP not supported), as long as the correct imaging codec is installed. The installable codec is available on the Memory Manager installation CD at D:\RAW Image Support (where “D:\” is your CD drive).

The file can also be downloadable and installed from the Microsoft Download Center.

The software will allow images in certain RAW formats to be imported into the vault and edited. However, the software will save edits to RAW images in one of the standard vault formats rather than in the original RAW format. In order to keep an edited RAW image in RAW format, the user will have to use an external editor.

Does Memory Manager support audio or video files?

Memory Manager 4.0 supports importing audio and video files to your Media Library. However, files do not natively play within the software. You must have a default audio and/or video player (such as Windows Media Player) on your system to activate your media files. Memory Manager only supports the files supported by your computer. For example, if your computer only has the QuickTime Movie Player installed, then Memory Manager will support only QuickTime movies.

Click the drop-down arrows that appear as your mouse hovers over an audio or video file. A pop-up menu appears. This menu changes depending on the media type selected. From this menu, you may access the file backup history and item information. In the following image, choosing Play Audio would launch the default media player.

I’m creating a new media vault, but I’m not able to click on the OK button to save it. Am I doing something wrong?

Make sure you are not trying to save the vault to your desktop; vaults cannot be saved directly to the desktop.

What is Memory Manager 4.0?

Memory Manager 4.0 is a software application that will help you organize, edit, and share your photos. This is an upgrade to Creative Memories’ popular Memory Manager 3.0.

What features are new in Memory Manager 4.0 for 3.0 users?

Memory Manager 4.0 now includes:

  • One-click auto-fix image enhancement using Perfectly Clear™ by Athentech Imaging
  • Facial recognition
  • Easy sharing to social media websites
  • Enhanced email capability to make it easier to send pictures via web-based email programs such as Hotmail or GMail
  • An improved interface that makes Memory Manager even easier to use

Is there a document to help me get started with Memory Manager 4.0?

Yes! Just download the Quickstart User Guide.

Is there a trial version of Memory Manager 4.0?

Although we are not marketing a trial version of the application, you can open your vault nine times in Memory Manager 4.0 before needing to enter your activation code.

Please note that the facial recognition feature will only be enabled upon activation of Memory Manager.

Can I use Memory Manager 4.0 on my Mac?

For people interested in using Memory Manager on their Macs, there are a variety of programs available that allow running a Windows program on a Mac.

Please note: The Creative Memories Consultant Services team does not have the staff or expertise to support these programs. We will continue to provide support for Memory Manager.

Will there still be updates to Memory Manager 3.0?

At this time, we do not plan to continue updating Memory Manager 3.0.

Will Creative Memories still support Memory Manager 3.0?

Although Memory Manager 3.0 is no longer available for purchase, Creative Memories will continue supporting it for the time being. However, with Memory Manager 4.0 being the most current version, we encourage you to upgrade for the best possible support.

Can I create a slide show set to music in Memory Manager 4.0?

When creating a slide show in Memory Manager, you have the option of adding one selection of background music. Memory Manager does not include options for adding more than one file of background music, coordinating the slides with music, or saving the slide show as a file to be played outside of Memory Manager. However, Memory Manager does provide the option to export files directly to Windows Movie Maker, a free program that does offer robust slide show creation features.

How can I export my photos to create a slide show in Windows Live Movie Maker?

First, make sure you have the latest version of Movie Maker. This can be downloaded from the Microsoft download center. Note that Movie Maker is supported on Windows Vista and Windows 7, but not Windows XP.

Once Movie Maker is installed, select the media file(s) you would like to export. Go to the Share ribbon and click the Windows Live Movie Maker button. The file(s) will be exported from Memory Manager into an export folder specified during the export process.

Note that Movie Maker will refer to the location for the exported file(s), rather than reimporting the images into Movie Maker. Be sure not to delete them from the export folder until you have finished the Movie Maker project and no longer need the images in the project. For instructions on using Movie Maker features, please refer to Microsoft Help and Support for that program.

