Hi @peefy
You said “There’s no way to detect changes in pictures”. What do you mean by that?
I might have misunderstood you. I meant that you could not import an image and then ask WP All Import to look at that image and another image with the same name and see if they’re different (i.e. detect that the picture has changed when the filename/URL hasn’t).
I think wp-all-import can check if a certain filename that is in a csv field exists in wordpress or not, right?
Yes, it can.
is there any difference in the functioning of wp-all-import if the files are stored in the media library (i have disabled the month/year folder structure) or in the folder ./wp-content/uploads/wpallimport/files/ ?
You can use either one, but the files in the /wp-content/uploads/wpallimport/files/ folder will be imported into the Media Library when you import them.
can i prevent having image duplicates by using the above folder? What (dis)advantages are there by using that folder instead of the media library?
As long as you enable “Search through the Media Library for existing images before importing new images”, you can avoid duplicates.
Usually you’ll only want to use the /files/ folder if you have a ton of images that you need to upload via FTP for the import (you can’t upload images directly to the Media Library via FTP without using a plugin that adds the necessary information).
Is option 4 really needed to update variations? Because of my csv data structure I need the option “All variations for a particular product have the same title. There are no parent products.” With this option, will it still update the variations?
Option 4 is only necessary if you have a separate file containing only variations that you need to import to existing products.
Otherwise, you can create your variable products initially with a “New Items” import, then continually update it to add/delete/update variations: https://www.wpallimport.com/documentation/recurring/update-import.
what do you mean with “that [the import] did not create?
A “New Items” import creates products on the first run. If you re-run it with a new file, it updates the products from the first run. But, it cannot update products that were created manually or by a different import ID.
By “another import” , do you mean imports by other programs than wp-all-import or do you mean imports that have a different wp-all-import id number?
We’re referring to imports with different ID numbers, but it applies to anything that might have created the post outside of the import you’re running.
what is the difference between “Edit import” and “(edit) Import Settings”? Why are they seperate?
They’re separate because they’re different things. The “Edit Import” page is where you’ll set up your import template (i.e. map your import elements to WordPress fields). The “Import Settings” page is where you decide what you want to do with the import data (create posts, update posts, update specific fields, etc), and control other more advanced settings.
what is a friendly name? Why and when is it needed?
The “Friendly Name” is the name that you see when viewing your imports on the “Manage Imports” page. It is not needed, it’s just a quality of life feature.
What is the difference between a template name and this friendly name? Why have both?
A template name is used on step 2 (or on the “Edit Import” page) to select a template to be used for the import fields. It’s completely unrelated to a friendly name.
