Catalog and labelling... big headache..

[Agus Casse]

Hello my friends,

Have you notice how amazing is that with such a large market the video production is, and still we dont have a good catalog, logging, and labeling software... i envy those mac guys that have the iDive software.


So, i tried the videomatica solution... but i cant print 1 single label, only all the ones that are in the databse.

Tried other software solutions and nothing...

i dont want a advance program like idive.. (cause it doesnt exist)

Any real solution would be appreciated...

thanks.

[Greg Boston]

Originally Posted by Agus Casse

Hello my friends,

Have you notice how amazing is that with such a large market the video production is, and still we dont have a good catalog, logging, and labeling software... i envy those mac guys that have the iDive software.


So, i tried the videomatica solution... but i cant print 1 single label, only all the ones that are in the databse.

Tried other software solutions and nothing...

i dont want a advance program like idive.. (cause it doesnt exist)

Any real solution would be appreciated...

thanks.

Agus,

Have you tried Scenalyzer yet? I don't know about label printing but it's pretty good for running through a tape and creating an index of the contents. I only have the demo version.

-gb-

[Agus Casse]

Yes i tried it, the problem is the tapes indeed, taht i need to label them for easy to find, and also have a database to know in which tape the video footage is...

Thanks for the help btw. ...


perhaps i should try making one in access... but i smell a long waste of time in the meanwhile.

[Steven Davis]

Ok I'll bite. I want to know why Avery doesn't make stick on print on labels..............or do they.

[Agus Casse]

i can print any label i want with a word teamplate, but i need a software that makes a database from it like videomatica, damn the software is so damn simple that if you want to print a single label, it prints them all over and over again.

[Daniel J. Wojcik]

Originally Posted by Agus Casse

i can print any label i want with a word teamplate, but i need a software that makes a database from it like videomatica, damn the software is so damn simple that if you want to print a single label, it prints them all over and over again.

That's what we're stuck with these days because almost no one uses sprocketed printers with rolls or connected sheets of paper anymore. No manufacturer thinks it worth the effort to print one label on a sheet of 10 or 12.

[Steven Davis]

I wonder if these people would do it

http://global.dymo.com/enUS/Home/def...T.mc_id=Google

[Daniel J. Wojcik]

OK. How about these? http://www.professionallabel.com/productCat44326.ctlg

With either the software they sell, or do it yourself in WP or Word? (With some fiddling, I'd suppose.)

[Greg Boston]

Originally Posted by Daniel J. Wojcik

That's what we're stuck with these days because almost no one uses sprocketed printers with rolls or connected sheets of paper anymore. No manufacturer thinks it worth the effort to print one label on a sheet of 10 or 12.

Okidata still produces tractor feed printers with zero margin tear-off. They are the cream of the point of sale receipt printers. There are also thermal label printers that can do one label at a time. We used them in the wafer fab I formerly worked at for printing lot labels (including barcodes) for the lot boxes and run cards.

-gb-

[David Tamés]

Here's some food for thought. I use a very simple approach. The idea is to keep data entry easy and simple, but to keep the data in a form that would be easily imported into a fancier system in the future if need be.

Part 1: Record Keeping. For each project I keep a spreadsheet with columns like Reel ID, subject, location, permissions, date, notes, format, audio notes (what's on track 1, track 2, etc) and whatever else makes sense. For example, on my most recent project I also kept track of who worked on the crew for later use in creating the credit roll, since it was a doc and the crew on each shoot varied. This file can be exported in the future as tab delimited text for import into other programs. I like keeping this data outside of the editing system, independent of that. I print this out and include it in the box with the archive of tapes.

Part 2: Labelling. I label tapes by hand (not much to write in my system) with a Reel ID that consists of three letters (an abbreviation of the project name) followed by three digits (I assume I'm never going to have more than 999 tapes in one project), for example, for the documentary I completed recently, called "Remembering John Marshall" I labeled the tapes RJM001, RJM002, etc. This also makes a good "Reel Name" for use in your editing system. If I had a high volume of media, I might use the same numbering scheme I use for photo folders, which is date_nickname, for example 2006.04.21_NAB2006, and the individual photos are named date_id, for example 2006.04.21_3432

I'm not suggesting to do it as I do, only to think about developing a system that makes sense to you and sticking to that consistently, making sure that any data you generate is easily transformed for use in a database you might want to use in the future. Imagine Products, the people who make HD Log, have a clip database product that works as a back end for their HD Log logging software, as do several other vendors. Digital Asset Management is big business these days serving the needs of broadcasters and larger facilities, maybe we'll see the equivalent of iPhoto for video clips come from an entrepreneur or one the larger vendors looking to enter the mass market. There are lots of applications out there for tracking media, but it's a very messy and fragmented field right now.

[Cameron O'Rourke]

Has anyone had any experience with stuff like CatDV (http://www.squarebox.co.uk/), HDLog (http://www.imagineproducts.com/hdlog.htm), or iDive (http://www.aquafadas.com/) for cataloging *professional* video production?

Thanks,
Cameron

[John Kang]

Why not use Microsoft Word to print your labels?

Go into Tools, Envelopes and Labels, Select single label, select line and row.

You can print one label on those multiple label sheets and printout on any unused labels in the future.

Not sure how many times you can run the sheet through a laser printer before the sheet is useless to use. I've noticed some warping/curling of the label sheet after about 4 runs. Have not needed to print single labels after that, yet.

[Steven Davis]

I think for us, we would want something on site we can just plug the names tape number etc and print. Since we typically use multiple cameras, labeling 10 tapes by hand while already in a hurry can be a little nuts.