I’m trying to import pictures from my iPhone, but when I select Get Media > Camera, I see the message “There are no cameras connected to your computer.” Why won’t Memory Manager recognize my iPhone?

Memory Manager won’t recognize your iPhone as a camera if your iPhone is locked with a passcode. To get around this issue, unplug your iPhone from the computer, unlock it by entering your passcode, plug the iPhone back into the computer while it’s unlocked, and then select Get Media > Camera.

Installation or Activation

I entered my activation number, but the Activate Now button isn’t enabled, and I can’t click on it. What might be wrong?

If you are copying/pasting the activation code, be sure that you didn’t copy an extra space at the end of the code. If you’re manually typing the activation code, make sure you haven’t mistakenly typed the number 0 for the letter O (or vice versa). When manually entering the code, you will not need to tab between the boxes; simply enter all 20 digits as they appear.

Do I need to be connected to the Internet to activate my software?

It is preferable to be connected to the Internet when activating your software. If you are not connected, the software will provide you with the manual activation form that allows you to call Creative Memories customer service during regular business hours to get an activation code.

Where do I find the product key/activation code for Memory Manager 4.0?

If you purchased the CD, the product key is listed on the back of the CD case. If you purchased the download, log into your creativememories.com (.ca) account, then go to My Account. Under Purchase History, click View My Digital Download Information. Find your order for Memory Manager 4.0 and look under the Activation Code/License Key column. Note that you may need to scroll through several pages of digital download information to find you Memory Manager 4.0 order.

Can I install Memory Manager 4.0 to more than one computer, or is there a multi-user license?

Memory Manager 4.0 is a licensed software. Each license can only be installed to one computer at a time. We do not currently offer a multi-user license.

Can I move Memory Manager to a new computer?

Your Memory Manager license allows you to have it installed to one computer at a time. Click here for instructions on moving your Memory Vault and personal settings from one computer to another.

Working with Memory Manager 3.0 Vaults

Can I open my existing Memory Manager 3.0 vault in 4.0, or do I need to create a new vault?

Your existing Memory Manager 3.0 vault can be opened in 4.0. Click here for instructions.

If I open my Memory Manager 3.0 vault in 4.0, will I still be able to use it in 3.0?

No, the vault is converted to 4.0 format once it’s opened in 4.0. You will be alerted to this information before opening your vault in Memory Manager 4.0.

When I imported photos in Memory Manager 3.0, it always gave me the little yellow triangle indicating that I had already imported an image. Why doesn’t Memory Manager 4.0 display that triangle on the images that have been previously imported?

The import process has changed some from Memory Manager 3.0, because we are trying to use the Windows Common Dialogs whenever possible, as they provide easier access to many locations, especially in Windows 7. Duplicates can still be excluded using the settings available when you click the Import Options... button in the dialog box that appears when you start the import process.

What happened to my sort boxes and folders from Memory Manager 3.0?

In Memory Manager 4.0, the sort boxes are now called Categories and folders are now called Tabs. When you open your 3.0 vault in 4.0, all of your sort box and folder names are updated and your photos remain categorized as they were in 3.0.

Facial Recognition

I have manually tagged some faces in my photos. But when I run the Recognize Faces feature, it’s not recognizing any of these faces. Why not?

Faces can be automatically recognized only if a reference face has been created by the facial recognition component when it is processing an image. Faces manually tagged by the user cannot be used as the basis for recognizing other faces in the library.

I’m running the Recognize Faces feature, but not all of my faces in my photos are being recognized. Why not?

The Facial Recognition feature will recognize the vast majority of faces. However, there may be times an obvious face is not recognized. If you experience this situation, double-click the photo to open it in the editing window. Then in the Item Properties panel, click the blue refresh arrow to the right of the Faces section. This will attempt to identify faces using a slightly modified algorithm from the first facial recognition pass.

Some faces will never be automatically recognized. For example, faces that are blurry, in profile, tilted, very small relative to the rest of the photo, or have something covering a portion of the face, may not be recognized. These can still be manually tagged.

For full information on facial recognition, see the Help file within Memory Manager.

