4 ms·

Has anyone found a good family friendly alternative? In particular I would really like to: - Pay for the service (sustainable/trustworthy business model) - Be

Has anyone found a good family friendly alternative? In particular I would really like to: - Pay for the service (sustainable/trustworthy business model) - Be able to very tightly control access to albums as I really don't want kid photos ending up on facebook or similar due to crazy aunt kathy (in google photos anyone with access can add anyone else and until recently there was no way to remove people) - Ability to require a full/proper login for guests (no hard-to-guess urls as security) - Confirmed and well-tested backup as a feature (sha1 of the backup matches my local, original copy, no stripping of the geo data!) - Decent ios and android clients that can auto backup all photos on the device

pqoek 6y ago
> - Ability to require a full/proper login for guests (no hard-to-guess urls as security) I believe all services provide that, because both have their upsides and downsides
traskjd 6y ago
Sounds like you should just use Google Photos as it delivers most of that, with perhaps some improvements in 'backing up' outside of GP.
- jwr 6y ago
  Well, perhaps apart from the fact that you are giving your photos to the company that makes money on targeted advertising and invests bajillions into AI technologies that learn from data. Some of us are distinctly uncomfortable with that, especially given what has been done to Gmail — your mail is being fed to machines and used to build an advertising profile for you.
  - three_seagrass 6y ago
    >especially given what has been done to Gmail — your mail is being fed to machines and used to build an advertising profile for you. Google has not mined emails in GMail for ad targeting for years now: https://blog.google/products/gmail/g-suite-gains-traction-in-the-enterprise-g-suites-gmail-and-consumer-gmail-to-more-closely-align/ https://blog.google/products/gmail/g-suite-gains-traction-in...
    - wizzwizz4 6y ago
      They have, however, let (apparently) arbitrary third-parties have access to said emails.
      - joshuamorton 6y ago
        Context? This sounds nefarious, but for all we know you're talking about the people in the To line.
        wizzwizz4 6y ago
        According to Google, it's “apps” – but this isn't Android apps; it's something that lets them directly fetch your emails from Google. I think it might be associated with OAuth, but despite their incredibly clear privacy policy I'm still not sure who exactly it is. Don't worry; I'm fairly sure it doesn't happen unless you click through a pop-up.
        dragonwriter 6y ago
        Are you just saying "Gmail has an API, and it is possible to authorize apps to access your Gmail via the API", which will be listed (along with every other app with access to your Google Account in any way) in your account permissions page @ https://myaccount.google.com/permissions https://myaccount.google.com/permissions Or something else?
        wizzwizz4 6y ago
        It would be very embarrassing if I were. I vaguely remember it being something Bad, but I didn't make notes on it.
    - jwr 6y ago
      Ok, I stand corrected. Your mail WAS fed to machines and used to build an advertising profile for you. I am constantly amazed and how people trust and defend corporations like Google, given what the incentives are. Why do you think Google provides services like GMail or Google Photos? Look at their revenue streams: it's an ad-tech company.
mceachen 6y ago
I'm working on one that's cross-platform, and, critically, self-hosted. The beta is available for free in exchange for your feedback. It's an early product, but I'm pushing out new features monthly. Face detection and sharing are coming soon. https://photostructure.com/faq/why-photostructure/ https://photostructure.com/faq/why-photostructure/ FWIW, I recommend to my beta users that they personally store at least one of their backup copies. https://photostructure.com/faq/how-do-i-safely-store-files/ https://photostructure.com/faq/how-do-i-safely-store-files/
- warrentr 6y ago
  Thanks for this! This sounds very interesting and your stated values align exactly with mine. I will check it out.
- SpyKiIIer 6y ago
  Thanks for this, I am giving it a try on UnRAID at the moment.
janoc 6y ago
ipernity.com/ ?
NikolaeVarius 6y ago
You could always pay for Google Photos
lelandbatey 6y ago
The only option that I know of is Dropbox. they're a classic player in this space with an acceptable track record (afaict). They have a nice app with auto-uploading of pictures, they dump them into a single folder with zero modification, preserving all metadata. Creating a photo album to share is as simple as putting all the jpegs into a folder and choosing "share" in their UI. You can create share links with the usual expected gradients of public accessibility, or you can share them with only specific authorized Dropbox users.
