Picasa query

ih8stress

I've followed a few threads about editing photographs etc. and Picasa seems to be mentioned quite abit.

I have just been to the website but unfortunately it does not seem to be compatible with my ancient Windows 98SE system.

Does anybody have any suggestions?

I am basically after getting my photos from my digital camera (Fuji) onto my computer, so that I can alter, store etc. to my hearts content.

I have had problems with the software that came with the camera - reading other threads I THINK the answer to that is to buy a card reader.

I am a true TECHNOPHOBE - and get overwhelmed by anything technical - it's a foreign language to me.

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry that this has ended up being abit long-winded!

f1charlie

Yes get a card reader. Make sure you get one which has a 98SE driver.

Faststone Image Viewer is a pretty good organiser and editor (and free!):

http://www.faststone.org/FSViewerDetail.htm

penrhyn

With your 10 year old operating system/computer you may not be able to store too many photos on your hard disk. Have you got USB ports on it for a card reader?
Time for an upgrade perchance?

brunlea99

"Faststone Image Viewer is a pretty good organiser and editor (and free!):"

Yes, but will it run on Windows 98 ???

That's the OP's major problem - getting a picture editor which is Win98 compatible.

ih8stress

Thank you for all your comments.

I suppose I need to sort out my O/S before choosing a photo organiser and editor.

What system should I consider upgrading to?

superscaper

ih8stress wrote: »

Thank you for all your comments.

I suppose I need to sort out my O/S before choosing a photo organiser and editor.

What system should I consider upgrading to?

Depends what you need and can afford. Could be anything between £100 (buy some extra RAM and XP) to £10,000 (Vadim computers Nightshade pc).

penrhyn

It may be more cost effective in the long run to buy a new PC.
http://www.dmxdimension.com/ will give you an idea on what's available and at what cost.

superscaper

penrhyn wrote: »

It may be more cost effective in the long run to buy a new PC.
http://www.dmxdimension.com/ will give you an idea on what's available and at what cost.

If it's running 98 then it's definitely a good bet that the hardware is all legacy technology and it'd definitely not be cost effective to put further money into it. By the time you upgraded everything to a "modern" standard you'd have essentially built a new PC anyway.

totalsolutions

Sorry but first choice for you might be Vista in a new PC, but XP might just fit in yours on a budget.

This old favorite, should work for you, have a look HERE
It a program called IrfanView and says it works with Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista.

f1charlie

brunlea99 wrote: »

"Faststone Image Viewer is a pretty good organiser and editor (and free!):"

Yes, but will it run on Windows 98 ???

That's the OP's major problem - getting a picture editor which is Win98 compatible.

Sorry I missed that response, but YES! - otherwise I would not have recommended it :rolleyes: , having used it myself on a 98SE machine until very recently.

ih8stress, spend a few pounds on a card reader, get Faststone and see if you can do what you want on your existing computer. If you are struggling then look at getting a new computer - after all this is supposed to be a money saving forum!

Jasperodus

I am a little wary of suggesting this (I don't want to start an OS war), but if money is a real problem............

Have you heard of Linux? It is a free operating system.
Most people will say that it is for geeks but I am not a geek. Nor is my brother who now uses it - and he earns around 70k, so it's not about the money for him:)

Linux can be evaluated without needing to be installed on your hard-disk. (Live-cd).
If you consider using it, you can also keep your Win98, and when you start the PC, you can choose which OS to run.

You can run Picasa on Linux.

I think it costs more to buy XP than the basic version of Vista.
Personally, I would use XP, rather than Vista but I prefer 98SE. Problem is, it's all a game of catch-up - Later soft/hardware is not supported under 98. So, you then have to 'upgrade' the OS. If you 'upgrade' to Vista then in your case you will VERY likley be looking at a lot of money to end up with a computer that can run Vista.

It all comes down to what you need the computer to do - and what money you have.

The fact that you class yourself as a technophobe does not mean that you should not be asked to consider Linux. If you can install Windows, then you can install Linux (I think Windows is more of a pain in this respect).
Also, there are many flavours (distributions) of Linux covering a wide spectrum from complete beginners to very advanced users.

By the way, the particular version that I use takes literally five minutes to install itself to disk.

Anyway, Linux is not for everyone but if you think it might be worth a look then there is plenty of info on the internet - You could have a look at Distrowatch. Most beginners use something like Ubuntu.

Oh, you will not suffer the constant problem that Windows users are faced with regarding viruses and such.

Whatever you decide, and whatever OS you use, a card-reader is a MUCH better option than direct from camera - saves camera battery too:)
Card-readers a inexpensive.



Take care,



Jasperodus.