Finished. I’m finally finished.
It took a total of 243 hours of downloading (42 hours) and uploading (201 hours) to complete the entire process. Insanity.
I honestly hope no one has to ever do this (or at least to this scale).
But, if you happen to find yourself in a place where you’re going to do the switch, here’s one way of doing it that’s been 100% successful.
Of course, results (and time required) will vary since much of this is based on your availability, your uptime with your internet provider, and your speed (up/down).
And, if they don’t shut you down or throttle your bandwidth…
For a sake of comparison and full disclosure, here’s what SpeedTest.net rated my ISP and connection speed.
I will also add that I was not directly connected to the internet ever (ethernet) and went wireless the whole time. Although these numbers may seem impressive it hardly sustained this throughout the week and some change.
Finally, after the walk through you’ll find my justification of abandoning Flickr and moving to Picasa, despite having a good deal left on the paid Pro account.
I’d imagine that this will interest a number of my readers, so it’s at the end folks.
Ready? Set? Go.
1. Make Flickr Sets
The first thing you’ll need to know is that software that I used requires that your pictures be in sets in Flickr.
This isn’t a hard thing to do and luckily I had ordered about 99% of my pictures in sets already. For the images that were “floating” I just created a random set called “Z” and threw them all in there.
Do this first before you do anything else!
2. Privacy and Permissions
You’re going to want to make sure that the application that I used (PhotoGrabbr – See below) has access to your images. Make sure your Privacy and Permissions Settings are the following in your Flickr Account:
3. Download PhotoGrabbr
There have been a number of applications that are out there including one that apparently could help migrate directly from Flickr to Picasa (Migratr) but that application required that you give it your username and password (I wasn’t comfortable with that) and it broke on install (made me feel even more anxious about it).
Instead, I found and used PhotoGrabbr, which is a miracle app. I downloaded it and it worked like a charm:
A few things to remember when you use this, the first being that your “username” is not the same thing as your web address name.
This was somewhat confusing at first:
The second being that downloading files sometimes “time outs” due to overuse of the API (according to them). I found that the “Download All Photos” broke a lot. What I did, especially since I had 21,000+ images and media was to check off 3-5 sets at a time and just hit “Download”.
You’ll want to make a note of each set, how many images are in each, and then confirm after completion that you did, in fact, download every image.
If the download does “break” on you you’ll have to delete the folder (Set) and re-attempt the download or you’ll get duplicate files (it’ll add a “-1″ to the copy). I had to do this a number of times.
Finally, PhotoGrabbr downloads ONLY IMAGES and NOT VIDEO. What it’ll do is download a “screencap” of the video and not the video itself. This is probably the only drawback and if you’ve got a lot of videos this can be significant.
4. Begin Downloading!
This is the fun (or exceptionally boring) part. Begin downloading. Make sure to confirm downloads and make note of all videos in your sets that will not be downloaded fully.
Have fun.
5. Download Missing Videos
To download your videos you’re going to have to do this manually. Unfortunately I had exactly 666 videos (I can’t believe that, what a stinky number to have) and this took a lot of manual labor and a strained wrist.
There are two ways in which you could do this, the first being going through each of your sets and visually identifying the “videos” (small play arrow) in your set, opening each up, clicking the embed button and then scrolling to the bottom and hitting download:
Clicking the “Embed” button:
Scrolling down and then finally downloading the darn file:
That’s the first way (or at least what you’d have to do in the second too).
The other way is to sort through the online file manager by
First you’ll have to sort through videos by going in to the online file manager, clicking “More Options,” then “Videos” and then editing them, opening each photo page individually so that you can proceed with the downloading:
This, of course, can help if you have no idea where all your videos are and if they span tons of different sets (like my situation):
Regardless of your situation it’ll be a tedious and time-killing process. Prepare for the suck. Thankfully I was able to download up to 30 at a time and it only took a “few” hours.
Not.
6. Download Picasa, Upload Like a Mofo, Pay For More Space
Now, the rest of the process is pretty easy.
Download Picasa from Google, make sure you’ve got enough space (I had to upgrade to 80GB plan) and then wait for the sync:
As you can see, I’ve already used about 77% of my space. I’ll be upgrading to the next plan of 200GB pretty soon.
Make sure you Upload the “Original Size” to get a full version onto your site:
Fun times.
7. Wait and Make Sure It Syncs 100%!
And, of course, for me, this was just a long waiting process (201 hours). The problem with uploading so much media is that the synchronization process wasn’t perfect.
I had to confirm upload for a few folders and double check the media count.
(Time seemed to slow down here and drag on forever. Image from FJTU.)
