PicasaStarter Installation

Basic User Installation

Make sure Picasa is installed and working before you install PicasaStarter.

In this section you will Install PicasaStarter in a public area of your computer hard disk.

You will create a backup copy of your default Picasa database,

and you will make a working copy of your default Picasa database.

We will assume that you have some basic computer skills including the ability to use Windows Explorer and it's file manager functions.

Configure Windows Explorer to view Hidden Files and Folders. See How Here

Install PicasaStarter:

• 1. 1. Create a folder at the root of the C: drive called Programs if it doesn't yet exist. (Example: C:\Programs )

     2. In the C:\Programs folder, create a folder called PicasaStarter. (You will then have the path: C:\Programs\PicasaStarter )

     3. The PicasaStarter folder can also be created in any location with R/W access.

     4. Download the PicasaStarter program Zip file here: PicasaStarter Program

     5. Copy PicasaStarter.exe and it's DLL files from the zip file to the C:\Programs\PicasaStarter folder you created.

Start and Configure PicasaStarter:

• 1. 1. Double-click the .exe file to start PicasaStarter. If a windows protection message pops up select Run Anyway.

     2. A Missing Settings File window will open because we have not created one yet, so select NO so we can continue and create one.

     3. A "First Run" screen will come up unless PicasaStarter settings are already assigned. Select OK on the first run screen to keep the default settings.

     4. At this point select "Personal Database of..." on the PicasaStarter main screen and click Run Picasa. Your normal Picasa window should appear and should run normally. If it does not, please troubleshoot the installation. Picasa should run identically to the way it runs when started without using PicasaStarter.

     5. Exit Picasa, and the PicasaStarter screen should pop back up ready for additional configuration.

Make Backup and Working Copies of your Personal Database:

Using PicasaStarter it is fairly easy to make copies of any database, and we suggest you make a backup copy of the personal database for safety and then open it once to make sure it is a good copy, but after that you should never run it again. It is just there for disaster recovery to protect you from the possibility of making a mistake and losing your whole existing database.

After you have the backup copy of the Personal database you can make a Working copy of the Personal database in whatever location you wish. The working copy could be in a public area on the C: drive or on any drive that is assigned a drive letter.

You can put the Working copy of the database on a different drive, and then use Picasa with the working copy to move the picture folders to the same drive. This will provide a single drive location for your photos and database.

Make a Backup copy of your Personal Database:

• 1. - Decide on a location for the database. ( suggestion a public location like: C:\PicasaDB_Backup )

  2. - Follow the Make a Copy of your Database procedure below using the Database called "Personal database of ..." as the source to copy from.

  3. Make a Working copy of your Personal Database:

  4. - Decide on a location for the working database.

  5. ( suggestion: A folder on the drive where the photos will be located, named as to indicate that drive.

  6. (Example if on the P: drive: P:\PicasaDB_P_Drive\ If the Photos will be in P:\Pictures\ )

  7. - Follow the Make a Copy of your Database procedure below using the Database called "Personal database of ..." (or the backup) as the source to copy from.

Make a working copy of your database and/or other databases:

1. 1. 1. - You can make as many databases as you want and each one can be in a different location or drive and can show different sets of Photos..

      2. ( suggestion: Put the database in a folder on the drive where the photos will be located, named as to indicate that drive and Photo set

      3. (Example if on the P: drive: P:\VacationPicsDB_P_Drive\ If the Photos will be in P:\Vacation Pictures\ )

      4. - Follow the Make a Copy of your Database procedure below and make a new empty database or copy an existing database as appropriate.

Make a Copy of your Database:

Use the procedure below to make copies of your original personal database. At least one copy should be made as a backup in case of error. Mutiple copies can be made, and later modified to include only some picture folders if you wish to customize databases for specific uses,

• 1. At the "Main" PicasaStarter screen click the "Add" button to create and configure a new database.

  2. Give the new database a descriptive name and description in the first 2 boxes of the "Picasa Database configuration" screen below.

  3. Define a Database Path. The Database Path will contain the Picasa database files for the database you have just named. Use the Destination Path Browse button to browse to a drive and folder with enough free space for your Picasa Database, and Make a New Folder. This folder can have the same name you used above or you can give it another name describing that it is a database. Select the new folder and click OK. This creates a new empty database location.

  4. Click on the "Copy an Existing Database" button to bring up the following dialog:
     (Or Click on Create Empty Database if it will be a new database and skip the copy steps below.)

• 1. Select the personal database that is always present in PicasaStarter, (or any of the other databases already defined if you wish to copy a different database) and click the button Explore at the right-hand side of the Selected Source box. A windows explorer window will open at the place the database is located. Select the folders "Picasa2" and Picasa2Albums" located there and do "right-click"-"Copy". Then Close the explorer window.

  2. Your new database should be listed in the Destination box. Click Explore for this database as well. Another windows Explorer window will open showing the new database Google folder. This folder should be empty if it is a new database. Do "right-click"-"Paste" in this directory to put a copy of the original database Picasa2 and Picasa2Albums folders in the destination directory. Click the Done button to get back to the database configuration dialog.

Other Database configuration options:

1. You can create a Shortcut to start this database without showing PicasaStarter if you wish:
   Click the Create Shortcut button and follow the dialog to create a shortcut on the desktop.

2. Back in the Database Configuration dialog the Backup and Virtual Drive settings can be left blank for now, so Click OK to return to the PicasaStarter main screen.

3. Click Run Picasa and Picasa should start using the new database. If there is a problem click the Edit button to go back to the Configuration dialog and make sure the settings are correct and the database folders have been copied correctly to the destination folder. If the database isn't correct you can erase the or rename the old Picasa2 and Picasa2Album folders on the Destination and copy them again. You should now be able to run Picasa with this new database.

NOTES:

To configure PicasaStarter to run Picasa with photos and database on a virtual drive, see the Users Guide Virtual Drive topic.

Each copy of the database will be in it's own unique Base Directory. It is strongly suggested that the user have a complete backup of all pictures and the original database in case of problems when creating multiple databases.