Using Media Mode
Media mode offers a streamlined, database-driven approach to Digital Asset Management. Only the folders browsed in Manage mode and that have been cataloged into the ACDSee database will be displayed in Media mode, offering a clutter-free view of photographs and videos managed by ACDSee.
The Media mode interface is divided into four separate functional areas:
Header Button Bar
Located directly below the main menu, the Header Button Bar contains three buttons described below:
- Refresh,
- Catalog, and
- Show Orphan Files.
Header Button Bar Options
| Refresh | ||
| Refreshes the My Folder pane's folder tree and the Display Area pane. | ||
| Catalog | ||
| Produces the Catalog Files dialog which allows thumbnails and file information to be added to the database without having to first browse folders. | ||
| Folders to Catalog | ||
| Subfolders | Enabled subfolders will also be added to the database. | |
| Add folder... | Click the Add Folder... button to browse for folders to be added to the database. | |
| Remove folder | Select a folder in the Folders to Catalog table and click the Remove folder button to remove the folder from the table. | |
| Import from Cataloged Files | ||
| EXIF and IPTC metadata | Enable to import EXIF and IPTC metadata. | |
| ACDSee Metadata, including categories, keywords, tagged, and collections | Enable to import ACDSee metadata, including categories, keywords, tagged, and collections. | |
| Face Data, including face outlines and names | Enable to import Face Data, including face outlines and names. Enabling the Face Data checkbox activates the ACDSee Face Data radio button and the Lightroom or Picasa Face Data radio button. | |
| ACDSee Face Data | Enable to import ACDSee Face Data. The ACDSee Face Data radio button is only activated if the Face Data, including face outlines and names ckeckbox is enabled. Enabling the ACDSee Face Data radio button disables the Lightroom or Picasa Face Data radio button. | |
| Lightroom or Picasa Face Data | Enable to import Lightroom or Picasa Face Data. The Lightroom or Picasa Face Data radio button is only activated if the Face Data, including face outlines and names ckeckbox is enabled. Enabling the Lightroom or Picasa Face Data radio button disables the Lightroom or Picasa Face Data radio button. | |
| File Formats | ||
| Catalog images | Only image file types will be cataloged | |
| Catalog images and videos | Both image file types and video file types will be imported | |
| Catalog all files | All files in the selected folder will be imported. | |
| Options | ||
| Build and include thumbnails in database | Enable to build thumbnails of the image or video files and include the thumbnails in the database. | |
| Include contents of archive files | Enable to include the contents of archived files. | |
| Create preview files for RAW images | Enable to create preview files for RAW images. | |
| Help | Opens the help file related to cataloging files in Media mode. | |
| Start | Starts the process of adding thumbnails and file information to the database. | |
| Cancel | Stops the process of adding thumbnails and file information to the database. | |
| Show Orphan Files | ||
| Displays missing files flagged as orphans. Orphans will be displayed in sepia. | ||
To use the Catalog Files tool:
- Click the Catalog button in the Header Button Bar located directly below the main menu.
- In the Catalog Files dialog, complete the options described in the above table.
- Click the Start button to automatically add thumbnails and file information to the database.
My Folders
Located along the left side of the screen, the My Folders pane is a simple folder tree populated with all folders browsed while in Manage mode. To add additional folders to the My Folders pane without leaving Media mode, use the Catalog Files tool described above.
The My Folders pane is hidden by default. To display the My Folders pane, click the Hide/Show icon 
in the lower left of the Display Area.
Clicking a folder containing media in the My Folder pane will filter the Display Area's contents to display the selected folder's media.
Display Area
The Display Area pane occupies the large central portion of the screen and is used primarily to display images and videos that can be filtered, sorted, or grouped.
Double-click any image or video to display them in full screen. Videos displayed in full screen can be played without leaving Media mode. Double click the full screen image or video to return to the grid view.
Right-click individual media assets to produce a context-sensitive help menu containing the following options:
- View: opens media asset in View mode.
- Develop: opens media asset in Develop mode.
- Edit: opens media asset in Edit mode.
- Rotate Left: press Ctrl + L to rotate left.
- Rotate Right: press Ctrl + R to rotate right.
- Show in File Explorer: opens to the media asset file's location in File Explorer.
Filter By
When enabled, the tools in the Filter By toolbar are very powerful for tailoring the results displayed in the Display Area pane by filtering the results based on specific metadata.
To filter media assets in the Display Area pane, choose from a combination of any of the following:
- Enable the Tagged checkbox to display only those images with a tag.
- Make a selection from the ratings to display media with a specific rating. The button to the left of the ratings lets you choose whether the results will include media with a Rating less than or equal, greater than or equal, or matching the chosen rating.
- Make a selection from the color labels to display media tagged with a specific label.
Changes made to the Filter By tools will affect the results displayed in the Group By pane.
Sort and Group
Located directly above the media asset and to the right-side of the Display Area pane, the Sort and Group drop downs are used to alter how the contents of the Display Area pane are presented. Unlike the Filter By field which refines the number of media assets displayed, the Sort and Group drop downs do not change the number of media assets displayed. Both the Sort and Group drop down results can be sorted forwards or backwards.
Selections made in the Group field will affect the results displayed in the Group By pane.
Group By
Located along the right side of the screen, the Group By pane lists groups of media assets based on the selection made in the Filter By drop down and the Group drop down. To display the Group By pane, click the Hide/Show icon 
in the lower right of the Display Area.
The Group By pane results can be grouped forward and backwards.
The blue bar within each group tab is representative of the number of media assets in the group.
Clicking a tab in the Group By pane changes the display in the Display Area pane to reflect the group selected.
Navigation Buttons in Media Mode
When viewing an image in full screen, clients can navigate between images by hovering over to the left or right side of the window and clicking on the navigational arrow that appears.
Deleting Images in Media Mode
There are three ways of deleting images in Media Mode:
- Right click on an image and select delete from the context menu
- Click on the Edit dropdown at the top of the screen and select Delete
- Click once on the image and press the Delete key