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In image-dired I use M-x image-dired-mark-tagged-files to mark files containing a tag using regexp. e.g. oil.

What regex do I need to mark oil but not wip (work in progress).

Input:

/foo/IMG_2022.JPG;art;oil;wip
/foo/IMG_2023.JPG;oil;art;

Output needed:

/foo/IMG_2023.JPG;oil;art;

M-x image-dired-mark-tagged-files

image-dired-mark-tagged-files is an autoloaded interactive compiled Lisp function in ‘image-dired.el’.

(image-dired-mark-tagged-files)

Use regexp to mark files with matching tag. A ‘tag’ is a keyword, a piece of meta data, associated with an image file and stored in image-dired’s database file. This command lets you input a regexp and this will be matched against all tags on all image files in the database file. The files that have a matching tag will be marked in the dired buffer.

jjk
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  • An Elisp regexp can't express this, AFAIK. But you can do it in two steps: (1) match `oil` marking all such matches, (2) match `wip` to UNmark all of those matches. If no one contradicts this, by proposing a single-regexp answer, then I can add this comment as an answer. – Drew Mar 11 '21 at 20:26
  • Thanks. Marking another time with `wip` just marks `wip`. The steps seem orthogonal – jjk Mar 11 '21 at 21:40
  • I said UNmark the `wip`, not mark. I've added an answer that elaborates. – Drew Mar 11 '21 at 22:25

1 Answers1

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An Elisp regexp can't express this, AFAIK. (Some regexp dialects can.)

But you can do it in two steps:

  1. Mark oil matches, which will include some wip matches.
  2. UNmark wip matches.

There seems to be no command image-dired-unmark-tagged-files. But you can define one, just by binding dired-marker-char to a space char and "marking" with that. Like this (untested):

(defun my-image-dired-unmark-tagged-files ()
  "Use regexp to unmark files with matching tag.
See `image-dired-mark-tagged-files'."
  (interactive)
  (let ((dired-marker-char  ?\    ))
    (image-dired-mark-tagged-files)))

Alternatively, after marking the oil files you can:

  1. Use * c * Q, to change all * marks to Q (or any other char).
  2. Use image-dired-mark-tagged-files to mark the wip files.
  3. Use M-DEL * to remove all * marks, unmarking the wip files.

In Dired, you can mark lines with any char, and you can change marks easily. And a line that is "unmarked" is just a line that's marked with a space-char mark.

Drew
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