DropBox Setup

Example: Put Picasa Photos and Database on Dropbox

This Example installation shows how to install Dropbox on your PC and share Picasa Photos and the the Picasa Database with other computers using dropbox to synchronize the edits and Share them among multiple computers.

- User wants to Put some Photos and the Database on Dropbox to share with other Computers

1. Make sure Picasa is updated to the latest version of Picasa 3.9.
2. Install Dropbox on the computer as follows:
3. - When DropBox asks where to install, select a custom location and install it in C:\ (The Root Directory of the C: drive)
4. - Set dropbox to synchronize all folders and files.
5. - Dropbox will create a folder called "Dropbox" in the C: drive.
6. Create a subfolder called "Picasa Photos" in the C:\Dropbox folder, then double-click to show the folder.
7. Create a subfolder called "PicasaStarter" in the C:\Dropbox\Picasa Photos folder.
8. Create a subfolder called "Pictures" in the C:\Dropbox\Picasa Photos folder.
9. Create a subfolder called "DatabaseC" in the C:\Dropbox\Picasa Photos folder.
10. Copy at least a couple of Photo files into the Pictures folder created above.
11. If you Haven't already, Download the PicasaStarter 2.0 Zip File
12. Copy PicasaStarter.exe and it's 2 DLL files from the zip file to the C:\Dropbox\Picasa Photos\PicasaStarter folder .
13. Double-click the .exe file to start PicasaStarter. If you get a warning that it is unsigned, tell the warning to not ask every time and then run the program.
14. A Missing Settings screen will come up unless PicasaStarter settings are already assigned. Select NO to define new settings.
15. Next, a First Run screen will come up unless PicasaStarter settings are already assigned. Select Default and then Finish on the first run screen to keep the default settings.
16. At this point you should 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.
17. Exit Picasa and PicasaStarter should reopen.

Set up PicasaStarter to run from the DropBox:

Use the procedure below Set up the dropbox copy of PicasaStarter and ready it for sharing.

Picasa Starter - Main Screen

PicasaStarter - Database Configuration Dialog

At the main screen click the Add button to create and configure a new database.
For the first copy, name the new database "DatabaseC" or similar and describe it as The database for the photos on C: \DropBox\Picasa Photos\Pictures\ Folder.
Define the Database Path. The Database Path will contain the Picasa database files for the database you have just named. Use the Database Path Browse button to browse to C:\Dropbox\Picasa Photos\DatabaseC which is the location we chose for this database.
Click on the "Create Empty Database" button, then Click ok to exit the configuration screen.
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.
Click Run Picasa. A dialog will open asking if you want to scan folders, Select NO, and Picasa should start using the new empty database. If there is a problem, exit Picasa and click the Edit button to go back to the Configuration dialog and make sure the settings are correct.
When Picasa is running, go to the Tools menu -> Folder Manager. You should have a screen with a folder tree on the left.
Set all drives and folders in the manager to "Remove From Picasa".
In the folder tree, go to the C: drive and go to the Dropbox subfolder, then to the Picasa Photos subfolder, then to the Pictures subfolder and set it to "Scan Always".
Exit the Folder Manager screen and Picasa should start indexing the pictures in the Pictures subfolder.
Using Windows Explorer, Copy whatever Pictures and Folders you want to share in the dropbox to the C:\Dropbox\Picasa Photos\Pictures\ Folder and thay will be indexed by Picasa.
If you want a shortcut on your desktop to this database, Exit Picasa, and when PicasaStarter appears, make sure the dropbox database is selected and click Edit. In the Edit screen, click "Create Shortcut". In the Create shortcut screen name the shortcut, and any other options you want and select Create Shortcut.

Set up to Share Dropbox and PicasaStarter on other computers:

Use the procedure below Set up the dropbox copy of PicasaStarter and ready it for sharing.

1. Make sure Picasa is updated to the latest version of Picasa 3.9.
2. Install Dropbox on the next computer as follows:
3. - When DropBox asks where to install, select a custom location and install it in C:\ (The Root Directory of the C: drive)
4. - Set dropbox to synchronize all folders and files.
5. - Dropbox will create a folder called "Dropbox" in the C: drive.
6. - Dropbox will sync all the folders and files created above on the new computer.
7. Go to the C;\Dropbox\Picasa Photos\PicasaStarter\ Folder.
8. Double-click on PicasaStarter.exe. If you get a warning that it is unsigned, tell the warning to not ask every time and then run the program.
9. Select the Dropbox database defined above in the list.
10. Click on Run Picasa to start Picasa on the dropbox database.
11. If you want a shortcut on the desktop, Click the Edit Button, then Click the Create Shortcut button, then Name the shortcut and click Create Shortcut(s)

NOTES:

Remember that the Free Dropbox can only hold a total of 2 GB including all photos, the database, PicasaStarter, and anything else you are sharing in Dropbox.

.PicasaStarter will warn you when another user is already using the database, so if you get the warning, don't blow through it, it could be hard on the database.

Check out the Backup feature of PicasaStarter and think about at least backing up the database once in a while. It can be scheduled to ask every day, once a week, etc. The Backup should probably be done to a backup area on the master PC.