While the Imaging Module has many features covered in our previous post, Illustrating the Imaging Module, this post will focus on some of the exciting new features introduced in Version 20.5.

Imaging Module Preferences

The Folder Expansion Preferences have been removed, and new buttons have been added to the Imaging Module instead. Three new preferences take their place.

• Default import folder
  You likely have a folder (often on the desktop) where you place images when saving or scanning them to your computer. When you set this folder up as your Default import folder, the system will automatically go to this folder first when you click ‘Import’ from the Imaging Module, making it easier for you to find the image you’re looking to add to the patient’s file.
• Default folder to import automatically
  This is the folder where you usually place multiple images for a patient. It could be the same as your default import folder. When ‘Import Automatically’ is clicked from the Imaging Module, this folder will populate in the File Explorer. We’ll discuss this in more detail below.
• PDF files always launch in a separate window
  If you are having issues with PDFs displaying in Open Dental, you might consider always viewing these in Adobe (or another PDF reader). Check this box, and you’ll be able to double-click the PDF to view it.  (Even though this was introduced in version 20.5, we have made it available back to version 20.3 – simply update to the latest build for your version to get this feature.)

New Buttons and Their Uses

Import works as it always has except now, if a default import folder is set in the Imaging Module Preferences, it will default to that folder.

Import Automatically is NEW! When clicked, the Automatic Import path will display directly under the secondary toolbar. The following buttons appear to the right:

It’s important to follow the steps when automatically importing images:

1. Select the correct image category/folder, or use a Mount. Learn more about using Mounts in our online manual.
2. Open the file location (Use the Go To button).
3. Click Start in the Imaging Module.
4. Then place images into the file location. Existing files will be ignored.
   • If you have the files saved to your Desktop or another location, you can use File Explorer to highlight the files, and drag them to your default folder for import.
5. Any images placed into the file location after the Start button is clicked will automatically appear in Open Dental.
   • Note: If a Mount is selected, images will be placed onto the Mount rather than saved as individual images.
6. After the import is complete, the files are automatically deleted from the import folder. This helps avoid the clutter of multiple files on your computer.
7. As an extra optional step, right-click on the newly imported files and click Info to add additional detail for future reference.