Square Box Systems has released a full point upgrade for CatDV, bringing the multimedia cataloging software to version 2.0. The new version includes new features and other enhancements. According to Square Box Systems:
Square Box Systems Ltd have released CatDV 2.0, a major new version of their flagship media cataloging and video logging utility that adds new features and support for MacOS X.
CatDV 2.0 is a fully cross-platform media asset management system. It will create a thumbnail catalog of any QuickTime supported media files, including still images, audio files, and movies. CatDV 2.0 provides powerful searching and indexing functionality, and can both present slide shows of selected material and export them as QuickTime movies or HTML pages.
New features added in 2.0 since CatDV 1.5 include: slide show mode and full screen media playback; improved support for other media types (eg. MPEG, MP3, still images); add burnt-in date & time of recording when exporting movies; low resolution previews; customisable views and window appearance; customisable thumbnail size; correct handling of non-square DV pixels; compatibility with Mac OS X; sequence view; plus numerous other user interface enhancements, bug fixes, and updates for compatibility purposes.
What sets it apart from other media cataloging applications is that CatDV was designed specifically with the requirements of digital video editing in mind. CatDV 2.0 helps solve many of the common tasks faced by editors to increase their productivity and allow them to concentrate on the creative parts of the editing process:
- To speed up the process of logging tapes, CatDV will automatically split movie files into separate shots or scenes, and allow these to be reviewed and selections made within them.
- Clips can be assembled in sequence using a thumbnail storyboard view, for presentation on screen as a rough cut movie or exporting as a batch list to form the basis of a new project.
- CatDV will generate low resolution preview versions of movies and use these if the original movie is off-line.
- To help manage the massive disk space taken up by DV movie files CatDV will split large files into smaller movies per clip and trim any unwanted material from them.
- CatDV integrates with other applications by importing and exporting QuickTime movies, EDLs, and batch lists in many formats.
CatDV is of particular interest to users of applications such as Final Cut Pro, EditDV/Cinestream, Adobe Premiere or iMovie2 - anyone (amateur or professional alike) who already uses a computer for video editing but needs help to keep track of a large library of video tape and other media assets.
Macintosh system requirements: Any G3 or G4 Power Macintosh with 128Mb or more of memory and Mac OS 8.6 or later (MacOS 9.1 recommended), QuickTime 4 or later (5.0.2 recommended), and MRJ 2.2 or later (2.2.5 recommended). Use of a FireWire-capable Macintosh with capture software such as iMovie2 is also recommended.
You can get more information on the CatCV at the companyis Web site. The update is priced at US$29.95 (US$22.95 until Sept 16) through electronic download. The full version is priced at US$69.95 (US$59.95 until Sept 16).