Drop, charge, and lose the cords
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CNET Networks)
Pixelpipe, the multi-service file uploader and metadata management tool, has a new experimental Firefox extension out that should delight its regular users. It adds a sidebar to your browser where you can simply drag and drop digital media from your hard drive or things you find on the Web to upload directly to your Pixelpipe account.
Once you've picked all the items you want to upload, you hit a single button and it sends it off to Pixelpipe, which will instantly distribute it to all the services you have turned on by default. These can't be edited right from the sidebar, but there's a quick shortcut button that will take you to your settings page where you can turn certain services on or off.
You can also pick the privacy level of the upload to Pixelpipe itself, which can limit who is able to see what you've uploaded based on your relationship with them.
If you're a heavy Pixelpipe user this is definitely worth a download. I only hope that in future versions it will let you toggle the services you want on and off from the sidebar itself, and without the user having to visit the site. I'd also like to see it add a little microblogging tool like it has on the site, so you could use it to send out a short message or blog post to multiple services.
Previously: Pixelpipe lets you easily mass distribute media
Ever been stuck waiting, and waiting, and waiting some more for photos to upload? Short of getting a faster connection there's not much you can do with big image files. You can go the software route, and download something free and simple like Paint.net to do the resizing pre-upload, but you don't always have time to do this with every shot, and if you're like me you're kind of lazy.
Enter Shrunked, a great new extension for Firefox. It lets you resize a photo before uploading it. It works anywhere that doesn't use a Java applet or snazzy Flash uploader (so no Facebook or Flickr via their multi-image uploaders). When the extension detects that you're trying to upload photos it gives you the option to resize them to one of three presets, along with a custom size where you can set the width or height while keeping the aspect ratio the same.
There are several uses for this, with one of the best ones being profile photos for social networks. Most of these sites have resizing tools on the server side that will do the same thing, but again if you're on a slow connection, waiting for that 5MB or 6MB file to get there can be a drag.
Shrunked resizes your photos before you upload them--saving you some time and the need to use unnecessary software.
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Google's latest version of its software-based Picasa uploader for Mac has a handy new trick up its sleeve. It now lets you download entire albums back to your computer, making it a simple tool for backing up large photo libraries.
The Windows and Linux version of Picasa have allowed you to do this for some time, but seeing as Mac users do not (yet) have a version of Picasa to call their own, this is a far better option than downloading the originals one at a time from the Web, or having to use third-party programs.
I gave it a spin this morning, and it's incredibly easy to pull in several albums one after another. The one thing it cannot do, however, is grab your videos; Google says that's coming in a later release.
Google is widely expected to release a Mac version of Picasa at next year's MacWorld Expo, taking place in early January.
See also: Picasa Web Albums Assistant 0.3
Picasa's Web albums uploader has a new option to download entire albums, something users of the PC program have been able to do for a while now.
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Much like Google Video's software uploader, YouTube now has a multifile uploader of its own. While you can still upload up to 100 MB files through YouTube's Web interface, having installed the small piece of Windows software (Mac version coming soon), YouTubers are now able upload several video files at once, at up to 1GB a pop, which is 10x the size of the standard uploader. Interestingly enough, you still have to go through a Web interface, even with the software installed on your machine. The processing is still (thankfully) done on YouTube's servers, which the company says can take up to a half hour to crunch the larger or more complex video files.
Like the single file uploader, the multivideo iteration lets you change tags and edit the options of each video, although there are no batch functions, which is slightly disappointing. Also disappointing is that despite the bump in size limitations, Google is still capping videos to 10 minutes, although if you're making original content, you can probably finagle a director account, or other specialty classification pretty easily, which doesn't have such restrictions.
[via Read/WriteWeb]
Upload multiple video files at a time with YouTube's new multifile video uploader.
(Credit: CNET Networks)
Foldr Monitr interface
(Credit: RebelEOS.com)Photo sharing sites like Flickr, Webshots (a CNET affiliate), Zoomr, SmugMug, and others provide a cheap (usually free) and easy way for users to share their digital pics with friends, family, or the site communities at large. There's always a slight delay, however, between downloading pictures from your camera or cell phone and actually getting them published to those sites. If you're a Flickr user, you can eliminate that delay completely with Foldr Monitr, a free utility that automatically uploads images from specified folders on your hard drive to your Flickr account.
Foldr Monitr works nearly as simply and effectively as its description promises. After installing and running the app, you'll need to "authenticate" Foldr Monitr with your Flickr account. Clicking the "Authenticate" button in the Foldr Monitr interface will load the Flickr authorization page, launching your default Web browser if it's not already running. After authenticating Foldr Monitr on the Flickr Web site, you're not finished. Click the "Finish Authentication" button in the Foldr Monitr interface to complete your login. ... Read more
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CNET Networks)
If you maintain a Web site or blog, you need a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) client. Mainly used for uploading and downloading files to and from a Web server, FTP clients can also download obscure files and documents from any number of servers around the world. The good ones make the process of uploading and downloading fast and painless with features that eliminate unnecessary steps and offer common security protocols.
I've tried a number of different clients and found many that work quite nicely. But the things I look for in an FTP client, like drag-and-drop support and user friendly bookmark management might not be as high on your priority list. What's most important is finding one that offers the best features for your specific needs.... Read more
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CNET Networks)
The number and quality of online photo-sharing sites, along with their burgeoning communities, have been growing exponentially ever since mainstream consumers embraced digital photography.
Flickr, Picasa, Snapfish, 23HQ, Zoomr, and Webshots (disclaimer: Webshots is owned by CNET Networks) are only a handful of the free sites that let you publish your own pics and explore other photographers' creations.
Once you've established your digital presence on a photo-sharing site, you may find yourself uploading hundreds, if not thousands, of photos to share with friends and family. While the sites have powerful technology to display, categorize, and host your images, they're not designed for batch uploading and downloading; that's where third-party plug-ins and add-ons can come in handy.
Yesterday, I took a look at Migratr, a free tool created by Alexander Lucas that can download all of your images from one site and then automatically upload them to another.
What do you use to upload and download photos from your favorite online-photo site? And what's your favorite photo-sharing Web site? Tell me about it in the comments.
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