Pictures Overview
SapphireOne offers a comprehensive Pictures function, accessible via Workbook > General > Pictures, designed for the global management of digital images and their association with individual records. When utilised within the Workbook, this feature displays all pictures linked to records within the data file, allowing users to efficiently view and manage these images in bulk.
For all relevant inquiries, the Pictures function is also accessible from the pages drop-down menu.
The Pictures function enables users to view a comprehensive list of all images currently stored in the data file. This standard list provides users with the ability to sort, search, and find images using various options. The standard columns are as follows.
- Name: Each image is assigned a name by SapphireOne.
- Order: Displays the sequence in which images are entered into SapphireOne.
- Link Table: Shows the table to which the pictures are linked within SapphireOne.
- Link ID Displays the individual ID within the table.
- Picture Display: The image itself is displayed in this column.
- Tags: Images can be grouped utilising tags if required.
- Size: Indicates the file size of the image.
If your organisation plans to store a substantial number of images, such as inventory images, it is important to consider whether these images should be encoded directly into the data file or stored separately. Additional information on this can be found at Utilities > Controls > Master Defaults – System Page.
Users can modify, view, or delete image records once they are selected from the list.
The key to successful image optimisation for performance is finding the perfect balance between the lowest file size and acceptable image quality. There are three things that play a huge role in image optimisation:
Image File Format
For most website owners, the three image file formats that matter the most are JPEG, PNG, and GIF. Choosing the right file type is crucial in image optimisation. To simplify things, JPEGs are ideal for photos or images with lots of colors, PNGs are recommended for simple images or transparent images, and GIFs are suitable for animated images only. PNG images are uncompressed, making them higher-quality, but also much larger in file size. JPEGs are a compressed file format that slightly reduces image quality to provide a significantly smaller file size. GIFs only use 256 colors along with lossless compression, making them the best choice for animated images.
Compression
Image compression plays a significant role in image optimisation. Various types and levels of image compression are available, and the settings for each will depend on the image compression tool you use. Most image editing tools such as Adobe Photoshop, ON1 Photo, GIMP, Affinity Photo, among others, have built-in image compression features. You can also save images normally and use web tools such as TinyPNG or JPEGmini to compress images before uploading them to SapphireOne. Although they require some manual effort, these two methods allow you to compress images efficiently.
Image Dimensions
When you import a photo from your phone or a digital camera, it usually has a high resolution and large file dimensions (height and width). These photos typically have a resolution of 300 DPI and dimensions starting from 2000 pixels or more. Although high-quality photos are perfect for print or desktop publishing, their dimensions can still be optimised. Reducing the image dimensions can significantly decrease image file size. You can resize images easily using image editing software on your computer.
To illustrate the impact of image optimization, let’s consider an example. We optimized a photo with a resolution of 300 DPI and image dimensions of 4900 x 3200 pixels. The original file size was 1.8 MB. We selected the JPEG format for higher compression and adjusted the dimensions to 1200 x 795 pixels. The resulting file size was reduced to just 103 KB. That’s a remarkable 94% reduction in file size from the original.
Pictures Detail Page
Images can be opened for viewing or modification, either individually or as a subset. The following functionalities are provided:
- Sequence: The sequence number assigned by SapphireOne.
- Link To: The record to which the image is currently assigned.
- Order: Users can influence the image’s sort order by assigning an order number.
- Name: A relevant name for the image.
- Tag: A tag assigned to group the image.
- Notes: Relevant notes pertaining to the image.
- Load Image Button: Opens a dialogue to replace the current image.
Dictation and Speech to Text Overview
SapphireOne’s Dictation (MacOS) and Speech to Text (Windows) functionalities revolutionise data entry. These features are available for any data entry field and all inquiry screens within SapphireOne. For instance, when a user makes a call via the SapphireOne Softphone, SapphireOne automatically timestamps the contact and phone number. Post-call, users can dictate notes directly into the CRM contact memo field in relation to the stamp.
This functionality is applicable across all Data Entry screens. As examples, when entering a Vendor Invoice (VI), users can dictate memos directly. Similarly, additional lines can be added to the General Ledger account, with each line having a unique memo field. After an employee interview, users can efficiently dictate notes.
Speech to Text and Dictation are powerful tools that SapphireOne and its clients use daily, significantly saving time.
This structured approach ensures that users can effectively manage and organise images within SapphireOne, enhancing both accessibility and efficiency.
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