It has be around for some time but now it seems that the move is really growing (China will be using IPv6 to provide coverage of the Beijing Olympics this year).

The KoffeePhoto software and web pages are purely domain related. More, many of the components we use are based on Open Source solutions. Therefore, there will be no compatibility issues moving from IPv4 to IPv6.

All current operating systems support IPv6, some already have IPv6 enabled (Be aware of the possible security issues, read the Wired article: The Ghost in Your Machine: IPv6 Gateway to Hackers). The move to IPv6 will be close to transparent for many users as both connectivities will be enabled for quite some time. Therefore the move for applications such as KoffeePhoto from IPv4 to IPv6 should be as transparent as possible from the user point of view. In other words, you should not have to care about it.

By now, the need to move to IPv6 is not compelling enough for us to switch.

KoffeeWare will be exhibiting at upcoming photokina 2008 to be held in Cologne, Germany from September 23rd to September 28th, 2008.

Make sure you come to pay us a visit, our booth will be A026a in Hall 4.1. We will be glad to meet you.

KoffeePhoto 2.5.122 has just been released. It fixes various bugs.

Once again, nothing specific to do. Software will update itself while running.

WiFi Digital Picture Frames from Pixstar can now automatically display photos from KoffeePhoto albums.

Pixstar customers simply need to log on onto their Pixstar account, select the RSS setup tab, select the KoffeePhoto tag and enter their KoffeePhoto account details. They will then be offered to chose from their KoffeePhoto stored photo albums. Using KoffeePhoto’s RSS feeds, screen size optimized photos will be sent automatically to the selected digital picture frame.

Photo sharing should not be only computer and web based.

Photo sharing is everywhere and everybody claims its solution is easy. At KoffeeWare, we think easy photo sharing can only be easy if it addresses the whole chain from the digital camera to the methods of displaying the photos and ordering prints.

Therefore, KoffeePhoto includes a desktop photo manager. Downloaded on the computer, the KoffeePhoto photo manager is capable of grabbing photos from connected digital cameras, creating and managing photo albums, uploading pictures in background (thus eliminating the hassle of managing uploads) and managing access rights to enable private photo sharing. Obviously KoffeePhoto also allows for ordering prints.

KoffeePhoto obviously also includes web pages for easy photo sharing tasks. These web pages allow for slideshow based display of pictures and feature blog-like comment capabilities.

Access rights are easily granted by inviting relatives by email thus simplifying photo sharing privacy concerns.

For a complete one-stop photo solution, optional KoffeePhoto Premium additionally provides for online backup of the original picture files.

Outside of the required featureset, easy photo sharing is mainly a matter of ergonomics. Depending on our computer usage experience, we all have different requirements in terms of user interface. The challenge here is to address all requirements while keeping the ergonomics in mind.

KoffeePhoto 2.5.115 has just been released. It fixes some EXIF management issues,  some japanese characterset support issues and as well as some display bugs.

Once again, nothing specific to do. Software will update itself while running.

Registered KoffeePhoto users may have recently noticed some changes in their KoffeePhoto web space.

We added a profile page that will allow the users to control the behavior of their KoffeePhoto account.

The current settings provide for:

• defining the account’s default language for navigation and email updates,
• defining the user’s country used, among others, as default for photo print orders,
• changing the account’s password
• as well as setting the frequency of information updates users receive about their account.

These information updates refer to the KoffeePhoto photo sharing activity summary and may include update information about KoffeePhoto.

As language and country information have only been collected automatically with recently created accounts, we invite early users to check and, if needed, update their information for an improved KoffeePhoto user experience.

While future versions will obviously include more controlling features, feedback and feature requests are welcome.

Nous lançons une campagne de bannières sur le thème de la sauvegarde des photos. Tous les commentaires sont les bienvenus.

Bannière N°1 (468×60) :

Bannière N°2 (728×90) :

I agree, this might sound strange but consider online photo sharing in the private circle, when sharing photos with the family or with friends. Not everybody would be happy to have his “strange” face from the last party being made public and seen by everybody.

At KoffeeWare, we take privacy very seriously when it comes to KoffeePhoto.

First, you don’t have to share. Yes, KoffeePhoto manages and backs up your pictures. Why would you need to have to share them in order to benefit from backup? No, pictures managed with KoffeePhoto can simply be stored and backed up without having to share them. This said, you will still be able to access them online through your private, password protected page.

Second, when sharing, this does not necessarily have to imply public sharing. When sharing photos using KoffeePhoto, your fellows receive an invitation and can access the shared pictures on a specific, non public URL or on their own private page if they have a KoffeePhoto account.

Last, you can post your pictures on your shared page. This page is accessible to any one with whom you’ve shared pictures, through an invitation or through a link from your personnal blog. In the latter case, if your blog has a certain exposure, these pictures can be considered as being public and may even be crawled and indexed by search engines.

If public exposure is what you are looking for, don’t forget to properly name your album and picture for a better search engine indexing.

So, yes, privacy is the key of photo sharing. It is up to the user to define the level of privacy he requires.

Last but not the least, do not forget to read the photo sharing provider’s Privacy Policy…

A couple of days ago, KoffeeWare launched KoffeePhoto Premium,a dedicated online photo backup solution.

Advantages of online backup over CD/DVD based backup are numerous. A quick reminder, online backup is:

• (obviously) remote (in case of fire or theft, what is the need of a backup if it sits close to the computer?),
• reliable (how sure can you be to able to read your CD based backup when needed which is usually after a couple of years?),
• dependable (are you sure to find your backup CDs when needed which is usually after a couple of years),
• and inexpensive (consider the cost of your CDs, CD burner and the time spent backuping data).

Last but not the least, automated online backup helps fighting against procrastination.

But why using a photo dedicated online backup solution?

Numerous online storage and backup solutions exist, some are dedicated to photo storage, others provide general purpose storage. At KoffeeWare, we think that online storage benefits from being application specific. In fact, storage is only part of the story.

KoffeePhoto handles the whole photo process, from the camera to sharing including organizing and backuping. More, using KoffeePhoto, you may add pictures to your account without even running your own computer. Storing and backuping being completely embedded into the system, KoffeePhoto combines great ease of use and peace of mind.

Last but not the least, KoffeePhoto includes a one-click photo restoration features. Simply log in and all pictures are automatically retrieved.

Although versatile, swiss-knife-like solutions look good, application specific solutions always fulfill their mission better and easier.