Canto has released the latest version of its digital asset management (DAM) software, which has been specifically designed to integrate into creative workflow. Cumulus Version 7 is also said to offer significant performance gains and enhancements for security, Web-based DAM, automation and usability. The company further cites new features to promote increased asset control, faster production and more efficient collaboration.

The company adds that all Cumulus solutions now offer the ability to identify and manage the relationships between assets: For example, all the images referenced in QuarkXPress or InDesign layouts, pages contained in MS Word documents and even PowerPoint slides in presentations can be virtually connected to the assets that reference them. Cumulus 7 Enterprise can even catalog referenced files automatically when the layout files are cataloged.

Another new feature of Cumulus 7, Shared Collections, reduces search times and eliminates the risk of co-workers and clients using the wrong assets, as they immediately only see the asset records related to their current projects, without any searching. Users can now also label and rate asset records with visual tags that make it easy to see which assets have been approved, rejected, put on hold and which are new.

Other enhancements include "Actions" to automate workflow steps, new image conversion and processing features, creation of PPT presentations and printing improvements. Further, says Canto, Web services integration enables Cumulus 7 to become a standards-compliant participant, with minimal development efforts, in complex, Web-based application infrastructures.