Welcome | Sign In
ECommerceTimes.com
Technology

Google Gives Away Feature-Rich Photo Tool

Print Version
E-Mail Article
Reprints
Google Gives Away Feature-Rich Photo Tool

"Given the amount of multimedia content that we expect consumers to be downloading, storing and aggregating in the next few years, the ability of them to more easily find, edit, personalize and share this content is going to be critical," said Kurt Scheff of Parks Associates.


Think you have to compromise on security to save on costs? Think Again. Trend Micro™ Enterprise Security, powered by the Trend Micro Smart Protection Network™, can lower your content security management costs by up to 40%. Find out just how much you’ll save with our TCO Impact Calculator.

Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) added to its big picture today with the release of Picasa 2 photo management software. The search engine company is giving away the new release, a major upgrade from the first version, which it acquired when it purchased its developer, also named Picasa, in July.

Picasa 2 is available for download from the Google download site.

It offers tools for searching a PC for images and editing and sharing them. When Picasa 2 opens, it automatically finds all pictures on the computer and sorts them by date. The instant messaging feature, Hello, allows users to send photos directly from Picasa.

Expanding Business

Google has been branching out from its roots as a search engine company, most recently introducing blogging software in May.

"Google has a really interesting play away from Internet search. Given the amount of multimedia content that we expect consumers to be downloading, storing and aggregating in the next few years, the ability of them to more easily find, edit, personalize and share this content is going to be critical," Kurt Scheff, principal analyst at Parks Associates, told TechNewsWorld.

The software offers many of the same features as Adobe's (Nasdaq: ADBE) Photoshop Elements and Microsoft's (Nasdaq: MSFT) Digital Image Suite, which both cost about $100.

Good Planning

Scheff said he believes the offering is a wise move by Google. Picasa 2 comes with filter effects, colors and lighting adjustments, red-eye removal, cropping and straightening tools. Photos can be burned onto a CD or DVD or saved to an external drive. They can be printed on home printers in standard sizes or uploaded to photo sites such as Ofoto, Shutterfly, Snapfish and Walmart.com, where they can be printed in many sizes and formats.

"A company that can solve the complexities associated with the challenge of a plethora of content stored on drives and sites both inside and outside of the home is going to have a terrific business in the next few years," Scheff said.

The program is available for PCs running Windows 98 and higher and Internet Explorer 5.0 and higher. It does not work with Mac OS. Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) offers its own photo management program, iPhotos.


Print Version E-Mail Article Reprints More by Susan B. Shor


More by Susan B. Shor

Salesnet President Jonathan Tang Ready to Take On Salesforce.com
February 07, 2006
"We think it's Salesnet's time now. We've been around since the beginning, we've been lying low, but you're going to start to see more of us. We've done it through organic growth and happy customers. We continue to focus on customers."
Comcast Follows Time Warner in Offering 'Family' Programming Tier
December 23, 2005
"The demand for this type of tier is coming from the FCC and Christian conservatives. It has nothing to do with legitimate consumer demand," Todd Chanko, senior analyst at Jupiter Media, told the E-Commerce Times.
High-Risk Flaw Found in Symantec's Software
December 22, 2005
"Part of the significance of this vulnerability announcement is that your machine can be exploited without you needing to do anything at all. You don't even have to open an e-mail or attachment, and this happens with the default configuration of the product," said Forrester Research senior analyst Michael Gavin.
Don't miss a story -- sign up for our FREE e-mail newsletters and view the latest headlines at a glance.
Tech News Flash [ View Sample ]
E-Commerce Minute [ View Sample ]
ECT News Network Weekly Newsletter [ View Sample ]
Shortcuts
ECT News Network Information
Reader Services
Corporate
ECT News Network