No software is perfect, so it’s your job to confirm the uploads!
And that’s that.
Why I Moved From Flickr to Picasa
The simple answer to this question is this: My mother.
Fact is that my mom isn’t on Flickr. But, she’s on Picasa. And it’s all about showing my mother pictures and videos of my daughter.
Picasa makes this transfer and sharing easy as pie. She can even download the images into her system and computer and then print it out.
Win.
Oh, and Google apparently owns the world. I’ve got so much invested in their products that I might as well have put my stuff there anyway. I needed some more space on my GMAIL account too. Google Apps for Small Business is the shiznittle, BTW.
But, for those interested, here are some additional reasons why Flickr is the bomb (and not in a good way):
- Flickr has no significant desktop application. What a loss. And no, I don’t consider their “Uploader” a serious desktop application. In fact, it’s nothing compared to Picasa. I mean, Picasa has an amazing desktop application that is dead-simple to use and “mom-proof” as they say. Win.
- Flickr’s online experience is slow. When you get over about 10,000 images it starts taking more than a few seconds to actually get into the editor and to even view the sets! In fact, on average, it took about 10 seconds to load my junk. I could go to the fridge, crack open a diet-coke and be back before it finishes loading. Sad forever.
- The layouts and user experience hasn’t really changed. Like, in years. I want more viewing options for goodness sake.
- The online editor is slow, clunky, and broken. Sad. In fact, I hate it. It’s terrible.
- The slideshow technology Flickr has sucks. Slow.
- Can’t freaking download your pictures in batches. This is a serious issue. Why should I have to “hack” or use alternative programs to get my silly pictures down?
- Quality of HD videos just isn’t cutting it. This might be me, but my Vimeo Pro account kicks the living snot out of Flickr. This isn’t even mentioning the level of customization that Vimeo has and that Flickr doesn’t. Vimeo is worth every penny.
- The 90-second rule in Flickr is lame. Enough said. (Can’t believe I bought into that crap…)
- Flickr hasn’t improved their product in years. It’s obvious to anyone with half-a-brain that Yahoo! is going down the drain and they aren’t willing to invest in one of their marquee online products. Picasa, on the other hand, continues to innovate and pump out new features.
But, to be fair, Picasa isn’t perfect either. One of the most serious grievances I have is the fact that you can’t download the movies at all. And, the video quality is the same if not worse.
Oh well, that’s why I have Vimeo (and backups). But, at least my mom can watch the videos.
Love your thoughts, comments, flames, whatever. In the end, the move was a personal one and it should be the same for you. No pressure or dogmatism from this side of the fence; do what you gotta do.
Now, if I just had the time to finish all this facial recognition stuff…
*sigh* It never ends.
[Image from Cindy]
I used to be a Picasa fan for all the reasons you provided but ultimately, I wanted to "own" my photos on my own website.
If you're ever looking to go that course, I'd recommend this: http://gallery.menalto.com/
I've used Gallery for years, yet I still mirror them to Picasa. Why? Mom Proof.
I still Use Gallery, I guess I'm paranoid. But remember, mind your patches! I'm on V3. I really like it!
I'm about to go with a paid account on Picasa, for my 40 GB pics…. I can't wait!
I also use CrashPlan to back up my photos too…
My recent post Win7 GUID Codes
word!
Aaron,
Good stuff. I've used that software before but I found it to be too bloated and heavy, personally. I haven't tried it out recently though… maybe it's better…?
Desktop app support though… where…?
UUMMM…
JUST FYI… I use a Picasa Button to upload to my Gallery…
Yes Picasa can upload to things other than, well, Picasa, Like ZenPhoto and Gallery
My recent post Win7 GUID Codes
I haven't experienced any latency issues with Gallery3 but you are
right, there is no current desktop application for it. I'm fine
operating old-school, though. I FTP my photos directly to the server
and import them from within the program. I'm a good enough
photographer that I don't need a desktop app to touch-up my photos.
/lolz
i think i was more interested in the sharing aspect and downloading/managing on a desktop app.
Eh, I'm fickle.
The only thing consistent about how I 'do the web' is that I'm subject
to change my mind frequently.
Perhaps Picasa for Macs has gotten much better since I left it?
that it has, that it has.
OMG. haha.
Thanks for pointing out that Picasa has been improved for Mac. I used to use it on my PC. Looks like I'll be switching from Flickr myself.
And, you should correct your link to speedtest.net, not .com.
ah, thanks for that!
Ugh.. I need to figure out what I'm doing with my wife's blog. She's got this typepad thing that has a whole bunch-a images that are in galleries. The whole site is password protected, so only 10 people in the world have access to it… I gotta get her on wordpress.
