Convert from Extensis Portfolio Server to Lightroom?

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rachelreuben

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We've been using Extensis Portfolio Server with about a dozen clients for several years. We're very unhappy with it and need to switch to something new this summer. Lightroom was recommended to me. I can't find anything to tell me whether or not it can work the same as Extensis, where all the images and catalogs reside on one central server that everyone can access from their computers within Lightroom. Also, can Lightroom import all the metadata we've setup in Extensis?
 
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Rachael, Welcome to the forums. At present, Lr is pretty much single user, non-network in design and configuration. You can 'sort of' hack it into thinking otherwise, but it's not multi-user friendly.

As far as the Extensis metadata import capability, offhand I don't know. Perhaps one of our other members will. In the meantime, I'm going to refer you to another group with pretty broad familiarity on both of these topics. Try these folks: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/controlledvocabulary/.
 
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Echoing Brad's comments, Lightroom doesn't pretend to be a server-based system with multi user access and permissions, able to manage all types of media assets. It has its own virtues but isn't a life boat from Portfolio. Though he does hang out at the Controlled Vocabulary forum, contact Mark Anderson to sort out the Portfolio issues or go to the Extensis forum.

As for moving metadata across, you have a few routes depending on the file types:

- For JPEGs or TIFs, you can write directly from Portfolio to the files - Portfolio is very good at doing so, and lets you point fields to specific XMP addresses, but unfortunately limits its functionality to JPEG and TIF.

- For all types of files, and if you have the latest Portfolio and the Adobe Creative Suite, the best route is via Extensis's integration with Adobe's Version Cue. This lets you transfer metadata to Bridge, and thence to Lightroom.

- An alternative for raw files is to script the process which means making Portfolio generate sidecar files (I've done this for clients) or to another cataloguing application, which is then used as a stepping stone to Lightroom.

John
 
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DNG Files in Extensis Portfolio

I presume that the question of side cars is mute if I'd previously converted my RAW files to DNGs, right. I want to migrate to Lightroom from Portfolio and the only challenge I see is exporting the keywords, both those I've used and my keyword list. Any thoughts?
 
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It would have to be a scripting-based solution. You could probably script Portfolio so it uses exiftools to write the metadata directly into the DNGs.
 
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