MerceqGuideJoin the alpha

8 · Export your selections

Choose your destination and file operation

At the start of the second stage, a row shows the groups to export and clip counts. You can’t change your selections in this row. Click the Summary heading or the Back button in the lower left to return.

  1. Choose where your files will go in Destination location. If you haven’t chosen one yet, you’ll see Not selected and the Choose location… button. After choosing, the button is called Change Location.
  2. Choose a method in File operation: Copy · Link · Move.
  3. Review the explanation for your chosen method and the Folder and file layout preview.
Operation Explanation on screen What you need to know
Copy “Copies the file to the destination. The original stays where it is.” The contents of copies are verified.
Link “Shows the file in two places without copying it. It takes no extra space and only works on the same drive. It isn’t a backup…” Doesn’t work on exFAT and FAT32 disks.
Move “Moves the file to the destination and removes it from its old location. To undo, move it back with Finder.” The file’s source location changes.

Copy

Choose Copy if you want your original footage to stay in place and want a separate project for editing or delivery. Merceq checks the contents of copies; you’ll see the results in the report.

Move

On the same disk, the file is moved to its new location and renamed if needed. No second full copy is created.

If you move it to another disk, the file is first copied and verified at the destination; then the source file is sent to the macOS Trash.

If a source is on a camera card or network disk, it isn’t deleted. Merceq warns you first: “{n} clips are on a card or network disk; they’ll be copied and kept in place because they couldn’t be deleted there.” You’ll also see source files that couldn’t be moved to the Trash in the report.

If you want your originals to stay where they are, use Copy.

Link lets a single file on the same disk appear in different folders. Seeing it in two folders doesn’t mean there are two independent copies. They share the same content.

  • If the destination is on another disk, you’ll see “Linking only works on the same drive. Choose copy or move.”
  • If the destination is exFAT or FAT32, you’ll see “This drive doesn’t support linking (like exFAT and FAT32). Choose copy or move.”

If the link can’t be created, that file’s operation is counted as failed. Merceq won’t silently change your chosen Link operation to a copy.