vsnarchive is a Media Asset Management system with an advanced DAM (Digital Asset Manager) that covers all aspects of ingest, catalogue, storage (whether it be on-line, near-line or off-line), browsing, tape management and distribution.

With vsnarchive you can digitise thousands hours of low resolution video on-line, immediately available for browsing and previewing from any network terminal or through Internet. Material in high resolution can be stored in a near-line data tape robot or in off-line video tapes with bar-coded stickers. The bar-coding of off-line tapes allows the system to instantly identify the off-line tapes, its contents and other pertaining information.

Cataloguing
Journalists can start pre-cataloguing images which have been previously stored in high resolution in servers' hard drives. The cataloguing process is achieved through the use of templates, adding general metadata such as description, category, journalist, cameras, and key words. It includes digital rights management (DRM) and partial cataloguing through segments within the same material.

In off-line storage, the system keeps track of which tapes are not full in a particular category to be able to completely fill them. If there are no tapes with enough space for the material, a new tape will be started and the system will generate a barcode sticker with the chosen format, including EBU-IBTN for tape identification.

Material can be retrieved in one of three ways: asking for a loan of the original tape, a copy of the material in a new tape or copy of the material in the server's hard drive. If material happens to be in near-line storage, it will be automatically brought on-line without the intervention of an operator. In the event that the material happens to be off-line (in tape) vsnarchive automatically notifies the cataloguer the tape's identification code and its physical location. When the cataloguer introduces the tape into a VTR, the system automatically reads the barcode and intelligently brings on-line only the segment requested by the user.

Customisable
vsnarchive includes an API plugin, allowing customization to a particular need of a client by using cataloguing and browsing pro-forms. It can even be integrated with other databases or external programs.

vsnfiller is the scheduling module to automate the programming of thematic channels and/or certain blocks of programmes inside the daily playlist. It's fully integrated with vsnmatic MCR playout and expands its power far beyond matic's actual features.

vsnfiller manages a large selection of video clips and creates automatically some parts of the rundowns, based on rules defined by the programmer. These blocks of programme will then be broadcasted by vsnmatic software.

The average duration of such clips is normally less than 5 minutes. The purpose vsnfiller is to help filling the daily playlists by automatically selecting clips based on some rules and create a more dynamic programme. Usually the content created by this application will be broadcasted before a main program such as daily news or a key programme of the channel.

The features of vsnfiller enable also the control of parametres such us the ‘freshness' of the content, the split between different categories of content to fill the blocks, precise timings, etc.

The vsnfiller software will include 3 modules:

1-  Content indexing and management : this module will allow the user to qualify the video clips used to create the parts of program. The clips are stored in the On-air server. Each material is identified by its original name and description (from vsnnetsharer content manager), duration and how many times it has been broadcasted. The operator is able to sort clips into categories that belong to some groups. Users can also add several metadata:

• Period of time when a clip can be displayed
   
• The minimum and a maximum number of times a clip can be broadcasted in this period
   
• A couple of extra fields to describe the kind of content. For example if it is a cool or a dynamic content ...

Filters can be applied to list materials that are running out of the period of time or that are exceeding the maximum broadcasting times. The user will be able to remove such clips or modify the parameters to use them again.

2- Building skeletons for the programme: a ‘skeleton' (or grid) describes the content of a block of programme. The operator will create skeletons by adding few parameters:

• maximum duration of the skeleton
   
• percentage of each clips categories or group of categories allowed in this skeleton
   
• day in the week and time when the skeleton content has to be broadcasted. I.e: skeleton for Tuesday 11 AM, or skeleton for Friday 4:30PM...
   
• prefered content: more cool clips than dynamic ones...
   

This module will also include a choice of rules like:

• a clip can't be selected is it has been broadcasted a day before at the same time.
   
• a clip has more chances to be selected if it has been broadcasted fewer times than another clip.

3- Dynamic content creation of playlists through scheduled skeletons: this module will run non-stop. Each time there is an active skeleton, it will reset the content of a dedicated group from the On-air server. Then vsnfiller will select new materials and add them into this dedicated Group based on the ‘next to come' scheduled skeleton.

4- If the programmer wants to broadcast the created content, he will add a gap to the matic's playlist on the date and time of a skeleton. Then he has to select the dedicated group using the " If there is a gap" function from the vsnmatic software.

• the remote journalist station, vsnnews.
• the news playout, vsnairnews.
• the continuity playout, vsnmatic.

Furthermore, it can automatically title any playlist line: digital clip, vtr, camera, satellite and any line sourcing video content.
In manual mode the user can control operation from the vsncg’s template manager.

Features and benefits of the vsncg character generator:

• Insert and remove templates automatically from the playlist lines of the playout servers: news (vsnnews) and continuity (vsnmatic).
• Operate as an independent character generator in any other non-vsn broadcasting system.
• Accepts Unicode character sets in True Type format, allowing for more than 800 languages (arabic, asiatic, russian and greek amongst others) to be correctly displayed on screen.
• Implementation of graphics and graphic sequences in BMP or TGA format.
• Insertion analog and digital clocks, counters, chronometers and countdowns, all of them with individual control panels for quick and easy operation.
• Allows insertion of different fonts on the same template.
• Creation of templates with text parameters to be used in different situations.
• Unlimited number of layers or templates.
• Define colour areas and backgrounds with frame, shadow and transparency level options. Also allows transparency on images or the elimination of certain colours of an image.
• Acts independently over each and every element embedded on its templates.
• In/Out effects on each template.
• Automatic control with built-in timer (in, out, stay) for titles and graphics with scroll, move, fade and wipe effects amongst others.
• Allows reception, management and broadcasting of sms messages and RSS feeds. RSS feeds can be imported to show tickers and up-to-date information obtained from external servers through the vsndatacollector module.