Picasa now channels everything to Google+

[inlawbiker]

I've been a semi-happy Picasa user for a number of years now but I'm becoming increasingly annoyed and disturbed with them. With each new update of Picasa, the Share and Publish to Picasaweb functions have been replaced by Google+ sharing.

This is all part of the natual evolution of Google as they tie their services together, I know. But this latest change has got me angry. There's no way to publish from Picasa to Picasaweb anymore, the button has been replaced by "Share in Google+" - which is fine. Whatever.

So I went directly to Picasaweb in my brower, created a new private album, uploaded the images and sent an invite to my private email contacts. I specifically clicked "Share in email only." That worked as normal. EXCEPT that the photos were also shared on my Google+ profile!

I don't understand the point of creating a private album that's automatically shared with my Google+ "Circles" or whatever they call my contacts there.

Am I doing this wrong or has anybody else noticed this? It looks like it's finally time to spring for Smugmug.

 

[inlawbiker]

I figured out a little more, for anybody interested.

• If you have a Google+ account your Picasa application will automatically change from "Share with Picasaweb" to "Share with Google+"

• If you make an album in Picasaweb (via browser, not the application) and upload photos, it will publish them to Google+. Even if it's a private web album.

• The only way to get rid of Google+ in Picasa and regain the ability to publish from Picasa directly to Picasaweb via the application is to Downgrade from Google+ or delete your account.

"Downgrade" from Google+ means disable Google+ and remove all of your posts, +1's and etc. You can do that via the process described here.

http://support.google.com/plus/bin/answer.py?hl=en&topic=1347963&answer=1044503

Hope this helps somebody out there.

 

[AnandaSim]

I haven't investigated it fully - just some perceptions....

• If you have a Google+ account your Picasa application will automatically change from "Share with Picasaweb" to "Share with Google+"

Yes

• If you make an album in Picasaweb (via browser, not the application) and upload photos, it will publish them to Google+. Even if it's a private web album.

No. Google+ is the social networking umbrella which has some core components and will cover many add-on services - some of them legacy. For example, they are hijacking Google Reader service and Picasa service.

They are using Picasa as the data store. And they overlay webpages from Google+ over this data store.

Since Google wants to create a single point profile and a single point logon, all these Google services will appear in your Google+ Profile.

You can check out as a member of the public what your own profile looks like from your Google Profile page - there is a link there to check yourself out without being yourself.

Since this is how they think, every album you have in Picasaweb is listed as an album you have to you when you look at your property.

A picasaweb album has I think three privacy settings:

• public to all
• visible to people you tell a secret URL tail to
• private

Google+ offers I think one more option

• visible to selected people (in a Circle or individuals)

If you set your album as private in Picasaweb or during the Picasa desktop client upload screen or in Google+ web interface, I do not think anyone else can see the album.

Do that and check it out for yourself - you can use different computers or different browsers to log in and check this.

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Ananda
http://www.dpreview.com/articles/6861540877/a-compilation-of-tips-for-beginners
http://anandasim.blogspot.com/
http://gplus.to/anandasim

'Enjoy Diversity - Live a Little or a Lot'

 

[inlawbiker]

A picasaweb album has I think three privacy settings:

• public to all
• visible to people you tell a secret URL tail to
• private

Google+ offers I think one more option

• visible to selected people (in a Circle or individuals)

If you set your album as private in Picasaweb or during the Picasa desktop client upload screen or in Google+ web interface, I do not think anyone else can see the album.

Thanks for the feedback. When I created the new Picasaweb album I didn't select any privacy options. These may well exist somewhere but I didn't see them. I chose to share via email only.

I found out that the album was shared among my circles when I started getting email alerts that there were comments made. So they were definitely being seen.

It's entirely possible that there's a setting somewhere to avoid this but I'll never find it because I deleted my Google+ account. Actually they call this "downgrading." According to the Picasaweb help forums this is the only way to regain your integration between Picasa and Picasaweb, even if you're a paid Picacaweb user.

 

[AnandaSim]

A picasaweb album has I think three privacy settings:

• public to all
• visible to people you tell a secret URL tail to
• private

Thanks for the feedback. When I created the new Picasaweb album I didn't select any privacy options. These may well exist somewhere but I didn't see them. I chose to share via email only.

You must select one of the privacy options. The album cannot be created without a privacy option.

However, whether Google has messed up their screens for Picasa desktop client or their webpages, I have to look again.

In this webpage

http://support.google.com/picasa/bin/answer.py?hl=en&topic=1751920&p=picasa_get_started&answer=39500

They show Number 4, a privacy option. It is missing on my current desktop client. If I don't put any circles or individuals in Number 6, my album is private.

I will have a look around at their other screens.....

In the meantime, you can pre-create an empty album in
https://picasaweb.google.com/
and on the top right corner of the album specify "private"
Then use Picasa desktop client to upload.

I found out that the album was shared among my circles when I started getting email alerts that there were comments made. So they were definitely being seen.

It's entirely possible that there's a setting somewhere to avoid this but I'll never find it because I deleted my Google+ account. Actually they call this "downgrading." According to the Picasaweb help forums this is the only way to regain your integration between Picasa and Picasaweb, even if you're a paid Picacaweb user.

--



Ananda
http://www.dpreview.com/articles/6861540877/a-compilation-of-tips-for-beginners
http://anandasim.blogspot.com/
http://gplus.to/anandasim

'Enjoy Diversity - Live a Little or a Lot'

 

[ZorSy]

I don't have any issues with Google+. It would link my public albums (if any) to my name/profile but I make sure albums are marked as private and they stay like that, invisible to public - verified from work computer. Of course, if you log in Google+ (the same as with Picasaweb albums), it's all revealed - but only to you. Now, I agree that Google+ assumes people from your circle are flagged as "anyone with the link" as you accepted them as "friends" (and that is exactly how FB works) so mif you have anyone in your circle you would like to "exclude" you have to re-flag privacy on album inside Google+ (and this is the annoying bit I agree).

I like the interface for albums in Google+ better as makes nicer layout and magnifies image as you move pointer over. This is handy for large albums with lots of images as you can check the content easier and I wish Picasaweb albums incorporate this feature, which iit does not (so when I send a link to someone to check private album, unless they have a profile through Google+, they get a "standrad" album view with small thumbs.

 

[glasswave]

inlawbiker wrote:

 

[ScottyNV]

If you want any kind of security, you NEED to get off of web/cloud-based systems and back onto good old-fashioned standalone email etc, administered on your OWN PRIVATE computer!

I have been saying this for years, but nobody would listen.. now the proof is showing and you all wonder why you have gaping security holes?!

'nuff said.
S.
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beam me up captain, there's no intelligent life down here!