camera software

[Jan]

I have a Canon S2IS camera with software......I don't like the software and
have purchased the Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 software. I have several
hundred photographs saved on my computer that were downloaded to/through the
camera software. If I delete the canon software, will I lose my picts, or
wil they stay on my computer? Is ther a special way I should do this
transfer to safeguard my photos?

 

[tony cooper]

I have a Canon S2IS camera with software......I don't like the software and
have purchased the Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 software. I have several
hundred photographs saved on my computer that were downloaded to/through the
camera software. If I delete the canon software, will I lose my picts,
No.

or
wil they stay on my computer?

Yes. They are resident files. The software was only the conduit that
moved the images to your computer and left them there as files.

Is ther a special way I should do this
transfer to safeguard my photos?

No.

There is another aspect, though. If you use the Organizer module of
Elements, you will need to import your old images into Organizer if
you want them in Organizer. It is not an automatic function.

 

[Chuck]

By delete, you really mean uninstall. (Two different things) Deleting
applications usually leaves a bunch of registry entries, and application
specific files such as dll files to bug you and take up space. It's better
to use either the mfrs uninstall process, or the windows install/uninstall
feature than simply deleting the application and it's directory tree.
Besides, the pictures might be stored in the apps directory tree.

If you are really worried about the picture files, back them up (As files)
to external media, such as a CD or DVD.
(You should have done this anyway) If the picture files are in a Mfr &
camera unique format (usually RAW), you may want to save them in tiff format
as well. Seems that in some cases, the mfrs software is the only software
that can properly deal with the unique picture format.

 

[tony cooper]

By delete, you really mean uninstall. (Two different things) Deleting
applications usually leaves a bunch of registry entries, and application
specific files such as dll files to bug you and take up space. It's better
to use either the mfrs uninstall process, or the windows install/uninstall
feature than simply deleting the application and it's directory tree.
Besides, the pictures might be stored in the apps directory tree.

If you are really worried about the picture files, back them up (As files)
to external media, such as a CD or DVD.

There is absolutely no need to back-up files in this case. The files
will remain whether or not the program is retained.

There *is* a need to back-up files for other reasons, but not this
one.

 

[Jan]

You sound like my husband.....Yes, I should have stayed on top of things and
kept up with the backing up to cd/dvd. I'm not sure if I am doing the back
up in the easiest, fastest way. It seems to take sooo long and is a pain to
try to figure out how many pictures I have room to transfer (I like to keep
them in groups of similar subject matter). AND it seems as though I'm not
getting as many pictures on a DVD as I should. I'll have to read up on that
subject, too. Anyway, I have been a little "out of commision" from having 3
surgeries this past year. Excuse, excuse, whine, whine......Sorry, enough of
that.
Yes, I mean uninstall the Canon software......but how do I know if the picts
are stored in the apps directory tree, and if they are, will they be lost
upon uninstall?
Also, how do I know what format the pictures are stored in and how would I
go about changing that? Is the tiff format one that is generally used and
easy to work with/easily read by other media/easily transferred to dvd, and
maybe able to be viewed on a TV set/DVD player by grandparents who do not
have a computer?
Sorry about so many questions, but I really do appreciate the answers.
Thanks for your time and
patience....................................................Jan

 

[John Inzer]

It seems to take sooo long and is a pain to
try to figure out how many pictures I have
room to transfer (I like to keep them in groups
of similar subject matter).

=================================
The Canon S2 IS is a 5 megapixel camera
and on best quality the file sizes will average
approximately 1.5 to 2 MB each.

You could easily archive several hundred
pictures on a 4.7 GB DVD blank. If you
open a folder of pictures and go to...
Edit / Select All...you can right click the
highlighted group and choose Properties...
you will see the combined file size of the
selected files.
=================================

how do I know if the picts are stored in the
apps directory tree, and if they are, will they
be lost upon uninstall?

=================================
The pictures are not *in* the Canon software...
it simply accesses the files that are saved on
your hard drive.

Your pictures are probably archived in your
My Pictures folder and uninstalling the Canon
software will not remove them. Have a look
in your My Pictures folder and see if you can
find the pictures in question.

Personally, I never install software that comes
with a camera...I simply use a Card Reader to
download the pictures from my memory card
to a folder on my hard drive.
=================================

Also, how do I know what format the pictures
are stored in and how would I go about changing
that?

=================================
Look at the file name of one of your pictures...
the extension is the file format. For example...
birthday.jpg
The format would be .jpg or JPEG which is
the default for your camera.
=================================

Is the tiff format one that is generally used and
easy to work with/easily read by other media/
easily transferred to dvd, and maybe able to be
viewed on a TV set/DVD player by grandparents
who do not have a computer?

=================================
TIFF is a lossless format that many professional
photographers use but JPEG is adequate for
most users. I have thousands of JPEG files and
have no issues with them. And...I also have a
Canon S2 IS camera.

The advantage of JPEG over TIFF is much smaller
file size...the disadvantage of JPEG is that it is a
lossy format and the quality will degrade if a picture
is repeatedly edited and saved. On high resoluition
files from a 5 MP camera...you would not see any
visual loss.
=================================

Sorry about so many questions, but I really
do appreciate the answers. Thanks for your time and
patience....................................................Jan

=================================
No problem...that's what the volunteers are
here for. Let us know if you require further
assistance.

--

John Inzer MS-MVP
Digital Media Experience

Notice
This is not tech support
I am a volunteer

Solutions that work for
me may not work for you

Proceed at your own risk

 

[Chuck]

"There is absolutely no need to back-up files in this case. The files
will remain whether or not the program is retained."

There is never a need to backup when software, hardware, and users behave in
a rational and expected manner "without flaw or fault"

If my lively hood is involved, or for other reasons I really need digital
copies of pictures or scanned documents, you bet your bippy that I have more
than one backup of the critical items.

Many years ago (1978), and far, far away, (in Germany, actually) we had a
support operation going that was military critical, as in planes can get
shot down if certain systems don't work. We were dependent upon a
mini-computer operated system that was one of three in the world at that
time, and the only one outside the continental US. As a result, the
software backups were kept on site and three deep. A system
operator/technician called me at home one evening, and said that he had a
failure that seemed to be software related, and loaded the first backup,
which failed to solve the problem, so he then loaded the second with the
same result. He was about to load the last backup copy, until I told him to
stop, cease, and desist. To make a long story short, the backups were on
removable 7 Meg hard disks, and a drive failure (crashed head) was eating
them. Even worse, the crashed disks had to be physically destroyed, since
erasing them (required before disposal) would destroy the replacement heads
in the hard drive.

"Besides, the pictures might be stored in the apps directory tree.
If you are really worried about the picture files, back them up (As files)
to external media, such as a CD or DVD."