Our favorite photo organizer program is Picasa…and has been for a long time! We wrote our first article about Picasa in 2005 and then went on to write many more articles, created still relevant video tips, help Picasa classes, and even published a how-to CD at one point. In fact, today (May 2019), Picasa still graces my desktop computer and remains my favorite tool for organizing and finding photos.
However, Google sees otherwise. Although the Picasa programs still works on all computers with any operating system, it has not been updated since 2016 and will not be. Google mothballed the program in 2016 and encourages users to switch to their Google Photos app which is there web based storage and organization product that syncs with mobile devices. Yes, it works well, but does not have the editing, organizing, sharing, printing, and project making capabilities that Picasa has. And, again, it requires you to upload photos to the web…something many users don’t want to do.
The GOOD NEWS, as stated above, Picasa remains almost fully functional on the desktop. You do NOT have to delete or stop using it. Some of the features like emailing, sending photos to Shutterfly or Walgreens for printing are no longer functional. Other features are exhibiting issues like downloading new photos from your device which doesn’t always work consistently. There are small workarounds for all these issues. If enough people respond to this article with questions and requests for those workarounds, I will post some new tips with video instructions.
Picasa had a nice long run as a photo organizer, but alas, smartphones, tablets and continuous access to the web necessitated a change by Google. Don’t stop using Picasa, if you like it like me, and it should function for some time into the future. Remember, though, it never hurts to learn new tricks with computers because things do change, and you don’t want to be left without being able to feel comfortable with your system.
One last thought…your photos will NEVER be lost if Picasa stops working altogether because they live on your hard drive. Just remember to back them up!
