Glossary A–ZLetter M
Media library
The media library is the central store in the management software that holds all images, videos, documents and other files intended for display on screens.
From there they are placed into playlists and templates.
A good media library is more than a file folder. It shows thumbnails, resolution, running time and file size, supports folders and tags, and shows in which playlists a file is used. It often checks on upload whether a format can be played on the players. When a file is replaced, all playlists that use it take over the new version.
Operators should organise the media library from the start, because after a year of operation it quickly holds hundreds of files. Clear names, folders by area or period and a note on the origin and licence of every file all help. Expiring licences should be easy to find. Files that are merely linked by address from external storage do not really reside in the library; if the source fails, the content is missing from the screen.