Digikam can't/won't open photo files

[Remco Viëtor]

On vendredi 13 octobre 2017 12:55:15 CEST Dave B wrote:
> Good morning,
> 
> I've had some problems with my system(!) and am now more or less back to
> where I was (I think!)
> 
> I have reloaded digikam several times either with dnf or yumex-dnf. 
> Each time, I get a normal start of digikam 5.6, but I am unable to open
> any photos.  I have tried running the "start --> graphics-->digikam",
> digikam starts, displays the "What's new" page + the various frames, and
> stops.  I cannot find out how to get rid of the "what's new" page,
> cannot open any photo files, cannot get into the file listing to be able
> to open an album......
> 
> If I try right-click on a .pdf file, there is no digikam heading in the
> "open with" sub menu.......
> 
> It all used to work smoothly.....
> 
> Can anyone suggest a way to get digikam to start?????
> 
> 
> Dave

You did define one or more collections in the Digikam setup?
Digikam is used to work with image collections, i.e. directories of images 
(and videos). Normally, those directories are organised in one or a few tree 
structures, just like disk directories. In fact, digikam uses the file 
structure on the hard disk(s) as the structure for its album tree. And in 
order to speed up searching and such, it uses a database to hold e.g. 
metadata, thumbnails, search results, etc..

On first use, you have to define where it has to store its database, and which 
directory tree or trees contain your images. If you haven't done that, digikam 
will indeed not show anything.

Wrt the "open with..." menus: Digikam isn't an image viewer, it's used to 
manage a *collection* of images and possibly edit them. So it's not very 
useful to have a digikam header in an "open with..." dialog. That doesn't mean 
it isn't possible...

Remco

PS: If you had it indeed all working smoothly, it might be possible that the 
old databases are still present. Backup those and point digikam at them, you 
have a good chance it will work /if/ the images are still in the same 
directories and you add the root of that subtree as a digikam collection.