For the few quid it cost I decided to take a punt on the Eagle Filer on the bundle Hunt site. I have just started to use it. but I was wondering, for those experts out there, if you had any tips for a new user.
For example would you recommend using just one big library or several smaller one.
Thanks
Nick
I’ve been using it for a while now and find it very useful - it’s my main document library. I paid full price - it’s a real bargain on Bundle Hunt. The developer is very responsive on the EagleFiler forum.
I use just one library, but my work and life tend to flow into each other, so your mileage may vary.
I save quite a bit of web content to the library and find the bookmarklets handy (EagleFiler Bookmarklets). This allows me to choose whether I want to save as a PDF, plain text or as a bookmark. There is quick capture available too.
I store my library on iCloud, so I can access the files there (even though EagleFiler isn’t available for iOS - it’s not really necessary). Flagging an item in EF comes across in Finder (tag: flagged)… I use that to highlight PDF files I want to read later/annotate on my iPad.
You can print a PDF to Eaglefiler from pretty much any application.
You can save emails to the library using the capture key or by dragging from Apple Mail into the library. Indeed, you can add any file to the library by clicking the file in Finder and pressing the capture key.
EagleFiler plays nicely with the Skim (free!) PDF reader - if you search for a PDF and then click on it you’ll be taken to all references of your search within Skim. Apparently it also searches Skim notes.
This feature list is a good summary: EagleFiler Feature List
The manual is comprehensive: EagleFiler Manual
For more advanced usage, including things like OCR, there are a bunch of AppleScripts: EagleFiler AppleScripts.
There are also some ‘esoteric’ settings. EagleFiler Manual: Esoteric Preferences. I’ve found it useful to change some of these - e.g., exactly how a PDF is captured to the library. Might be something for later, once you start to explore the features, but they’re worth knowing about.
Feel free to come back with any questions! I’ve also made some tweaks to better display Markdown files.
Thank you @nationalinterest for taking the time for such a comprehensive answer - that is absolutely brilliant.
Nick
hi @nationalinterest , do you access the EF library from more than one mac? I am scared of corrupting the library if I forget to close the app from one mac before I use EF on another Mac
I don’t. However, the way that EF stores its data suggests it would be easily rebuilt if there was corruption. It’s one of the attractions for me, having had problems with DevonThink failing to repair a database in the past.
https://c-command.com/eaglefiler/help/how-can-i-access-my-lib
Only open the library in one copy of EagleFiler at a time. Multiple copies of EagleFiler simultaneously using the same database can damage it. (If this does happen, you can easily rebuild the library.)
thanks for the quick reply, that helps
Sometimes people describe DEVONthink as a “super Finder” tool. That’s would be a certainly possible but merely superficial usage of DT capabilities. But if you could extract the “super Finder” capabilities from DT to a standalone app it would look a lot like Eagle Filer.
Pretty useful for organizing and sending stuff to it, although it is not without its quirks UI-wise but sync is rock solid because EF basically doesn’t really do sync. Just point it to a iCloud Drive folder and off it goes.
I’ve been using EF since 2007 and agree with @nationalinterest and @pantulis. It’s a rock solid program.
Does EF support Shortcuts on the Mac?
I don’t think so. But EF is scriptable and several are available on the website. I have very little need for automation. My primary computer is an iPad Pro. When I want to add a file to my Archive library I save it to an iCloud folder and have Hazel process and add it to EF on my Mac.
I may get Hazel at some point - it seems very powerful. Right now I just save things into the ToImport folder from my iPad and they automatically appear in the EF library. Great for capturing PDFs I’ve downloaded or captured on the iPad (or my phone).
That’s similar to what I did for years. Hazel’s primary job is to check for account numbers, etc. in PDFs and modify file names for financial or medical records before importing into EF. Everything else is just filed.
I add the “To Import (EagleFiler)” folder to my Finder sidebar and then drag and drop or print to that target (you’ll see its exact name if you look in Finder where you store your EagleFiler files).
I have a “Web Receipts” folder for financial documents with a subfolder for each year, and a “Prefixed” folder for my many filenames that start with “how to,” “lists,” “logs,” and “notes” along with a saved search for each in my EagleFiler sidebar. Also a folder containing subfolders for a few distinct topics like Taxes, Retirement, Medical, etc. And the final folder is called Collection which has a subfolder for each year and is where everything else goes.
At the moment, I have two libraries, one for email, and one for everything else. They’ve been together in the past. It’s easy to move stuff into a new library or to combine existing libraries so don’t spend a lot of time worrying about it. You can always reorganize. 
That’s clever, and easier than having large numbers of folders.
Just taken the plunge and purchased EagleFiler, it’s a steal at that price!
If EagleFiler had an iOS app and three-column view it’d be much more attractive.
But then it would be DEVONthink, which I have rejected in favor of EagleFiler.