I didn’t enable Facial Recognition when I first opened my vault in Memory Manager 4.0. Is there any way for me to turn it on?

Yes - from within the Media Library, click File › Properties. In the General section, make sure Enabled is selected to the right of Facial Recognition.

Are there any reasons I would want to turn off the Facial Recognition feature?

If Facial Recognition is enabled but faces in the majority of the pictures have not been identified, moving through the images in your media library may take more time as the faces are being processed. If you would like to disable the feature to increase the speed at which you can move through the images, go to File › Properties, and disable the Facial Recognition feature in the General section.

I’m running the Recognized Faces feature, but the program is consistently recommending the wrong person. What's wrong?

The software uses a catalog of reference images when recommending names for faces. If you find someone being incorrectly and consistently recommended for another person, you may have inadvertently tagged someone with the wrong name. To confirm the reference images used for a face tag, hover over the face tag in the Organizer panel and select Show Reference Faces... from the drop-down menu. This will allow you to see all the reference faces for that face tag, and remove any that are incorrect. This should improve the accuracy of the facial recognition process.

File Backup

What’s the best way to back up my files?

Memory Manager makes it easy to back up your files. You can use your backup to recover lost files later, to move a larger amount of items off of your computer and free up disk space, or to reinstall your vault if you’ve purchased a new computer. Memory Manager can also automatically protect your memory vault.

There are several ways to back up your files: incremental backups, full backups, or shadow copies. Backups are a great option for saving all your media files to CDs/DVDs, so they can be safely stored in another location. Shadow copies are a great option for always having a completely current backup of your entire media vault. You may even choose to use a backup option and a shadow copy - they are not mutually exclusive options. See “What’s the difference between backing up my memory vault and creating a shadow copy?” for specific information regarding the differences between these backup options.

What’s the difference between backing up my memory vault and creating a shadow copy?

Backing up a memory vault - using either the full or the incremental option - will create copies of the vault that can be burned to CD/DVD. Depending on the size of your vault, you may need to burn to multiple backup disks (you will be prompted to insert them during the backup process). This method of backup is manual. You can define how often you are reminded to perform a backup by going to Help › Options › Backup. If you ever need to recover the vault from backup diskes, it will only have information from the last time you backed up your information. When you recover the vault, you’ll be prompted to insert the backup CDs/DVDs, which means it takes a bit longer to recover your vault from this backup method. When the recovery is complete, your entire vault, including media files, categories, tags, etc., will be restored. Backing up files to CD/DVD allows you to store the information away from your computer, giving you a copy you can recover in the event of a catastrophe at your home, such as fire or flood.

The shadow copy automatically creates a copy of your vault, giving you a backup that is always in sync with your current vault. Shadow copies can be saved to another file path, such as to a network directory or an external hard drive, but they cannot be saved to CD/DVD. It is simpler to recover your media vault from a shadow copy. When you recover from a shadow copy, your entire vault, including media files, categories, tags, etc., will be restored. However, if you’ve saved the shadow copy to a different location on your computer and your computer crashes, your shadow copy will also be lost. In addition, if you save the shadow copy to an external hard drive that is ever damaged, the shadow copy will be lost.

Error Messages

I get the following error message when trying to use the Auto fix › Perfectly Clear™ option: “Unable to load DLL ‘PerfectlyClearCore.dll’: The application has failed to start because its side-by-side configuration is incorrect...” Can this be fixed?

The Perfectly Clear™ functionality requires that Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 SP1 version 9.0.30729.6161 be installed on your computer. If this file does not exist on your system, the Memory Manager installation process should install it. However, if this program (with the correct version noted above) is not listed in your control panel, it can be installed one of the following ways:

  • If you purchased the CD, the file can be found on the CD at D:\ISSetupPrerequisites\{e2585b36-5ae3-440a-9899-390e056528b6} (where “D:\” is your CD drive).
  • The file vcredist_x86.exe can also be downloaded from the Microsoft download center.

