An installer manages the install for you. We were excited to see Extensis release Portfolio 6.1 for OS X and much of our later testing was done with that version, a free update for users of 6.0. On any of the supported platforms, you'll need 32-MB RAM and 25-MB disk space, plus at least version 4.1.1 of QuickTime.
Running on Windows 98/NT/2000/ME/XP and Mac OS 8.6+ and OS X version 10.2, Portfolio is as cross-platform as software comes these days. But we were smitten by how effortlessly it let us build (and maintain) a keyworded catalog. If that's the case, you might be happy with a few jewels (iView Multimedia ( ) and QPict ( ) on the Mac, for example).Īt $200, Portfolio 6 from Extensis isn't inexpensive (although a $150 upgrade is available to Cumulus users). The cross-platform requirement may not be as important to you as it is to us. Oddly enough Exif data is sometimes, too. It's hard to import images on a routine basis.Īmong the organizer features of the new all-in-one breed of imaging software (iPhoto, Photoshop Album, Kodak EasyShare, Picasa), keywording and searching are shortchanged. It's hard to set up a catalog so it imports Exif data from JPEGs. We haven't found anything that does all that.Īmong the industrial-grade standalone products (Canto Cumulus), ease of use is nearly unknown. And it would be nice to have a few options for presenting or exporting the collection (like building an attractive Web page).It has to be able to write CDs or DVDs of our collection that are readable on any platform.We want it to be smart enough to share images with anyone. These days that means Windows plus Macintosh OS 9 and OS X. It has to have a powerful searching capability - not just a multiple field search but a Google-like clairvoyance.If we want to see our photos in order of Exposure Time, it shouldn't take more than a click. It has to have powerful sorting capabilities.It has to collect Exif exposure data from our images when it catalogs them.It has to automatically keyword our collection.It has to be easy to catalog both old images and new ones, no matter where they are.Over the years, we've honed our requirements to just a few essentials:
We really want software that will describe, catalog, retrieve and share our images - and that we will want to use. So we get by, content to pay later.īut we don't really want to get by. The trouble with most software designed to organize your image collection is that it isn't convenient to use. If we really needed asset management software, we'd use it. The Imaging Resource Digital Photography Newsletter ASSET MANAGEMENT Portfolio 6 - Fitting the Bill By MIKE PASINI
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