Managing Library assets
Media and other assets find their way into the Library in several ways. For instance, the original contents of the Creative Elements branch of the Library are installed with Avid Studio.
The Library automatically discovers some assets on your system by regularly scanning Windows-standard media locations. These are set up on Avid Studio installation as watch-folders. Media files in these locations will automatically be brought into the Library. You can add your own watch-folders (see below), and they will be automatically updated, too.
Finally, you can import media manually by any of several methods (see “Importing” below).
‘Watch-folders’ are directories on your computer that Avid Studio monitors. If you add media files such as video clips to a watch-folder, or one of its subfolders, they automatically become part of the Library. Updating occurs each time the application is launched and while the application is running.
Watch-folders are set up on the Watch-folders page of the Settings dialog. For each folder that you add, you can specify that either one particular supported media type will be ‘watched for’, or all of them.
If you need to import a large amount or variety of media, or to import from analog media such as VHS tape, click the Import button near the top of the application window to open the Importer.
The Quick Import button at the top left of the Library opens a Windows file dialog for fast import of files from a hard drive or other local storage.
New folders in the corresponding media categories (video, audio and images) are created for the files specified. In addition, the imported items are included in the Last Import Collection.
Direct import via drag and drop
To select and import items in one step, use drag-and-drop from Windows Explorer or the desktop into the Browser. The new items are immediately displayed in the Collection ‘Latest Import’, which is created for the occasion if necessary.
Removing items from the Library
To remove an item from the Library, or a selection containing multiple items, choose Delete selected from its context menu or press the Delete key. A confirmation dialog verifies the names of the media files to be removed from the Library database. By default, the media files themselves will not be affected, but the Remove from library and delete option lets you delete the files too, if desired. Be careful, as this command works on all kinds of Library assets, including your Avid Studio projects if any of those are selected.
When all the files in a folder are removed, the Library hides the folder as well.
You may also remove a folder and all the assets it contains from the Library when removing the folder from the watch-folders list. However, this is not automatic and you will be asked if you want to keep your current assets listed in the Library, but still stop monitoring the location.