When I open Memory Manager for the first time, I’m seeing an error referencing activation.cognitec.com. What’s wrong?

This error occurs if there is a problem activating the Facial Recognition feature. Closing and reopening Memory Manager should resolve this issue.

Technical Information

What are the Memory Manager 4.0 prerequisites?

Memory Manager 4.0 requires that some underlying programs be installed to your computer. All of the required files should be installed as part of the installation process. There are also some additional optional files. Here’s an overview of the prerequisites, and how you can manually install them if necessary:

REQUIRED PREREQUISITES:
Microsoft .Net Framework 3.5 SP1
On Windows XP and Vista
Download it from the Microsoft download center
For users who purchased the CD, the file can be found on the CD at D:\ISSetupPrerequisites\{074EE22F-2485-4FED-83D1-AAC36C3D9ED0}\dotnetfx32.exe (where “D:\” is your CD drive).

Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 SP1 version 9.0.30729.6161
On Windows XP, Vista, and 7
Download it from the Microsoft download center
For users who purchased the CD, the file can be found on the CD at D:\ISSetupPrerequisites\{e2585b36-5ae3-440a-9899-390e056528b6} (where “D:\” is your CD drive).

On the Microsoft download page and within the folder on the CD, there are different setup files. The user should choose the appropriate file based on whether they have a 32- or 64-bit operating system:

  • vcredist_x64.exe: this is the version that should be installed to 64-bit machines.
  • vcredist_x86.exe: this is the version that should be installed to 32-bit machines.

NOTE: This prerequisite is needed for both the Perfectly Clear™ image enhancement functionality and for the CD burning feature. If a user experiences issues with either of those features, they should manually install the files listed above.

OPTIONAL PREREQUISITES:
Microsoft Camera Codec Pack
Memory Manager 4.0 optionally supports the RAW Image format used with some cameras. If you require RAW image support, please install.
On Windows Vista and 7
Download from the Microsoft download center

On Windows XP
RAW images are not supported within Memory Manager 4.0 on this operating system.

Windows Live Movie Maker
Memory Manager 4.0 optionally supports exporting images to Windows Live Movie Maker for creating slide shows and movies using media exported from Memory Manager. To download Movie Maker, please install.
On Windows Vista and 7
Download from the Microsoft download center

On Windows XP
Windows Live Movie Maker is not supported on Windows XP

If I install Memory Manager 4.0, will it overwrite my existing 3.0 program?

Memory Manager 4.0 installs as a separate program from the 3.0 version. It will not overwrite your existing 3.0 version or your 3.0 vault.

What are the minimum system requirements for Memory Manager 4.0?

Operating System: Windows XP Service Pack 3 (32-bit edition), Windows Vista (32-bit or 64-bit editions), or Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit editions)
Processor: 800 MHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
System Memory (RAM): 1 GB
Monitor: 1024 x 768 resolution or greater with 32-bit color
Disk Space: 1 GB free space on system drive; as needed on system drive or other drive for memory vault storage.
Other: Mouse or other pointing device; CD or DVD drive; high-speed Internet connection is recommended.
NOTE: Actual requirements and product functionality may vary based on your system configuration.

How do I get Memory Manager 4.0 updates?

You can determine how often you would like the software to check for updates by going to the Help icon, then clicking Options › Auto Updates. Available updates are also displayed in the Application News section in the bottom-left corner of the Welcome tab.

My camera is plugged into my computer and the power is on. But when I click Get Media › Camera, I see a message that says no camera is connected to the computer. What’s wrong?

If you’ve plugged in your camera but the software is not finding it, go to Help › Options and select “Allow camera import with WIA” under the General section, then try it again.

When importing images, I’m given the option to NOT import duplicate images. However, when the files are imported, I see duplicate images. Why is this happening?

The program looks at the time/date stamp AND the root file name (without revision numbers) of the media files when determining duplicates. If both the date and file name of the image being imported match an existing file in the vault, it’s treated as a duplicate and would not be imported. However, if you’ve modified the date of the file (either the file being imported or the file in the media library), it will not be considered a duplicate image.




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