What did people do before Facebook had a photo option? Actually, I know what we did and it was not nearly as easy or fun.
Here's a quick rundown of my memory of the evolution of photo sharing:
1. We used disposable cameras.*
2. You had to get photos printed at a photo printing center. If you wanted to share the photos with friends or family, you needed to suck it up and pay for doubles. You also always saved your negatives, just in case you needed to get photos reprinted.
3. Once computers started becoming more popular, photo printing centers gave you the option to get your photos put on a CD. Then you could share them by uploading them on your computer. But the internet still sucked at this point, so nobody ever did that.
4. Finally, digital cameras became more affordable. But, aside from AOL or AIM, social networking sites were not widespread. This is when Yahoo Photo** and Shutterfly started to pop up. You could upload your photos and post them to albums. People couldn't really comment on the photos or even download them without paying, and it wasn't until later when you could actually share your albums with people, but it was a place to keep your photos.
5. Facebook then begins to spread across campuses. But, as many may not know, the original Facebook did not have any high-tech photo capabilities.*** The first time I signed on Facebook, I am pretty sure I was freaked out and the only photo I could upload was my profile picture. Either way, there was definitely no tagging involved.
6. Now, there are social networking sites dedicated to photo sharing (such as Flickr) and any photo you post on Facebook is basically owned by Mark Zuckerberg. And while he may own your life, you can at least access your friends' photos with a tap of a mouse.
See, isn't technology great?
So, what do you think? Is life better with Facebook Photo Albums?
*For you youngins out there, a disposable camera is exactly what it sounds like. You could buy them for like $15 at a grocery or drug store. They came with about 24 shots. And once you were done with it, you could get the photos printed at a photo printing center. The worst was when you realized your finger blocked the flash, so you lost all your photos from Jimmy's bar mitzvah. The second worst was when you only took 22 photos and the camera sat in your drawer for 14 months and you never developed it. And by the time you did, you weren't friends with those people any more.
**Shutterfly ended up taking over Yahoo Photo.
***In fact, the first version of Facebook didn't have half of the capabilities it has now. When you posted on someone's wall, you didn't have your photo or name next to it. It was just a block of text and you could roll your mouse over it and it would tell you who posted it.
Here's a quick rundown of my memory of the evolution of photo sharing:
1. We used disposable cameras.*
2. You had to get photos printed at a photo printing center. If you wanted to share the photos with friends or family, you needed to suck it up and pay for doubles. You also always saved your negatives, just in case you needed to get photos reprinted.
3. Once computers started becoming more popular, photo printing centers gave you the option to get your photos put on a CD. Then you could share them by uploading them on your computer. But the internet still sucked at this point, so nobody ever did that.
4. Finally, digital cameras became more affordable. But, aside from AOL or AIM, social networking sites were not widespread. This is when Yahoo Photo** and Shutterfly started to pop up. You could upload your photos and post them to albums. People couldn't really comment on the photos or even download them without paying, and it wasn't until later when you could actually share your albums with people, but it was a place to keep your photos.
5. Facebook then begins to spread across campuses. But, as many may not know, the original Facebook did not have any high-tech photo capabilities.*** The first time I signed on Facebook, I am pretty sure I was freaked out and the only photo I could upload was my profile picture. Either way, there was definitely no tagging involved.
6. Now, there are social networking sites dedicated to photo sharing (such as Flickr) and any photo you post on Facebook is basically owned by Mark Zuckerberg. And while he may own your life, you can at least access your friends' photos with a tap of a mouse.
See, isn't technology great?
So, what do you think? Is life better with Facebook Photo Albums?
*For you youngins out there, a disposable camera is exactly what it sounds like. You could buy them for like $15 at a grocery or drug store. They came with about 24 shots. And once you were done with it, you could get the photos printed at a photo printing center. The worst was when you realized your finger blocked the flash, so you lost all your photos from Jimmy's bar mitzvah. The second worst was when you only took 22 photos and the camera sat in your drawer for 14 months and you never developed it. And by the time you did, you weren't friends with those people any more.
**Shutterfly ended up taking over Yahoo Photo.
***In fact, the first version of Facebook didn't have half of the capabilities it has now. When you posted on someone's wall, you didn't have your photo or name next to it. It was just a block of text and you could roll your mouse over it and it would tell you who posted it.
