Picasa, Google’s photo manager program, has finally been released for Mac OS X. This is absolutely great news for people like me, who despise iPhoto. iPhoto is ridiculously slow and inefficient in my experience, and (like a lot of other things on OS X) doesn’t really offer a lot of options on how behind-the-scenes organization will take place, so photos get hidden in big file trees, ending with the ‘Roll’, which is completely nondescript and unhelpful when looking for files. More recent versions of iPhoto are even worse, packing all of the photos into a single pseudofile: like a .app, it is actually a folder that has been given a file extention. This means that its still relatively easy to access your photos, but it makes actions like backing up photos or accessing them from other programs very difficult. In short, I don’t like iPhoto.
However, up until now, there haven’t really been any other options. Microsoft doesn’t really offer a built-in method of photo organization (or at least, they didn’t before Windows 7, which uses special ‘Library’ folders that can be used for photo organization, I think), so there are lots of programs out there for Windows photo organization (like Picasa). Since iPhoto is pre-installed on every Mac, nobody has really bothered to write up an alternative photo manager.
Picasa was my photo manager of choice on Windows, has traditionally been only for Windows and (infuriatingly) Linux. This has never made sense to me. Obviously, this is a very cross-platform application if it can be run on Windows and Linux, so how hard could it be to get it running on a Mac? Apparently very hard, as Picasa 3 for Mac is only in Beta at this point, and it has taken Google this long to get that far.
Anyway, the application itself is very nice. I like it a lot more than iPhoto for many reasons, but I miss some things from iPhoto. For one thing, Picasa is not really a photo manager as much as a picture manager. When you launch it, it scans your whole home folder looking for images, and displays them all, categorized by folder. It tries to sort the folders by date, but it seems to have a very tough time doing this (most of the years assigned to my folders are a year or two off, while some are dated 1990 and as far back as 1969…). I want a way to exclude folders entirely from its scan, but I have not found a way to do this yet. To make up for this lacking feature, Picasa categorizes its sources and allows you to minimize the ones you don’t want to see (for example, I have Albums, iPhoto Library, and one other specific folder opened, but the main folder hierarchies are minimized, because they add a lot of noise).
Picasa doesn’t really organize at all behind the scenes, it seems to just want to display the pictures as it finds them on your machine, and leave the organization to the user. I like this more than iPhoto, because it gives me complete control over organization and makes things a lot easier to find (inside the Pictures/Picasa folder that I made, I make a specific folder for each photo shoot, and then inside that, one folder for each camera or lens used). Picasa neatly recognizes my organizational system and displays the shoot folder as a category in the sidebar, with the folders under it.
One thing I don’t like so far is that Picasa doesn’t seem that much more efficient than iPhoto. It certainly loads faster, opening almost as soon as I launch it, while iPhoto can take up to 30 seconds to get to a usable state, and even longer to quit. However, both applications use a lot of resources on my machine, if either is running in the background my fans start going nuts before long. Picasa is, however, still only a beta, so it’s very likely that it will become better soon.
Overall, I really like Picasa, a lot more than iPhoto, and I’d recommend it to anybody who’s as fed up with iPhoto as I am.
«Microsoft doesn’t really offer a built-in method of photo organization (or at least, they didn’t before Windows 7, which uses special ‘Library’ folders that can be used for photo organization, I think),»
…not quite. Windows Vista introduced Windows Photo Gallery, and Microsoft has since rebranded/upgraded/whatever that to Windows Live Photo Gallery.
I’m sure you’ve figured out by now how to exclude folders from Picasa, but just in case you haven’t: Tools > Folder Manager
I’m so glad Picasa is finally available for Mac!
Its so good to hear of someone trashing Apple’s ridiculous iPhoto! It is such a piece of crap. It offers nothing serious at all for the person who is looking for a program that will at least be helpful to a certain degree. Its an awful toy and its a shame that Apple is pushing all their silly “i” stuff, iChat, iMovie, iWeb, iWhatever. All of those things offer nothing but smoke and mirrors and fluff. And people are calling them great? They’re horrible. All of them. I used to use Windows and recently have been using Macs and I was horrified to discover that all of Apple’s stuff is silly. They’re toys with not depth at all. There are no serious choices in the Mac software world at all. And anyone who has been mired in Apple land for the past ten years or so should discover that they are living in a little land of shoddy simple child-like apps which do very litte but have a massive amount of stylization done simply to the appearence of their products. I can tell you now that even though Apple producs look sleek on the outside, they are vapid and lifeless inside. I can’t belive I’m saying this, cause I always felt jerked around by Microsoft, but now that i’ve examined the other side, the world of windows and such, though it may be clumsy and microsoft quite skilled at ignoring their customers as best as they possibly can, the world of software that is available by the many different software producers in side the windows world offers a much deeper and richer and more prodctive world and ways of getting stuff done on a computer than Mac, and its cheaper than Mac too. In Mac world a product that is barely freeware in windows world is proudly touted in the Mac world as practically been brought down to earth by gods and worth the ridiculous price of $130, or $250. That is unbelievable. In windows world those silly programs would be ten or twenty dollars or not much at all. And their windows equilivant would be better cause it is competing so much with all the other windows developers. And one more thing, in windows world people are used to being handed a software program that gets something specific done and dont yammer and pout and get mad that they may need to find more than one software program and use several programs to do different things and act upon whatever their working on in manner that they have to think up to get whatever their task at hand is, to get it done. Some is better than none in windows world, cause