My recent post I want to go to Drive 2010
I heard of two typepad users last week that checked into therapy. They too mentioned something about galleries, password protection and poor UI. They also were characterized by strange visions of Tim Stevens…but no one's quite sure why!
ok that's not true, but I can sympathize…
My recent post Putting a Face on Poverty
That's funny, because I have been thinking about migrating from Flickr to Picasa as well. I don't think I have been totally convinced yet. The main reason I stick with Flickr is that there is a more active community. I love that.
My recent post Simple Steps to Secure Your WordPress Site
active community ONLY if you participate in it. I didn't, so it wasn't an add-value.
I can't believe you had 21,000 pictures stored on Flickr!?
However this post did confirm that you are now the Internet Guinea Pig for the rest of us… I'd been wondering about using Picasa as an online storage solution for my photos, and your experiment and confidence in storing 21,000 photos on there has helped the decision!
Thanks for that.
i actually had more. closer to 45k.
WOW That's INSANE
Can't wait till I reach that number!!
internet guinea pig FTW
My recent post Poll: To Subscribe or Follow?
Glad you posted this John -> was following the initial twitter flickr flinging you were doing earlier in the week. I'm curious though – why didn't you get the 200gb option right off the bat for the free Eye-Fi card? (unless you already had paid storage and were unable to get it…which is a bummer of course).
I decided to switch to Picasa as well. Luckily I had a duplicate of all my pics and video already in the desktop app so just had to upload.
i goofed. i should have gotten it. sad.
here’s an adobe air app i used to download all my photos:
http://code.google.com/p/onairbustour/wiki/flump
but it doesn’t keep all of your sets/tags/etc.
Wow!!! Thanks for this!!!
John
You should have gone with Smugmug. The highest quality HD videos, unlimited storage, wonderful custom pages (or create your own) super support and the best printing services out there.
My recent post So how is ETSY doing?
Desktop app?
John
Anyone with 20,000 pictures + ### videos of kids for only their mother is sick. What a waste of technology. Nothing better to do???
I got bored.
John
Does this method keep any geo-tag info? That’s the most time-consuming part for me. I have thousands of geo-tagged photos and there’e no way I am going to re-tag them all.
Dang. I don't think so.
John
Ok, I guess I only have 1,200 geo-tagged photos but that would still take me a very long time to geo-tag them again.
Snap….
John
ooh very interesting, and I think this may be the guide that helps me do the same thing.
the Flickr communities are cool – if you participate. I don’t either.
My goal is to have images of my family and kids online that make it easy for my parents and siblings to download and print off on their own. They ALL already use Picasa and ask me to upload photos to my Web Albums so they can download them. Seems like this is the right time to make the move.
Thanks again for this!
My recent post Craig is a DJ on I-91 FM in the south end. He needed some updated photos and, since his girlfriend Amanda was in town, figured they might be able to step in front of the camera at the same time. We had a great time shooting photos and ended up with some decent keepers!
Sure thing!!!
John
Thanks I was about to upload a ton of pics to flickr over Christmas break now I may go with picasa.
keep up the good work!
John
sheesh – why didn't you publish this two weeks ago? it would have saved me some time…
i just did pretty much the same migration (though on a much smaller scale – just 9GB) 10 days ago, using basically the same process you did…
For me it's cost. I have about 186 GB of photos & videos up at Flickr, for $25/year. So I'd have to double that just to hold all my current photos, 200GB for $50/year, and then almost immediately (within a month at my current rate) jump to the $100/year for 400 GB to hold me for a couple of years. So 4 times the cost, with an enormous hassle to upload/download.
WHOA. you're a champ!!!!!
that's a lot, but, it is what it is…
I agree! The cost is one of the main things holding me back. I have over 11,000 photos / videos on Flickr and for $25/year, it is great.
The Flickr interface does need some change and it needs to pre-fetch the next photo for quicker loading times.
Hi. Has you host been up and down all morning?
Tried to reach your site a few times and it was not responsive.
Finally got in.
Thanks,
Jim
I have been thinking about switching over too. Thanks for the post. For you who has 21k photos this might not be the best, but for family-related stuff I just put it on a posterous.com blog. it links to the full size photos and it is the first time my mom or anyone else has not had any trouble getting to the photos and even commenting (via email!). With flickr's guest passes something would always go wrong and I would get angry emails "I can't see the photos!."
Anyways, great post — I will have to really think about this one.
By the way, do you think Picasa's embedded slideshows look better? One of my main uses for flickr is just to have an embedded slideshow of my photostream tagged "concerts" on my website.
