Concepts
Vocabulary
- Library
- A set of indexed assets with a name. Each library has a library folder where you keep and organize your assets, and may reference external folders.
- Library folder
- The folder you chose or created when creating the library. Organize it with your own sub-folders. See ADR-0004.
- External folder
- Another folder referenced in place, for example a game or Blender project you do not want to move.
- Root
- The technical name for the library folder and external folders. Parallaxe scans roots recursively and never writes inside them.
- Asset
- A catalog entry linked to a physical file — or to a file that is temporarily missing.
- Tag
- A reusable label, stored only in the catalog. Unique per library, case-insensitive.
- Collection
- A virtual group of assets. An asset can belong to any number of collections. Deleting a collection never deletes a file.
- Thumbnail
- A cached derivative that can always be regenerated.
- Dependency
- An explicit reference from one file to another, such as a glTF texture URI or an OBJ material file.
- Original
- The file in your folder. No action in 0.1.0 writes, moves or deletes it.
Asset states
| State |
Meaning |
available |
The file is present and readable. |
missing |
The file is gone from its path. Tags and collections are kept until you clean up explicitly. |
root_offline |
The whole root is unreachable (for example an unplugged external drive). Nothing is purged. |
unsupported |
The file is cataloged, but this format or feature is not supported. |
error |
Reading failed for this file only. Other files are not affected. |
Value confidence
Every technical value carries a confidence level:
| Confidence |
Meaning |
exact |
Read or computed reliably. |
estimated |
Derived with a documented method, for example triangles after OBJ triangulation. |
unavailable |
Could not be determined. Never displayed as 0. |
not_applicable |
Does not exist for this format, for example animations in an STL file. |
What happens when files change
- Same path, new content: the asset keeps its identity; previews and metadata are refreshed, tags are kept.
- Renamed or moved, reliably detected: the path is updated, annotations follow.
- Ambiguous move: the asset stays
missing and you are asked to reassign it. Records are never merged silently.
- Drive unplugged: the root becomes
root_offline and is reconciled when it comes back.