picasawebuploader

A script that uploads photos to Google+ / Picasa Web Albums

• Resizes large images to be less than the free limit (2048 x 2048)
• Uploads all directories under a given directory
• Restartable
• Creates the albums as "private" aka "limited"
• Automatically retries when Google data service errors out

Attention: This script is obsolete for Windows and Mac

It looks like Google Picasa for Windows and Mac now comes with a back up tool that performs the same functionality as this script. If you are using a Windows or Macintosh system, you probably should look into using the official Google tool instead. See Picasa.

For more details, read this unofficial blog post describing the Google+ Auto Backup for Desktop tool.

Installation

• Prerequisites:
  • Python 2.7
  • Google Data APIs http://code.google.com/apis/gdata/
    • gdata-2.0.16 for Python
  • Google OAuth2 APIs https://github.com/google/oauth2client.git
  • The Pillow library for Python or BSD "sips" image processing program.
    • Pillow is available on most UNIX like systems.
    • "sips" comes pre-installed on OSX.
  • pyexiv2 module for writing correct EXIF data

Local Directory

• Each lowest-level directory will be created as album, the album name is the folder name, don't include path
• It will recursively lookup all directories under the "source"
• Quota per albums, only 2000 pictures per albums could be upload.
  • When the to be uploaded directory contain more than 2000 pictures, will warning and exit
  • You should split the big directory to more small directories.

Authentication

You need to use OAuth2 for authentication. Here is how to set it up ahead.

• Create a project through the Google Developer Console: at https://console.developers.google.com/
  • Replace user_agent='PicasaAlbumsSync' with your registed project name in main.py
• Under that project, create a new Client ID of type "Installed Application" under APIs & auth -> Credentials
• Once the Client ID has been created you should click "Download JSON" and save the file as $HOME/.config/picasawebuploader/client_secrets.json
  • You can change the location and name in main.py
• Create empty $HOME/.config/picasawebuploader/credentials.dat
  • You can change the location and name in main.py
  • It will be filled by next step in first time
  • It will be updated automatically if it expired or will expire in 5 minutes
• The first time you run the application you will be asked to authorize your application through your web browser.
  • If your web brower can't open correctly, like respbian on raspberry pi, you could copy the printed url to Windows PC web browser to open it.
  • Once you do this you will get a code which you have to copy and paste into the application.

To Do

• Unicode
• Use multiple threads for uploading.
• Deal with duplicate picture and folder names, both on local and web collections.
  • Currently we just throw an exception when we detect duplicate names.

Sync the photo data time

• Un-resize photo will changed to the time which created on cloud, not the one in local

Known Problems

• Quota limitation on per album
  • Got exception (403, 'Forbidden', 'Photo limit reached.')
  • Only 2000 photos could be added per album
  • Split big directory to more small directories