Welcome to RCF - WHF

Bobby · Dec 31, 2004

Could you read the information below and comment on it please? Do you think that it is loading informatiabout you and sending it to someone elas? It can be found at http://.picasa.com/index.php

From: "Blue" <blue@k...>
Date: Mon Feb 7, 2005 4:58 am
Subject: Re: [GCs Computer] Picasa2

I d/l Picasa but when I went to install it my Norton FW warned me it was trying
to dial out. After
10 attempts to block it I had to cntrl alt del to terminate installation. On
further investigation
I noticed this in the Terms & Conditions, what do you make of it Cowboy?

Blue

Picasa T & C

The Picasa Software may communicate with Google's servers to check for available
updates to the
Picasa Software, such as bug fixes, patches, enhanced functions, missing
plug-ins and new versions
(collectively, "Updates"). During this process, the Picasa Software creates a
randomly generated
number for updating the software, which is not associated with any personally
identifying
information. The Picasa Software sends Google a request for the latest Picasa
Software version
information. If a newer version is available, the Picasa Software will give you
the option of
downloading it. The Picasa Software asks for permission before downloading an
updated version. If
you wish to disable the automated check for updates, please see the FAQ
[http://www.picasa.com/support/autoupdate.php] for details. By installing the
Picasa Software and
not disabling the automated check for Updates, you hereby agree to automatically
request and receive
Updates from Google's servers.

The Picasa Software does not require you to provide any personally identifying
information, such as
your name or email address. Your browser may create a cookie when you visit the
Picasa website, and
send this cookie to Picasa when you visit a Picasa website. The cookie will not
be associated with
any personally identifiable information, unless you specifically and knowingly
provide us with such
information. In addition, if you send a request to a server from Picasa, we
record standard log
information, including Internet Protocol addresses and information related to
your request. We will
ask before collecting personally identifying information from you and give you
an opportunity to opt
out. For a full description of how Google handles personal information, please
see the Google
Privacy Policy [http://www.google.com/intl/en/privacy.html] and the related
Picasa FAQs
[http://www.picasa.com/support/knowledge.php].

Accessing Other Sites and Servers from Picasa

If you access web sites or servers from Picasa, your computer will send standard
log information,
including your IP address. The site you visit may log this information. If you
use Picasa to link
to a merchant site that requires log-in, you can opt to have Picasa save an
encrypted copy of your
log-in information on your computer.

Nightrider · Sep 25, 2004

A lot of programs "phone home" when they are installed these days and I imagine that it is only going to get worse. Some companies are switching to activation schemes which require that additional software be downloaded and installed after it can be verified that the product is legit. There is no way to know what these companies are collecting when their programs "phone home" so it's up to each user to decide whether they trust the company enough to allow it untethered Internet access...

Rolling Eyes

rb2d2 · Sep 25, 2004

I like Picasa. It's neat. It will find every .jpg, .gif, bmp and several image formats anywhere they are on your HDD and put them ALL into the program. Copies! The original stays where ever you have it stored.

Great way to see all your images in one place in thumbnails or you can click to full size. If you leave it running in your tray it will automatically save a copy of any image you download during the day. Otherwise it will get the additional images when you run it auto or you can set it to get them at your request.

As for the auto update you are talking about, you can disable that and it will no longer ask to connect to the internet for updates. It say this:

If you wish to disable the automated check for updates, please see the FAQ [http://www.picasa.com/support/autoupdate.php] for details. By installing the Picasa Software and not disabling the automated check for Updates, you hereby agree to automatically request and receive Updates from Google's servers.

I LIKE Picasa!

Applause

bigR · Oct 14, 2004

PC Magazines liked Picasa:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1752155,00.asp

Like NR said, a lot of software now "phones home" for automatic updates, and like rb said, you can disable that. It looks to me like a pretty good program, and relatively well-behaved. Looks like there's no adware or spyware in it.

rb2d2 · Sep 25, 2004

And it's free! I like free.

Heart

rb2d2 · Sep 25, 2004

Ooops! Don't have Picasa 2. Thanks, bigR for bringing that to my attention. It say you can have both Pcasa and Picasa 2 on the same machine.

Hummm, I'll install 2 and take a look at it and if I like it I'll just uninstall Picasa. The newer has to better than the older, no?

Applause

bigR · Oct 14, 2004

The website says you can have older and newer versions installed. And yeah, newer is often better than old. According to the PC Mag review, Picasa 2 has quite a few enhancements. I think you'll like it.

I downloaded and installed it tonight. It sure took a while to index all my pics; I think it said there were over 26,000 images on my hard drive. I did disable the auto-update, quick and easy. And then I told it to watch only my data partition.

We'll see... it seems to be an easy way to find images. I'll try it out a while, compare it to the Browser in PSP, which also shows thumbnails of all the images in a folder.

rb2d2 · Sep 25, 2004

I award Picasa the Winner award! I think it's great.

sunny