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ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS2
User Guide
Metadata in Bridge
About metadata
Metadata
is information about the file, such as its author, resolution, color space, copyright, and keywords applied
to it. You can use metadata to streamline your workflow and organize your files. This information is stored in a
standardized way using the Extensible Metadata Platform (XMP) standard on which Adobe Bridge and the Adobe
Creative Suite applications are built. XMP is built on XML, and in most cases the information is stored in the file so
that it isn’t lost. If it is not possible to store the information in the file itself, XMP metadata is stored in a separate file
called a
sidecar file
.
Many of the powerful Bridge features that allow you to organize, search, and keep track of your files and versions
depend on XMP metadata in your files. Bridge provides two ways of working with metadata: through the Bridge
Metadata panel and through the File Info dialog box. These methods provide different views into the XMP metadata
stored in the file. In some cases, multiple views may exist for the same property; for example, a property may be
labeled Author in one view and Creator in another, but both refer to the same underlying property. Even if you
customize these views for specific workflows, they remain standardized through XMP. The Advanced view in the
File Info dialog box displays the fundamental values being stored.
Metadata that is stored in other formats, such as EXIF, IPTC (IIM), GPS, and TIFF, is synchronized and described
with XMP so that it can be more easily viewed and managed. Other applications and features (for example, Adobe
Version Cue) also use XMP to communicate and store information such as version comments. For instance, when
you save a file in Version Cue, you might add the comment that you rotated the file when you worked on it. Later on,
you could use Bridge to navigate to that Version Cue project and search for the term “rotate” to locate that file.
In most cases the metadata remains with the file even when the file format changes, for example, from PSD to JPG.
Metadata is also retained when those files are placed in an Adobe InDesign layout.
You can use the XMP Software Development Kit to customize the creation, processing, and interchange of metadata.
For example, you can use the XMP SDK to add fields to the File Info dialog box. More information on XMP and the
XMP SDK is available from the Adobe Solutions Network (
www.adobe.com/xmp
).
About the Metadata panel in Bridge
From the Metadata panel, you can view and edit the metadata for selected files, use metadata to search for files, and
use templates to append and replace metadata. Metadata preserves information about the contents, copyright status,
origin, and history of documents. Version Cue uses metadata to manage files.
You can specify the types of metadata displayed in the Metadata panel.
Note:
If you have applied metadata to an Adobe Acrobat® PDF file, some keywords may not appear; however, these
keywords are still attached to the PDF file.
Depending on the selected file, the following types of metadata appear in the Bridge Metadata panel:
File Properties
Describes the characteristics of the file, including the size, creation date, and modification date.
IPTC Core
Displays editable metadata. You can add captions to your files as well as copyright information. IPTC
Core is a new specification that was approved by IPTC (International Press Telecommunications Council) in
October 2004. It differs from the older IPTC (IIM, legacy) in that new properties have been added, some property
names have changed, and some properties have been deleted. You can display the older IPTC (IIM, legacy) metadata
by selecting it from the Metadata options in the Preferences dialog box.