Item Authoring > Using media > About the Surpass media library

About the Surpass media library

All of your subject’s media (images, videos, audio files, and source material) are stored in a subject-specific repository called the media library.

This article explains the basic functionality of the media library.

What can the media library contain?

NOTE: Assistive media is added at the item level rather than the subject level. For more information, read Adding assistive media.

The media library can contain the following types of media. Follow the links to learn more about each type.

Detail	Description
Source material	Files that candidates need to refer to when answering a question. Source material is added to the question stem and is not visible until candidates select a button. You can use the following media as source material: A DOCX file A PDF file A TXT file An XLSX file A ZIP file A custom HTML file (HTML source material) An approved webpage (URL source material) Images Audio Video For more information, read About source material.
Images	Static graphics that appear on the item. Images can be used to support question content or as decoration. Accepted file types are BMP, GIF, JPEG, PNG, and SVG (HTML subjects only). For more information, read About images.
Audio	Sound files that appear on the item. Audio can be used to support question content. Accepted file types are MP3 and WAV. For more information, read About audio.
Video	Audio-visual files that appear on the item. Video can be used to support question content. Accepted file types are AVI, MOV, MP4, MPEG, and WMV. For more information, read About video.

How to find the media library

In your subject, select Media Library to open the subject’s media library.

Adding media

There are three ways to add media to the media library.

Create Source Material

Use Create Source Material to create HTML source material and URL source material directly in the media library. For more information, read Creating HTML source material and Creating URL source material.

Import

Use Import to upload images, video, and audio files to the media library. For more information, read Importing files to the media library.

Import Shared Resource

IMPORTANT: You must import PDFs as a shared resource in order to use the Surpass PDF viewer. For more information, read About the Surpass PDF viewer.

NOTE: HTML packages, such as animations or simulations, must be imported as shared resources.

Use Import Shared Resource to upload media you want to use on multiple items in the same test. If these items are next to each other in the test, the source material stays open as candidates move through the items.

Shared resources must be added as a tool in Test Creation. For more information, read Adding tools to a test form.

Import Custom Question Type packages

IMPORTANT: The Custom Question ZIP files required to use this item type are not included in Surpass as standard. If you are interested in using this functionality, speak with your Surpass Account Manager. To learn more about custom question types, see Creating Custom Question Types.

Use Import Shared Resource to upload custom question type packages into the media library.

Finding media

By default, media in the media library are ordered alphabetically by title. There are three ways to find media in the media library.

Search

Enter a text string in the search field to filter the visible media items based on their title.

Order

Use the Order by menu to re-order the media list alphabetically by name (Title), chronologically by the most recently updated (Last Updated), or alphabetically by file type (Type).

Page

NOTE: The media library contains 100 media items per page.

Use the Left and Right arrows to navigate between different pages of the media library.

Managing media

Select a media item to reveal your available actions.

TIP: Hold Control or Shift to select multiple media items.

Replace

Select Replace to replace the selected media with media from your device. You cannot replace any media that is included in a live item.

Edit

Select Edit to edit the selected media. This option is only available for HTML and URL source material that is not included in a live item. For more information, read Creating HTML source material and Creating URL source material.

Duplicate

Select Duplicate to copy the selected media.

Download

Select Download to download the selected media to your device.

Delete

Select Delete to remove the selected media from the media library. You cannot delete any media that is included in a live item.

Group Media

Select Group Media to add images or PDFs to a group. Grouped media are always delivered together. Grouped images can be used with the high-fidelity image viewer and grouped PDFs can be used in the PDF viewer. For more information, read About the Surpass high-fidelity image viewer and About the Surpass PDF viewer.

Alt Text

Use the Alt Text field to provide a text alternative to media for screen readers. There is a maximum limit of 500 characters.