we can find something else to help with the rest. And we can get the work done. In Apple world everyone simply sits around with baited breath congratulating each other that they are so unbelievbaly smarter to be spending much too much money on things that barly ratchet it up a notch…but, it sure looks pretty. And with all those dark colors and user interfaces that look like the buttons were just flung onto the screen and whereever the landed that was where they stuck, plus the chrome looking sheen and shine and rounded curves of it all, one might not realize that is all thats really there right now. Apple pleople, wake up! You’re being taken for a ride. You really don’t have anything like the options in windows world, and what you have, performance wise, is lame when you compare even the freeware in windows world with the bloated prices in apple world. You have to toughen up in windows world though, it won’t all be laid out for you like a plate of several tasty looking sushi lying upon it all prettily arranged. In windows world you have to endure the crushing weight of microsofts complete and utter distain for its customers and anything at all resembling the idea that they might be listening to any of their needs at all and developing things to help them. They will make what they want, when they want, and not a moment before, and even then it wont be right and will be irratating to us and they never even notice. So we fight it out and its the many people who can write software in windows world that make up for this. But, in Apple world you are , and scrape to the man, the big jobs man, and think he is god. and that apple is god. and you must be gods too cause you are permitted to be with the god and his godlike company. but, in fact, you are being conned. conned like you really couldn’t belive. i can’t say that either world is that great for people with computers who would like to use them in a pleasing way and in wich they feel respected. But, apple people, at least wake up and realized, you’re being ripped off. you’re paying too much for too little and you’ve been in apple world so long you don’t even know that just beyond the tender borders of your serene land of iPods, and iMbetters, and the iGreen lawns and terraces of your Illustrator bliss pantone colors there are people doing more on their computers, paying less, and not having to wait nearly as long as you do for some real help, meaning some real programs. they may be forced to use their mind to figure out that you can use one program to edit your image or data or whatever you have to do, and you do part of it in one program, then you sit down and figure out what else needs to be done to it and you go and find other programs that will do other pieces, till you suddenly realize you know three programs, and you can do your task easily, and you’re kind of proud of yourself for figuring that out and it gives you a sense of easy sway sensibility, that you can take your top hat and cane, tattered though they may be, and go out and about in the world and no matter what you encounter in windows world, you will know how to handle whatever is thrown at you, cause you’ve been dodging all kinds of trash from all angles from many software producters for so many years now that you’re still in shape, you can still swagger down to shareware town with a few dollars in your pocket and feel pretty good you’ll score tonight, and even if not, there’s always everybodys first AND last stop, good time Freeware’s little place where you know that at least even if you don’t get what you hoped for, you’ll get a least a little piece of what you were looking for.
Apple people, while you’re pouting about, in windows world we’re getting things done faster and cheaper and better than you are right now. You’re being taken for a ride and you don’t realize it yet. But, software wise, you are clearly five to seven years behind the windows world in the abilities of your applications on a Mac. And you have no other recourse but to wait for Apple to part its shimmering curtains of many thrilling shades of hues. I know that can be fun too. Everybody loves a show. But, oh, how can I say this without being to, spot-on, but you guys should realize you’ve been gone to the show for a very long time. Its okay to go and enjoy it, but you’ve never left and time has marched on here in the outside world. You must leave that hypnotizing show that has been dazzling you for so so very long, the circus has been in town far too long and we miss you. We may be just computer cousins, but we’re worried now. We love you! Hurry home! We’re all computer people, just some of us got into different sects and now yours seems to be ruled by such a cult of personality that you don’t even know whats going on any more.
Call soon! (and, call’s aren’t really 99 cents on your iPods, or have to be made on $500 rounded-edge phones that cost $150 a month. We have phones here too, and I think they have one over here now that you, believe it or not, can actually use to TALK into, instead of just type on in short sentences. On our phones we can now speak to each other directly and get our work done. Saves TONS of time. We love it. Come, see, won’t you? You’ll be full of wonder and marvel and amazement. I hope you will recongize me wen you see me, I’m older, and wiser. We’ll get you to a good place that specializes in these kinds of things, you’ll be okay honey, eventually, really, you will. Now try, try to hold on to just a little of your cash tonight, don’t spend it all at the App store again sweetie, I don’t think we can send any more money, we stil have little ones at home that need food and clothing. We love you darlin, but, if you won’t let us help you, we can’t keep watching you do this to your wallets, and your computer land pride. so, call, tell us you’re okay. but, we just can’t watch this much more, try not to waste your whole paycheck this week at the apple store. try, i know its hard, but i can’t bear another time like when you disappeared and found you all huddled over your Powerbook trying to hand-copy files from one folder to another cause that was the only way that iItunes would let you do it. Stupid huh? But, for now, just call, tell us that you’ve not o-deed on Lepords and Tigers and Wi-Fi. Just call us honey, we love you.
@Thank you!: what a freaking large rant you posted, hahaha!!! I almost can’t believe I just read the whole thing, but you put a smile on my face 😉
(written on a mac b.t.w.)
I use both Picassa and Flickr for sharing photos over the internet but i use Flickr more often than Picassa.,`’
I posted about this earlier on my own web page. Your article has really given me some food for thought, I feel you’ve gotten made many very intriguing points. I wish I’d found it earlier, previous to writing my own post.