[Gllug] Picasa for Linux

[Mike Brodbelt]

On Fri, 2006-05-26 at 09:30 +0200, salsaman wrote:

> I don't really see this as a good thing. If Google wanted to help the 
> Linux community, they could have sponsored one or more existing native 
> projects. If you are using Linux without a dual boot, this move doesn't 
> help you at all.

I think it's good from the perspective that some users may find it's one
less reason to retain a Windows installation, and a mainstream app like
this getting a Linux release may change some people's views about Linux
as a viable desktop OS. As far as sponsoring native apps, Google already
do that through their summer of code initiative, so I have no issue with
them there - they do a lot more than most commercial entities to
contribute to free software.

That said, I have a large collection of digital photos, and a good
management solution would be something I'd welcome - even so I regard
the release of Picasa with very little interest. It can't burn CDs or
manage your backups, it offers minimal editing functionality (my RAW
converter is much better), GQview now offers RAW file compatibility and
timeline based viewing, and I have no doubt that GIMP print will do a
better job than Picasa can through the Wine driver layer.

Add to this the fact that it's not free software, so can't be ported
properly, can't be improved by the community, and due to the usage of
Wine it will be a visual misfit on a Linux desktop. So, I'd say this
will have a much bigger impact on "Linux observers", than on Linux
users, who already have capable apps in this problem space. That's not
to say I wouldn't like to see a lot of improvement in what's available
now, but I don't think Picasa really offers it. So, interesting but not
overly exciting, IMHO.

Mike

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