Vista - Windows Photo Gallery Revert To Original Image Bad Design

I was really impressed with the way Vista is handling photographs and the
tight integration with Photo Gallery. I thought I could do away with programs
like Picasa, but I found a big problem.

I put some images onto a test machine, made some fixes to them, reverted to
original, etc. I then checked the original directory and my original files
were not there - the modified versions were then in their place. I then went
searching the hard drive for the original image and I found it in the
following folder:

C:\Users\{user}\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Photo Gallery\Original Images

I checked the filenames and although my original file was called
IMG_2635.JPG the file in the "original images" folder is called

{530FB1E9-0950-40F3-A4C5-715148FCEE37}-IMG_2635.JPG

I see two problems with this approach:

1. Let's say I regularly back up my Pictures folder, but not this hidden
obscure folder, then my system crashes or hardware fails and I reload the OS
and restore files from my backup source. I have restored a modified version,
not the original. Very bad design.

2. This potentially wastes a large amount of disk space.

Other applications either use sidecar files, XMP files, XML files to
describe the change and then apply those files over the original. I wish
Microsoft would do the same. If I missed something in the way my version of
Photo Gallery is configured, please let me know.

thanks,
mitch

----------------
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http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/com...pictures_video

I believe this is typical Apple iPhoto stuff and one of the reasons why I
ended up hating iPhoto when I was trying and failing to switch to Mac last
summer. In apple you can avoid it and I don't think it renames your
originals (so Vista is worse), but it's the same kind of thing where a layer
of unnecessary bureaucracy is installed between the user and the user's
content.


"Mitch W" <MitchW@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:357E8260-B393-4395-8A66-E08B09546485@microsoft.com...
>I was really impressed with the way Vista is handling photographs and the
> tight integration with Photo Gallery. I thought I could do away with
> programs
> like Picasa, but I found a big problem.
>
> I put some images onto a test machine, made some fixes to them, reverted
> to
> original, etc. I then checked the original directory and my original files
> were not there - the modified versions were then in their place. I then
> went
> searching the hard drive for the original image and I found it in the
> following folder:
>
> C:\Users\{user}\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Photo Gallery\Original
> Images
>
> I checked the filenames and although my original file was called
> IMG_2635.JPG the file in the "original images" folder is called
>
> {530FB1E9-0950-40F3-A4C5-715148FCEE37}-IMG_2635.JPG
>
> I see two problems with this approach:
>
> 1. Let's say I regularly back up my Pictures folder, but not this hidden
> obscure folder, then my system crashes or hardware fails and I reload the
> OS
> and restore files from my backup source. I have restored a modified
> version,
> not the original. Very bad design.
>
> 2. This potentially wastes a large amount of disk space.
>
> Other applications either use sidecar files, XMP files, XML files to
> describe the change and then apply those files over the original. I wish
> Microsoft would do the same. If I missed something in the way my version
> of
> Photo Gallery is configured, please let me know.
>
> thanks,
> mitch
>
> ----------------
> This post is a suggestion for Microsoft, and Microsoft responds to the
> suggestions with the most votes. To vote for this suggestion, click the "I
> Agree" button in the message pane. If you do not see the button, follow
> this
> link to open the suggestion in the Microsoft Web-based Newsreader and then
> click "I Agree" in the message pane.
>
> http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/com...pictures_video