My iPhoto 5 Rant - The Share Menu

capitalK · Feb 28th, 2005, 01:40 PM

When iMovie '04 was released Apple for some reason changed File>Export to File>Share. They did not change the export to share in iPhoto 04, it still said "export"

So now with iPhoto '05 Apple has removed File>Export all together and replaced it with the Share menu, between "Photos" and "View" at the top menu bar.

So that is bad enough, everytime I go to export a photo (which is almost once a day) I instinctively go to the File menu first, because that is what I have been trained to do for years, not just from iPhoto and iMovie, but almost every application that exports. What makes it worse is that if you go to iMovie '05 the share command is still in the File menu, it doesn't have its own "share" menu like iPhoto.

I have been trying to get used to this for a month now, and every time I go to the File menu I just get pissed off. Luckily more than half the time I use the keyboard shortcut, but the times I don't I wonder why Apple would mess with this.

And last but not least, iPhoto has photo sharing built-in so that I can share my photos over a network. Why would they try and confuse people by renaming export to share and still having the photo sharing. I'm not confused by the two shares, but I bet there are new users that are.

Ugh. Glad that's off my chest.

Carex · Feb 28th, 2005, 01:45 PM

Have you sent feedback to Apple? I hope so (I'll bet you have). These types of inconsistencies are what we don't expect from Apple programs. I agree with your rant and will send some myself on the same topic.

capitalK · Feb 28th, 2005, 01:59 PM

Yah, but I don't really expect them to change it. It just makes no sense to me why they'd do this.

farfisa · Feb 28th, 2005, 02:11 PM

I bet it's a windows-pacifying move (sounds like something you'd see in XP). Could iPhoto for Windows be far away with the new move in their iPod line?

capitalK · Feb 28th, 2005, 02:25 PM

I dunno, when they're trying so hard to get Windows users to try a Mac with the low price on the mini I find a Windows version of iPhoto to be unlikely.

But then hell froze over with iTunes, right?

Carex · Feb 28th, 2005, 04:30 PM

How would that work I wonder? iPhoto is not free right now like iTunes was and still is. It could be argued that iTunes isn't free on Windows since many users would get it when the purchased an iPod or when wanting to access the iTMS. I wonder what the split is between jukebox program, iTMS, iPod and combinations of all three when it comes to Windows users? (I guess you could add people on networks that want to take advantage of sharing to that mix too (Rendezvous/Bonjour))

iPhoto would have to be tied to a consumer hardware product. iPod photo works now on windows with a couple of software options (similar to the iPod prior to iTunes for Windows using musicmatch). Camera? Not likely but stranger things have happened.

Is the Windows iPod photo experience so bad that Apple has heard about it in force and would add this to their windows software lineup? I don't have any information on this.

capitalK · Feb 28th, 2005, 04:36 PM

Good point, Carex. Making iPhoto free or bundled for Windows users would complicate things.

Like I said, I don't think its going to happen.

farfisa · Feb 28th, 2005, 05:58 PM

Yeah, probably not. But "Share" is a Windows sort of thing to say. Perhaps it's supposed to make the switchers feel more at home.
Anyway, if the white iPods all eventually gain photo capabilities (and with only the lowest model still sporting a monochrome screen, that's not impossible to believe), the iPod photo would be that very consumer hardware product. I know the photo book printing business is no iTMS, but that wouldn't be a bad piece of business either--to get all the windows users making iPhoto albums? Or getting .Mac accounts for -- sorry -- "sharing?"

Carex · Feb 28th, 2005, 06:37 PM

.Mac is a possibility but it is kind of a premium service. There are many cheaper and freer web based alternatives for this kind of thing.

The book and print service on iPhoto would be an odd choice as Apple just skims a bit off the top for those services. The don't actually make the books or the prints. That is left to Kodak and ??oPhoto?, who likely get the bulk of the moola.

Macaholic · Feb 28th, 2005, 09:43 PM

Niether iPhoto nor any other Apple app will get ported to Windows. They ported iTunes for the sole reason of selling iPods to Windows users. Period. There is zero incentive for them to port iPhoto to Windows.