Simian Introduces New Comparison Capability to Its Project Versioning Tool

Which cut worked better, Version 2 or Version 3? How about that transition – did it flow better in Version 3, or Version 4? And that matte that looked a little off, did it work right in Version 6 or was it in Version 12? 

Comparing edits, mixes, effects, graphics or any element of an edit or scene has always been a difficult task, made more so when toggling back and forth between players or screens.

Now Simian, the video sharing and collaboration platform, has introduced a feature to its Projects tool that makes doing it much easier.

In an update to Projects’ Versioning capability, Simian users can now upload multiple variations of a video file into the same file stack – a feature available for all file types – and, using the Compare feature on the special Versions pull down menu, they can compare any two of the versions side by side on the same screen.

“Instead of uploading the multiple versions of a file into a folder and differentiating them via naming, you can upload and manage versions in the same stack, giving you and collaborators more control during post production and making it easier for clients to compare versions,” says Brian Atton, Simian Chief Operating Officer.

“And you can now do a side-by-side comparison of two versions of a file,” adds Jay Brooks, Simian Chief Technical Officer. “You can have unlimited versions of a file and can compare any two at one time. When you select the compare feature and indicate which files you want to compare, they’ll open in dual players where you can scroll through the two timelines, and play or mute the volumes.” Side-by-side comparison is available for both video and image files, Brooks notes.

And individual versions within the folder, or even the entire Project folder itself, can be sent to clients or colleagues for easy review and comment. From the Manage Versions menu, users can add a new version to a file, remove a version from a file, sort versions, merge files into a version record and send version record files.

When working in the Projects section of Simian users can access a wide range of capabilities, from creating and sharing presentation folders to archiving projects to collaborating with comments, annotations and approvals to enabling its 360° / VR player. 

"Adding file versioning and comparison is part of our ongoing effort to keep making the Projects functions in Simian better and better,” says Atton. “It’s a simple feature that adds a tremendous amount of ease and functionality to how our users and their clients will review video or images.” 

For more on Simian’s Project Versioning comparison features, view its Knowledge Base article here.