GeekSugar

Charming Google Chrome Ad Shows "the Web Is What You Make It"

Kristy Korcz — Thu, 05 May 2011 09:45:58 PDT

Mother's Day is on Sunday, but I can't help but share this adorable and charming ad for Google Chrome. Passed on to me by Sugar member Calamari, this ad shows that you can use Chrome, Picasa, and Gmail to create a 21st century baby book that your kids can (safely!) read when they're older. Check it out below!

Print Your Facebook Photos Directly From Kodak Kiosks

GeekSugar — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 01:47:41 PDT

There's something to be said for printed photos. Although I don't print my pics anymore - I keep them stored online - I know friends and family members who still like to print a photo or two. Thankfully, Kodak is making it easy to print your favorite social network pics right from their in-store kiosks.

Rolling out this year at stores like CVS and Target, Kodak's new kiosk software update will allow users to log into their Facebook and Picasa accounts, use some cool photo editing software - like image resize, pet red eye retouching, and spot-healing - and print out pics on the fly.

Logging into your accounts is easy, since you won't be signing into the full version of the sites - it will be a modified, photo-only version. Additionally, you'll be able to grab images from videos stored online! This is great news for Facebook fiends, but it's not the only easy way to print out your digital pics. Check out five more easy ways you can print your favorite photos after the break.

Picasa 3.5 Is Now Available For Download

GeekSugar — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 13:11:00 PDT

Google has just announced the latest version of Picasa, its free photo-editing software for Macs and PCs. What's great about this new version is that it can scan your photo collections and create groups of similar faces (similar to Picasa Web Albums and iPhoto). All you have to do is add a name tag to a set of faces (if you're signed into Gmail, it will auto-complete names as you start typing), and then Picasa will suggest pictures that it thinks match faces in your albums and put those into the appropriate "people" groups.

To learn more about Picasa 3.5, and to see a demo video of it in action, just

Picasa also uses Google Maps to make geotagging quick and easy (so you don't need to install Google Earth to do so anymore). Just choose your pictures, click the Places panel, find the place you want to geotag, and drop the pin on the map. Once all your pins are in place, you can look at an entire group of photos on a map to see where they were taken. Keep in mind your geotags will sync with your Picasa Web Albums, so you don't have to worry about having to geotag your photos again. You can download the latest version of Picasa from here.

Daily Tech: The High-Fashion Discovery 975 From Plantronics

GeekSugar — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:35:24 PDT

Available today for $130 is the Plantronics' Discover 975 Bluetooth headset - Boing Boing Gadgets
Here are 10 things you may want to know about the PS3 Slim - Gizmodo
Now with Picasa Web Albums you can collaborate on albums with your friends - Lifehacker
Check out some trippy optical illusions from across the Internet - Switched
The US gets its first Internet addiction treatment center near Seattle - CrunchGear
A preview of the Nokia N900 tablet has been released before its official launch - CNET

Map Individual Photos in Google's Picasa

GeekSugar — Fri, 29 May 2009 08:00:44 PDT

I recently discovered a new feature in Picasa that I had no idea even existed. Whenever you upload photos to an album, you cannot only add a location to the entire album (something I always do so people viewing the pics know where they were taken), but you can also include specific locations for each photo!

To do this, once your album is uploaded, click on "Edit" then "Album Map" and you can just drag and drop individual photo thumbnails directly onto the map. Click done when you are finished adding whichever photos you would like on the map and then when your friends or family view the album, they will see the corresponding map location in the "Photo Locations" window!

Wedding Tip: Have Your Guests Upload Photos to One Place

GeekSugar — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 11:06:26 PDT

I used to think that having disposable cameras at each table at a wedding reception was such a fabulously brilliant idea.

But now the quality of the disposable film cameras is too shoddy for any possible framers, plus the kind of people who are going to take photos will have already brought their own cameras. To further drive a stake in the heart of this old trend, last year the majority of you voted that you no longer loved it.

That's not to say you don't want more photos taken than your pro photog will take - just make it easy on your guests to upload them all to one place! Call it the 2009 version of disposable cameras on tables. Instead of cameras on tables, you just place cards with a URL or email address for your guests, and leave it to them to upload after the event.

To see how to make this wedding idea come together, just

First, decide which photo-sharing website you want to use. It may be easiest to use the site you're already using for photo sharing - MobileMe, Flickr, and Picasa provide you with an email address or URL to give out (see my instructions on how to do it in Picasa). But also consider newer site iRave - it also gives you both a URL or email address, and it has settings that let you approve photos before they're up, preventing any pic leaks of champagne-induced embarrassments. Make sure that whichever site you use has plenty of storage space for the photos.

Once you've settled on the service, you need the cards so people know where to send photos. This seller from Etsy makes a wedding photo-sharing kit for $25, but this is also a simple DIY.

Design and print out your message onto business card-size paper (or just cut printed sheets to that size), then place in a festive box or display on each table.

If you're really into the design of your invites, you can inquire with your invitation vendor about printing up these cards with your invite design.

Gmail Labs Adds Previews For Yelp, Picasa, YouTube, Flickr

GeekSugar — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 11:15:51 PDT

Imagine if it wasn't necessary to click a link to view a photo album or YouTube video? Now if you go into your Gmail Labs under Settings and enable YouTube videos (you can watch the entire clip right from your inbox), Flickr and Picasa preview, and Yelp review preview, you can see everything inside your mail window. Yes, Gmail will automatically detect links from various sites and show you previews right from your email message.

Google Introduces Picasa For Mac

GeekSugar — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:02:19 PST

Christmas for geeks comes in January, as we're in the midst of both MacWorld and CES. Google's gift for us today is Picasa for Mac. It doesn't matter if you're already using iPhoto or Picasa on the web, Picasa for Mac is a seamless companion.

Its standout features are the photo management and organization, as well as its editing abilities (including the genius ways Picasa preserves your original files, post-editing). Want to see it in action before you download? Check out this video demo.

How-To: Combine Photos From Different People With Picasa

GeekSugar — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:02:13 PST

At the end of a holiday or party, several people usually end up with photos of their own from the same event - wouldn't it be great to combine them all easily? If you're a Picasa user, you can do it!

In Picasa, go to Settings and scroll down to "Allow me to upload photos by email." Check this box, and a field will appear, prompting you to enter a secret word. I choose words relevant to the holiday, such as "thanksgiving" - and Picasa will populate a new email address that appends to your Gmail address. For instance, if your Gmail address is "jane.doe@gmail.com", your unique Picasa address would be "jane.doe.thanksgiving@picasaweb.com."

This is the address you give out to your family, instructing them to simply email their photos to this address. Once they start emailing, everyone's photos will appear in your Drop Box on your Picasa page, and from there, you can combine them all in one special album!

Print Photos at Walgreens Straight From Picasa!

GeekSugar — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 14:00:08 PDT

File Walgreens under Awesome twice today; first, today's their Free Film Developing Day, and now it's been announced that Walgreens is a print provider for Picasa!

That's right, print directly from your Picasa albums to Walgreens - which was already my preferred photo printer because you can pick them up from a store right after you order them online, no shipping costs or waiting incurred.

And don't forget to adjust your settings in Content Control to allow visitors to order prints of your photos, so your family can feel the Walgreens love, too!