GoogleCL is a project intended to access Google services from Linux command line. Uploading the pictures to Picasa Web Album is one such service. Though the intention of this project is to make the services easily accessible from command line, I have written a simple GUI wrapper script to make this service available from GUI also. Here is how to get it installed.

Step-1. Installing the GoogleCL

Visit GoogleCL Download and download the latest .deb package file.

Install the package by double clicking the downloaded file or through command line (sudo dpkg -i googlecl_*.deb).

Step-2. One time Authentication of desktop

Now your desktop machine needs to get authenticated by Google (one time process) as part of initial configuration. To do this I am trying to list down my photos in Picasa. Then googlecl asks for my Picasa user name and provides a URL. Next I have to visit this URL in browser (by copying the link in GNOME Terminal) and Grant Access to this desktop. That is it. I have given below these steps in my machine.

(a) Enter “google picasa list” command and entering the user name

$ google picasa list

Did not find config / preferences file at /home/blackgod/.googlecl/config

… making new one.

Please specify user: <your-picasa-user-name>

(Hint: You can automatically launch your browser by adding “auth_browser = <browser>” to your config file under the GENERAL section, or define the BROWSER environment variable.)

Please log in and/or grant access via your browser at https://www.google.com/accounts/OAuthAuthorizeToken?oauth_token=4%2F4buv14DLANINMkldfsLDHW then hit enter.

Grant Access to your desktop from Browser

IMG_0268.JPG,http://picasaweb.google.com/xxxxxxxxx/DropBox?authkey=sdkfsdfkshfksfzNifdgMA#538656249534598422435

lego_robot.JPG,http://picasaweb.google.com/xxxxxxxxx/DropBox?authkey=KDHefjjfoeDKHSKSsjndsf#39849343983785875

- – - – - – - – - – - – - -

- – - – - – - – - – - – - -

- – - – - – - – - – - – - -

Now we are ready to access Picasa from Command line.

Step-3. Creating album and uploading files from command line

Here is how to create a album called “Web Cam” using the Pictures in “Web Cam” directory.

google picasa create --title "Web Cam" "Web Cam/*.jpg"

Step-4. Uploading the album from File manager

The same can be done through File manager in Ubuntu (Nautilus). I have written a simple nautilus script to do this task. Download the below script and copy this to .gnome2/nautilus-scripts directory in your home directory. Ensure that the script has executable permission (chmod +x “Upload to Picasa”)

  Upload_to_Picasa (801 bytes, 65 hits)

Now go to File manager and select directory which you want to upload -> Scripts -> Upload to Picasa. Another way is to right click the file manager pan within the directory which you want to upload.

Selecting a dictionary -> Scripts -> Upload to Picasa (Click to enlarge)

Right click within folder -> Scripts -> Upload to Picasa (Click to enlarge)

Once selected “Upload to Picasa”, you will get Desktop notification bubble saying that your album is being uploaded in background.

Album is being uploaded notification

Once album upload is successful or failure, again you will get notification.

Album upload status update notification

I believe this script will be very useful. You are welcome to enhance this script for other tasks in Picasa and other services in Google.