*Program Basic
PROGRAM BASIC: Digital Image Library
By Shelleyrae Cusbert 2005
Jul 15, 2005, 04:52

The Microsoft Digital Image Library was included with the release of Digital Image Pro Suite 9. The library provides a way to organize and find pictures plus much more. Like other Microsoft products the software is easy to use with a clear interface that can be customized to facilitate ease of use. The program operates as a database rather than a physical location which means you are able to use it alongside any existing methods of organization you have in place.

The workspace of the Library consists of the menu bar from which all commands can be accessed.

The pictorial tool bar gives quick access to common use features

The View by ..pane allows you to elect which group of images you wish to view

To choose how to view these images utilize the drop down menu Group By:

The first time you open the Library, it automatically catalogs all of the pictures from the My Pictures folder on your computer. You can also add pictures from other folders or have the Library scan your hard disk drive to locate other pictures on your computer. You can also add read-only pictures that are stored on removable mediaAny CD, DVD, CompactFlash, floppy disk, ZIP disk, or other media that can be inserted into, and removed from, a disk drive., use the Import Pictures Wizard. When importing pictures from removable media, you can choose only to catalog them to the Library and not copy to them to your computer. This catalog-only option saves room on your computer's hard disk, but still allows you to see thumbnails and information about the pictures.

When you add or import pictures to Digital Image Library, the Library automatically catalogs information about those pictures, such as file size, image size, and date taken. The Library also catalogs EXIF information, which is information provided by many digital cameras about the camera settings used for each picture. For each picture, you can view all of this information on the picture's properties dialog box.  You can also add information about the pictures such as captions, ratingsA designation of zero to five stars that you can apply to pictures to help rank and locate favorite pictures., and keywordsWords that you choose and apply to pictures, and which help to locate and organize your pictures.. This can be done in a number of ways.

You can add information to individual pictures by selecting the picture in the thumbnail pane. At the bottom of the screen the selected image is shown along with details about that picture.

You can click where shown above to add keywords to the picture. This gives you a window for the Keyword Editor. You can then assign keywords from the given list or add your own.

It may be more convenient to assign keywords to several images at once. By accessing the Keyword Painter under Tools> Keyword Painter you can achieve this quickly and easily.

By selecting and /or adding keywords either singly or in multiples you can drag the keyword on to a thumbnail option and click to assign them

In this example all the images are layouts created in 2004, they all have my daughter Aleah as the main focus so I have selected “2004”, “Aleah” and “Family” as keywords that apply to all of these layouts. I have selected them in the list indicated by the blue square and then I have begun to click on each thumbnail.

Some of the layouts in this folder also require additional keywords for my organizational purposes. The bottom two viewable above are layouts created using the SBB Bloomin Bytes CD. I will use the keyword painter to add an additional keyword to those layouts.

The Image Library works in conjunction with Digital Image Pro to allow basic editing and converting of images. By selecting an image and then Tasks>Edit, Digital Image Pro is launched and edits can be made to the image. You can also select multiple images and then Tasks>Batch Edit, to launch the Digital Image Pro Mini Lab.

Changes can be made to groups of pictures using File >Batch Rename. The batch rename task can rename picture files to include a date and time, a base name, and a number in a series.

You can make copies of multiple pictures. Generally the term refers to a single photo or a composite project on the canvas. files and save the copies in a different file format by using File> Batch Convert File Type. While changing the file format, you can also select options for color depth, compression type, and quality level. File Types include jpg, gif, tif, bmp and png.

You can also resize multiple pictures so that they are all the same size. The File> Batch Resize task also allows you to change the file format and save the resized pictures to a different folder.

Printing directly from the Library is easy by using File> Print and selecting your options for single or multiple printing as desired. You can also use the Library to print an Index of pictures in any of your folders (including folders full of elements). You can elect to print file names or not with the image.

While working in the Library you can send pictures in an e-mail using Tasks>Send in Email. The Library can automatically resize the pictures for e-mail and then attach the pictures to an e-mail message.

The Archive feature of the Digital Image Library makes backing up your photographs and other images a breeze. The Archive Pictures Wizard in allows you to easily achieve to any removable media. The wizard also gives you a choice of which pictures to archive. It also keeps track of which images have been archived and which haven’t making the task easier. You can also set reminders in Digital Image Library so that you will be prompted to archive your pictures.

Digital Image Pro Library has a feature called Plus! Photo Story. If you are using XP as your operating system you can create your own file or  VCD disk with your images that combines pictures, narration, a title page, and background music. While Windows XP is required to create the story it can be played on any computer with an OS of Windows 98 or later and Windows Media Player 7.1 or later and can also play on any DVD player that is VCD compatible. This feature is perfect for showing off your layouts or your photographs.

The Digital Image Library is an easy to use and feature packed program that is of great benefit to computer scrappers to organize not only photographs but also layouts and collections of elements.

For more information or help with any of the features looked at here the programs Help files are comprehensive and easy to follow and also include a few video tutorials.