New EditShare Flow 3

EditShare LLC was
featuring at IBC2013 a new version of its Flow
media asset management solution, including two new Flow modules –
AirFlow and Flow Automation.

The modules work alongside existing Flow Browse, Logger and Ingest
modules to improve productivity and enhance workflow practices.

Flow 3 is an update to the media asset management software, adding
the ability to manage any file type, not just video content. The
system allows audio clips, still images and documents to be tracked
throughout a project. Users can add their own ‘asset type’ metadata
to these files.

End-to-End Workflow Solution
“Flow is a true end-to-end workflow solution, from
baseband SDI and file-based ingest with transcode to logging and
remote browsing,” explains James Richings, MD, EditShare. “A
unique advantage of Flow has been the ability to drag and drop files
directly from Flow Browse to any editing application. Building upon
this capability, Flow 3 can import metadata from third-party systems,
enabling Flow users to map critical information into their own
schema, if required.”

He goes on to state that although Flow 3 includes powerful
capabilities, the system is also easy to use: “For example,
some MAM solutions require a week or more of intense instruction.
With the addition of AirFlow, non-technically trained users can
access content and be involved in the production process with no more
training than is required to use Facebook.”

Richings emphasizes that the stability, flexibility and resilience
of Flow’s database add to the solution’s strengths: “The ease
with which users can define custom metadata fields in the database is
far superior to many other asset management systems. What’s more,
Flow offers a much higher level of scalability than comparative
solutions.”

Key Features:

Collaborate through a web browser with AirFlow

Track any video, audio, image or document asset across single or
multi-user projects

Import/export clip metadata or transcripts to/from other systems

More flexible user interface with undockable panels and
customizable layouts

Expanded NLE compatibility for dragging and dropping of projects,
bins, clips and sequences

Save time and money by automating complex repetitive tasks with
Flow Automation

Redundant database architecture with auto failover and
resynchronization tool

Scalable Flow Worker Node architecture provides workload
distribution and maximizes use of hardware resources

Support for scanning and browsing your archived content on
existing third-party near-line storage and restoring to EditShare
online storage

Location No Barrier With AirFlow
The module
allows users to manage media and projects and collaborate from any
off-site or on-site location, using a web browser and Internet
connection. Users can remotely access Flow media asset management for
browsing, tagging and organizing all media assets that reside on the
company’s shared storage and archiving and backup platforms.

“This means a customer could be in the United States
looking at assets on a system in London, using AirFlow,”
states Richings. “And the beauty of it all is not only the
simplicity of the clean interface, but the fact that any changes in
either AirFlow or Flow Browse are synchronised in real time –
allowing true collaboration between almost any type of user.”

Flow Automation Raises Bar on Flexible Templates
It increases workflow efficiency by providing
templates that automate repetitive tasks, such as media migration,
transcoding and clip deletion. More than facilitating ingest or
delivery, it helps users automate workflows that cover every aspect
of their business. Tools for setting up automated tasks, such as
transcoding and moving files across the shared storage and archive
systems, are based on rules-driven templates.

“Simplicity and flexibility remain key,” comments
Howard Twine, Flow product manager, EditShare. “Flow
Automation makes it very easy to build a workflow template and manage
the processes through a simple and intuitive user interface. When it
comes to flexibility, users can connect almost any workflow element –
even for the most complex of processes – putting them back in control
of their entire workflow, not just certain aspects of it.”

Decisions can be applied to repetitive processes, making the
overall operation more consistent and reliable. It can be combined
with AirFlow, which, in turn, can provide a simple user interface
that enables complex processes and decisions to be hidden from the
user.

Key Features: