This document discusses digital asset management (DAM) and the Extensis Portfolio Server DAM system. It summarizes challenges with finding and organizing digital files and metadata. It then provides recommendations for setting up a DAM system, including ingesting assets, creating metadata, standardizing file naming and folder structures, converting file formats, and making the business case for DAM. The presentation demonstrates the Portfolio Server's search and metadata features.

1. Presented by Jim Kidwell
Hoarding, Searching
and Effective DAM
with Extensis
Portfolio Server

2. Mo Assets,
Mo Problems
“Now where did I save that graphic?”
“Why is my face on that billboard?”
“Yes, please bother me every time
you need a logo.”

3. Where Did I Put That File?

4. What’s a “Hoard”?
“A supply or accumulation that is hidden or carefully
guarded for preservation, future use, etc.”
(dictionary.com)

5. What is digital asset management?
Baby don’t hurt me
“…the ingestion, annotation,
cataloguing, storage, retrieval and
distribution of digital
assets” (wikipedia.org)
Being able to quickly find, organize,
and convert media files.
(Also, an endless source of
unfunny puns)
?

6. Stop Searching and Start Finding
Find—type a keyword into a box:

7. Stop Searching and Start Finding
Advanced find—choose from categories:

8. Stop Searching and Start Finding
Web portal find—your own stock website:

9. Stop Searching and Start Finding
In-app find—find from a palette within an application:

10. Stop Searching and Start Finding

11. Demo

12. What’s an Asset?
“Anything tangible or intangible that is capable of being owned or
controlled to produce value…” (Wikipedia)
“They’re only assets if you can find them”

13. I’ve Never Metadata I Didn’t Like
Metadata is “data about data”
• Information (metadata) about rich media files (assets)
• Metadata can be created automatically (awesome!)
• …or entered manually by hand (lame!)

14. I’ve Never Metadata I Didn’t Like
3 things you can use metadata for:
• Index (keywords and other stuff you can search)
• Informational (the 5 W’s)
• Rights (where and how a rich media file can be used)

15. Demo

16. Dude, That’s So Metadata…
• Standards: Adobe XMP, IPTC, EXIF
• Send information with the file:
• Extracting: Reading information from the file
• Embedding: Writing information into the file

17. The 2013 World File Naming Convention
Q: Does search make filenames irrelevant?
A: No!
• Keywords can auto-generate from filenames
• Filenames are the original metadata—all other people and programs
understand them
• Filenames can affect how files are sorted (by date, alphabetically)
• There are advantages to uniquely named files
• some%20systems%20break%20spaces%20in%20filenames.jpg
• Don’t use these characters on the Mac:
/ : * ? “ < > | [ ] & $ `

18. Demo

19. Folder Hierarchy
• Keywords can also auto-generate from folders
• Folders help people access rich media from both inside and outside of a DAM
• Folders provide another level of organization in addition to metadata and galleries
• Folders can be used as a “hot folder” or drop box for automatic cataloguing into a
DAM
• Folders provide an absolute location (file path)—a place where you can go back to
find it
• Do you really want to put hold 4,294,967,295 files in one folder?

20. Folder Hierarchy Best Practices
• Create an empty set of folder templates to copy from
• Determine folder direction: what folders come before others?
• Determine level of granularity: at what level do people create their
own folders?
• Try not to “float” folders to the _top or z_bottom
• The structure shouldn’t require putting one file in more than one
folder
• Consider starting over with a new folder structure

21. Demo

22. File Format Considerations
• Keep the highest quality file available, create other formats as needed
• Video requires more space and processing power
• Not all formats support metadata
• Beware of resource forks on older Mac files

23. Batch File Format Conversion

24. Demo

25. Make the Business Case
DAM helps organizations:
• Save time
• Save money
• Increase revenue
• Make life easier!

26. Getting Started with DAM
1. Get the right people involved (including IT!)
2. Focus on solving problems, not features
3. Try before you buy
4. Start small—build on small successes
5. Reflect and refine