I got the Key to unlock – Digizuite™ DAM for Sitecore 5.0 WHOO HOO!! I was fortunate enough to get a early tech release of DAM for Sitecore V5, to test prior to it’s release. I Actually think, I may have been the first Sitecore developer outside Digizuite to have had the opportunity to play with it.
What is DAM For Sitecore?
DAM for Sitecore extends Sitecore Experience Platform with a full-scale digital asset management (DAM) system, delivering the advantages of a single source for any digital media file. While Sitecore’s Media Library allows perfect website image management, a centralized digital asset management system optimizes digital workflows and supports multi-channel management.
DAM for Sitecore allows you to control digital content in the entire content lifecycle: you can organize, manage, search, edit, add metadata, distribute, and repurpose rich media content (images, videos and presentations) all in one place.
Structure
- Store everything in one place.
- Integrate with your existing business systems for smooth workflows.
- Integrate with Active Directory.
- Customize, configure and scale based on your needs.
Manage
- Manage and edit metadata intuitively for fast search.
- Control user rights on individual or group level.
- Transcode your images and videos to your needed formats automatically.
- Mobile upload of images and videos.
Search
- Accurate search results due to powerful metadata.
- Search across systems and channels.
- Navigate easily through an intuitive user interface.
Collaborate
- Improve your digital collaboration.
- Allow content sharing with people outside the organization.
Distribute
- Stream your video on any device.
- Scale your digital assets for any device.
- Share content on Sitecore and other platforms.
- Support for Content Delivery Networks.
- Share on social media.
What’s different in Version 5 Module?
If you have any experience with previous versions of DAM for Sitecore, you will find some significant changes in Version 5. The module has been rebuilt from the ground and up, utilizing Sitecore SPEAK. The new SPEAK interface provides a fluid and seamless integration with Sitecore, making it easy and more intuitive for content authors to add digital assets to Sitecore content.
DAM For Sitecore now contains a number of sub modules:
- DAM For Sitecore Connect/Synchronization framework
- DAM For Sitecore Explorer
- DAM For Sitecore Asset Browser
DAM For Sitecore Connect
Version 5 now stores information about your assets in buckets known as Silos within the media library. This is made possible with the new Connect/Synchronization framework in keeps the Silo in sync with DAM. A Silo is synchronized with a digital channel or a specific folder in the Digizuite DAM center. You have the flexibility to configure multiple Silos targeting specific assets or types of asset. DAM for Sitecore only stores a subset of the data from DAM center in the Sitecore master database. The asset data files are stored in Sitecore’s Media Cache. This keeps Sitecore database size from growing out of control with media content but also offers the advantages of features from the Sitecore Experience Platform.
DAM For Sitecore Explorer
The DAM For Sitecore Explorer is accessible from the Launch Pad. It enables a content author to manage all the digital assets available to him/her based on their user rights. With a well-defined metadata structure, it will be easy for content authors to search, find, manage and reuse digital content. The powerful metadata tools provided by DAM enable fast search and filtering of assets, that are easy to perform. Once you’ve located an asset you view/edit its metadata, crop (if it is an image) and download the original image all from within Sitecore.
DAM For Sitecore Asset Browser
The new asset browser helps you easily locate and insert an asset within your Sitecore content items or within Rich Text fields. The interface is consistent with the Explorer module with the addition of an image size drop list and insert and cancel buttons.
DAM for Sitecore provides three field types that can be populated by the Asset Browser:
Asset Field Type – this is the standard field type shows assets on the website. It corresponds to Sitecore’s native image field. It can store any asset regardless of asset type, including, but not limited to, videos, PDF, images, audio files etc. The field contains not only information about which asset is selected, but also what quality is selected. This field can be rendered both as a link and as a media output, e.g. an image tag or a video tag. By default, the field will be rendered as a media output.
Assetlink Field Type – is the standard field type used to show assets links on the website. It corresponds to Sitecore’s native Link field. This field can be rendered both as a link and as a media output, e.g. an image tag or a video tag. By default, the field will be rendered as a link output, but this can be changed in the corresponding settings for the type.
AssetList Field Type – can contain a list of assets. The individual assets in the list can be of any kind, e.g. a list can contain videos, images, PDF files or any other asset type simultaneously.
Users and Roles
You can control access to your digital media files by assigning individual user rights that keep your digital media files secure. The rights management processes are highly secure and aligned with the rights management in Sitecore.
DAM for Sitecore uses standard Sitecore membership implementation by overriding the default Sitecore membership provider and also uses standard Sitecore role manager implementation, by overriding the default Sitecore role manager provider. Both of which require some configuration changes to Sitecore.
Neil Killen 