Hey dude, sorry Migratr didn't work out for you. A couple notes:
1) I've never owned a mac, so there's no way for me to test it on an apple machine. I've heard users have mixed results using things like parallels, bootcamp, vmware… ultimately, though, it requires the .NET framework to run, and anything that "fakes" it is going to have sketchy results until I have a way to compile it as a native apple application
2) Per the authentication thing: That's a choice every user has to make for themselves, and I certainly won't begrudge you making that choice in the interest of personal security. But FYI, on the Flickr end the authentication mechanism is actually set up so that Migratr *never* sees your password. you log into the website via your browser, and then flickr gives Migratr a sort of "valet key" auth, so it can do what it needs without ever actually receiving your pw, and without ever gaining full control over your account.
OTOH, that option isn't really available to migratr on the Picasa side. There it's just "enter username/pw into Migratr". I won't lie to you, Migratr sees it. All I can tell you is it doesn't store it anywhere
Anyway, congratulations on getting a 21K photo migration complete. That's a serious undertaking!
I think you convinced me to start using picasa. I don't use flicker it isn't easy enough to be worth my time.
My problem with Picasa is this – can't set privacy per photo, meaning that If I share an album and would like to keep some of it private, I can't do it in picasa.
hmm. that's interesting. didn't know that. i just do it per album, i'll have to see.
I am thinking of moving my "family" photos from Flickr to Picasa but there is one BIG gotcha that I'm not sure if I can over. The photos just don't look nearly as good on Picasa especially if you click on the horrible zoom button. Is it just me?
yeah, but they load a lot faster. and for me, it's about speed at this point. if you want the full rez, you can download them.
For slightly less heavy users of Flickr, you might like http://www.qoop.com/photobooks/flickr_user – which gives you a backup DVD of your photographs. I've 4,700 of them – so not quite as much as you.
Sweet! Thanks for this!
John
Hmm… interesting. Thanks for sharing the "how to" in case I ever want to do the switch. I did feel weird about setting up a Flickr account because, like you, the rest of my life is on Google. Maybe I'll port over one of these days and just leave Yahoo altogether.
My recent post Upside Down Christmas
leave. yahoo stink.s
Interesting. I've always thought that the "artsy" crowd would ditch Google and embrace Flickr. Perhaps I'm wrong then. Or perhaps you don't fall into the "artsy" category?
My recent post Travis County Abortion Discrepancy
I'm not really artsy.
but yes, there is that “culture” thing going on… but i'm more function than anything else…!
it's hilarious to me that i read the whole article…i am really interested to watch processes
My recent post Poll: To Subscribe or Follow?
you're “that” type of guy.
John, please tell us how you store/backup your local Picasa database.
From what I can tell, one database is king and there's no syncing with multiple computers.
i store it on an external terabyte drive.
I wrote a small piece about using Facebook and Picasa together if anyone's interested….
http://green.cx/news/picasa-facebook-perfect-pair…
I love Picasa, I never could dive into Flicr, I never thought the Intergration with 3rd party apps was smooth or as accessable as my Picasa account, and after getting the whole family linked together, and using the Picasa app to upload, it's a dream come true for family Photo's! And the pricing is alot better than flikr too..
And I hate the way flikr is spelled, there I said it! It annoys me!!
flickr flikr flicker anyways, It reminds me of flicking boogers for some reason…
sweet!
Is there a good program similar to Photo Grabbr for Windows?
Thanks for the info (coming late to the party).
I started out with Picasso but at the time wasn’t impressed. I didn’t like that it reorganized my stuff for me. Now I’m sure that would be a handy feature to have. And they’ve obviously upped their game since I last played around with it circa 2005.
I have close to 6000 photos on Flickr, so I know that making the switch would be a big deal — and that doesn’t include the places I’ve linked back to Flickr on my blog and such (ugggh for broken links).
But I’ll keep my eye out and may make the switch sometime in the future. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Guess I should get the name right… Picasa. Doh!
Awesome post, thanks for sharing these step-by-step instructions. And if you have any feedback about your Picasa experience that you’d like to share with our team, please let me know. Cheers!
Thanks for this great howto! Can’t wait to leave Flickr
Thanks for this post! Now Picasa is Unlimited, even better reason to peace out of flickr!
How can you call those numbers of the SpeedTest impressive? At home I reach the 70 to 80Mb download and almost 18 upload with the local service in the center of Paris, France. My gosh, you in the U.S. really think are in the high tech era but you are in the jungle…
There is a new web based tool http://www.flickrtoplus.com which will do this migration for you for free, you don’t need to do all the steps outlined here. Although of course it didn’t exist when you did your migration.