Understanding Associations
Associations are relations between assets that help structure your assets. Associations also allow easy and quick navigation (without searching) between assets.
The associations available are determined by the underlying data model. Associations can be non-directional, directional, or hierarchical. The Interplay MAM default data model uses hierarchical and directional associations.
• Hierarchical: Assets are associated in a superior and subordinate way. Hierarchical associations automatically establish the corresponding reverse association. Example: When asset C “contains” asset D, then automatically asset D “belongs to” asset C.
• Directional: Assets are associated in a sequential way. Directional associations automatically establish the corresponding reverse association. Example: When asset A “refers to” asset B, then automatically asset B “is referred to by” asset A.
The Interplay MAM default data model generally supports associations between assets of the same class (for example, between two videos) and between different classes (for example, between video and audio, or between video and basic sequence). The classes associated are determined by the underlying data model. The data model also determines the icons and labels that are used for the associations.
Associations can be created automatically by the system or manually in Interplay MAM Desktop and MediaCentral UX. Which associations can be edited and created manually depends on the system configuration. Once set, the references can be used in MediaCentral UX to navigate between associated assets.
In a default configuration, hierarchical associations are automatically created between assets in the following hierarchy lines: Series > Season > Episode > Episode Version, Commercial > Commercial Version, and Feature > Feature Version. You cannot create or delete associations for assets of these asset classes in the Associations pane.