Browse Flickr In Style On Your Desktop With Flickroom

Flickr’s website is functionally easy to use but it doesn’t offer an optimal viewing experience for browsing photos. 

Flickroom is the new Adobe AIR kid on the block that will change the way you interact with  Flickr.  Flickroom lets you browse Flickr in a beautiful charcoal colored interface that is soothing to the eyes, allows easy photo uploads and downloads, gives you real-time notifications for comments and faves on your photostream, and more. The app is still in beta and new features are being added at a rapid pace.

Flickroom Setup

Download and install Flickroom from here. When launched, it will allow you to connect with your Flickr account or create a new one. The application requires a simple one-time authorization process via Flickr so that it can work with your account. Your credentials are cached locally so you don’t need to login again in the future.

Browse Flickr with Flickroom

Users of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom will feel right at home since the interface to browse Flickr is very similar. The bottom filmstrip shows your (or your contact’s) photographs. The center area is where you view photos, edit photo data, and chat with other Flickroom users.
You can choose the display size and background color of the photo viewer, and click Details to view photo information like description, comments, tags, and EXIF data.

At the top right, you can navigate between your photostream, contacts, groups, etc. The application commands are in a toolbar at the top-right of the window. From here, you can view the latest photos from your contacts, upload, chat, search and set default settings. Hover your mouse for a popup description since it may get some time to get used to the command buttons.

Viewing recent uploads from your contacts is very easy. You can see the recent photos in the right sidebar or launch a separate filmstrip view. In this separate window, you can flip between your contacts to see their recent uploads in a filmstrip.

Upload Photos

There are three ways to upload photos using Flickroom:

• When your photostream is visible, drag and drop any photo into the app to add it to your photostream.
• When viewing one of your sets, drag and drop any photo to add it to the set.
• For powerful upload functions, use the Upload Manager accessed from the top-right toolbar.

I was very impressed with the simple yet powerful Upload Manager. You can select a batch of multiple photos, choose privacy settings, use tags and existing sets, create new sets, and add to groups, before the actual upload.

Edit Photos, Add Comments and Notes

For any photo you are viewing, the action buttons below the photo on the right allow you to edit information, make comments, add notes, mark as favorite and so on.

Search Users and Photos

Flickroom allows basic searching for photos and users at present. You can search for users by email address or username. The photo search searches tags to find matches. Though the search is basic, the best part is that you can add users as your contact from within the application.

Preferences

The application preferences allow you to set the default photo size (useful for slower connections to use smaller display size), background color, initial view, and a ‘signature’ for all new photos.

Live Feed, Chat and Tweeting

The most unique feature of this app is the ability to get real-time notifications for any activity such as comments and favorites on your photostream. You can tweet about a photo from right within the application.

If you’re in a social mood, you can jump right into the Chat room, where you can chat with other Flickroom users currently logged in.
Do you like Flickroom’s interface to browse Flickr? Does it make your photos come alive? Let Me know in the comments!

Windows 7 Sidebar 3 Build 2348

Windows XP/Vista | Windows 7 Sidebar | 5.01 MB | RS | HF

The sidebar uses 50% less RAM and is faster than the original Microsoft Sidebar
The Windows 7 Sidebar for Microsoft Windows XP and Vista has gadgets like media players, google search, yahoo search and lots of more search engines. It has also vista sidebar gadgets like weather and system uptime and lots of more useful gadgets. The sidebar uses 50% less RAM and is faster than the original Microsoft Sidebar with more extras and works on Microsoft Windows Vista and XP.
Thoosje Windows 7 Sidebar works on Windows XP and Windows Vista. Gadgets are easy to use mini applications that give you information at a glance and provide easy access to frequently used tools. Thoosje Vista Sidebar helps you to organize your gadgets. As you use your computer to access information, perform tasks, and interact with software, you may at times feel like you’re facing information overload.
You have to open a web browser just to check the weather, open an application to view your calendar, and open a calculator program just to add up a few numbers. Now, with Windows Sidebar and its associated mini-applications called gadgets, the specific information you need is at your fingertips.
What’s New in This Release:
· Fixed – Clock hands didn’t save skin.
· Fixed – Weather Gadget interaction with weather.com.
· Fixed – Weather Gadget endless loop.
· Fixed – Media player Gadget doesn’t save position on first load.
· Fixed – Clock skin icons loaded double images.
· Fixed – Media player gadget song pane x,y position.

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Hotfiles

My New Desktop Look Using BumpTop.

Take a good glimpse of what would be the desktops of the future may look like, a 3d desktop. It features a "realistic feeling" of your desktop just like in real life.
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This wonderful program is called Bumptop. Though not revolutionary because it is not the first of its kind, it has many features than its predecessors. My favorite feature of this wonderful programs are customizable icons, icon physics, photoframe/slideshow, stackable icons for those who are obsessive compulsive people who do not want to see their desktop a mess.. Hey, that "messy" look of my desktop still look cool!

I am glad that i have stumbled with this wonderful software and had a glimps of what a future desktop would be!

PS:
Wallaper: Planet- New York [Link]
Dock: RocketDock
Yahoo widgets: Yahoo! mail Checker, Yahoo ! Weather , Digital Clock
CD Art Display (CAD): Phase for CAD [link], To use this skin you will need to download and install CAD1.0 [link] and upgrade to CAD2.0beta4 [link] . If you don't use CAD, shame on you. It's free and awesome
OS = Windows Vista with Windows 7 theme (bumptop works with XP)
Ram usage = 5-10% only
Videocard = 64mb minimum