Organize your digital media for free with Google Picasa!

Free Software: Picasa

Homepage: http://picasa.google.com

Developer: Google

I love my digital camera. Over the last few years, I have saved approximately twenty-thousand pictures on my hard drive! I’ve done a good job of organizing the pictures through the years, but only a few of the pictures are named. There are other pictures hidden around my computer, and I’m certain that all of the pictures haven’t been properly archived to CD. Fortunately, Google is making all of those tasks easier with Picasa, their free digital media tool!

Cleaning up the mess

Picasa helps to organize the scattered group of digital images on your computer into a single view. Picasa quickly scanned my hard drive and located lost pictures that had been accidentally copied into a temporary folder. All pictures can be displayed by date, name, or caption, and there’s even a gold star option to mark the pictures that are special or noteworthy.

Editing without the drama

Picasa includes a built-in editor that allows for basic cropping and straightening, or the removal of redeye. I’ve used Picasa’s auto-contrast and auto-color functions, but there are also manual options for perfectly tweaking your pictures.

Picasa’s editing functions are easy to use, and most effects can be visually previewed and selected with a single mouse-click.

Picture sharing without the middleman

If you take a lot of digital pictures, then you know that sharing your photos can often be cumbersome. Online picture sharing usually involves drive storage, bandwidth usage, HTML coding, or extensive uploading. Fortunately, Picasa includes a sister-service called Hello. Hello is an ingenious instant messenger for picture sharing, allowing you to share pictures as if your friend is sitting next to you. An online chat function allows for real-time conversations, and a single Picasa button makes it a snap to select interesting photos for your Hello conversations. Hello is a separate application from Picasa, so your friends only need to load Hello to join in the fun!

Picasa also provides a one-click blogging button that will send your selected pictures directly to your Google Blogger account.

Taking the pain out of printing

If you’ve ever tried printing your own digital pictures, then you know how difficult it can be to find the perfect printer settings. Picasa’s print layout and preview settings are simple and clear, and the final results can be displayed before expensive printer ink and photo paper is used.

If you don’t have a printer, then Picasa can automatically send your pictures to some of the most popular online printing services. Some of the options may include printing pictures around the corner at a popular retail outlet! I’m going to use Picasa to create some great photo calendars and coffee mugs for friends and family this holiday season.

Saving your memories

As someone who lives in a hurricane-rich part of the world, I can appreciate the importance of pictures. When planning for disaster, your health, your family documents, and your pictures are three of the most important things to consider. Your family documents can usually be replaced, but your pictures are usually impossible to recover. Once they’re gone, they’re gone forever.

Fortunately, Picasa includes a simple method to backup your pictures to CD or DVD, and Picasa can tag the photos that haven’t been included in the latest backup. There’s also a one-click export option that can save pictures to an external network directory or USB flash drive for safe-keeping.

Picasa makes it easy to look good

Even if you aren’t the creative-type, Picasa makes it easy to turn your pictures into works of art. A built-in movie maker can create a film with your choice of pictures. Picasa also includes a slideshow builder to create CDs of picture displays. Mp3 audio can be added to the slideshow as a narrative, or your favorite music can act as a backdrop. There’s also a free screen saver creation tool for displaying your favorite photos when you’re not using your computer.

Picasa can also create posters or picture collages of your favorite shots for some unique display options.

Final Thoughts

Picasa can be downloaded for free from Google. The requirements are very minimal, although they are for Windows-based systems only. Download Picasa, and manage your digital photographs in ways you never thought possible!