- jl6 6y ago
  Minor nitpick: Dropbox doesn’t preserve the original filename (e.g. IMG_1234.JPG), instead changing it to a timestamp-based filename. It also doesn’t preserve Live Photos on iOS.
  - lelandbatey 6y ago
    You're correct, turns out Dropbox does rename the files and I'd forgotten. It seems you're right about some quirks in their automatic photo saving system on iOS. Ive been using them with Android exclusively and had good support for auto saving pictures of all kinds. OP, if you're on iOS Dropbox may not be for you.
    - jl6 6y ago
      I do use paid Dropbox on iOS and aside from the two defects I mentioned, it’s very reliable. Actually there’s a third: the Dropbox iOS app cannot reliably run in the background, so mass uploading is only possible when the phone is plugged in and the screen switched on with the app in the foreground (e.g. overnight) - but this is the fault of iOS. Is there an alternative you’d recommend? I also use Dropbox for its cost-per-TB and Linux client.
benbristow 6y ago
Amazon Photos is an alternative, free if you're a Prime member, but it's definitely not as polished as Google Photos. https://www.amazon.co.uk/photos/ https://www.amazon.co.uk/photos/ Microsoft 365/OneDrive also offers a similar facility https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/onedrive/online-cloud-storage https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/onedrive/onlin... I'm sticking with Google though as I don't use the 'unlimited' feature as it compresses your photographs, I just pay for extra Drive storage.
ABeeSea 6y ago
Probably not the answer HN is looking for, but if you are in the Amazon Prime ecosystem, their access control using “groups” is really nifty. And you are technically paying for it (unlimited photo storage for Prime members + optional additional paid storage for video.)
gowld 6y ago
> - Ability to require a full/proper login for guests (no hard-to-guess urls as security) What is the difference between a hard to guess password and a hard-to-guess URL?
- gabagool 6y ago
  Someone with a hard-to-guess URL could share the link with anyone else or just put it online, thereby eliminating any sense of security. Of course, that "someone" could also just take a screenshot or copy the image.
amerkhalid 6y ago
I use Apple Photos with iCloud. Lightroom with 1TB plan might work too.
andrewia 6y ago
I like Jottacloud. Quasi-unlimited storage (realistically up to 5 TB without issue) and a small but long-running company. Bonus points for BSD and Linux clients. https://www.jottacloud.com/en/pricing.html https://www.jottacloud.com/en/pricing.html
- Dylan16807 6y ago
  > realistically up to 5 TB without issue What size of issue? Just the reduced upload speed, or something more? For most use cases you can probably ignore the throttling up to 10 or 15 TB.
treis 6y ago
We use Tinybeans and it checks all your boxes.
adharmad 6y ago
www.smugmug.com
plater 6y ago
kDrive from Infomaniak is pretty good. It also has iOS and Android apps for automatic upload from your phone. It's a privacy focused company and have been around a long time. They also offer file sharing with passwords and backup solutions. https://www.infomaniak.com/en/kdrive https://www.infomaniak.com/en/kdrive
ru552 6y ago
I have all of this with amazon. Included with Amazon prime.
jlarocco 6y ago
It depends on what you mean by a few of those, but SmugMug is worth taking a look at.
renchap 6y ago
You can have a try at https://www.notos.co/ https://www.notos.co/ for the privacy-minded sharing part. This is my main focus for the product. No mobile app (yet) or sync as backups and sharing require very different products and my focus is on the later for now.
jamesbr 6y ago
Check out Mylio. Happy user here. Doesn't quite tick all your boxes but it's been a great Aperture/Photos.app/iPhoto replacement for me.
TheArcane 6y ago
If you want a self-hosted solution, check out Nextcloud. I use the version that works on my Rasbperry Pi (nextcloud-pi)

pqoek 6y ago

> - Ability to require a full/proper login for guests (no hard-to-guess urls as security) I believe all services provide that, because both have their upsides and downsides

traskjd 6y ago

Sounds like you should just use Google Photos as it delivers most of that, with perhaps some improvements in 'backing up' outside of GP.

jwr 6y ago
Well, perhaps apart from the fact that you are giving your photos to the company that makes money on targeted advertising and invests bajillions into AI technologies that learn from data. Some of us are distinctly uncomfortable with that, especially given what has been done to Gmail — your mail is being fed to machines and used to build an advertising profile for you.
- three_seagrass 6y ago
  >especially given what has been done to Gmail — your mail is being fed to machines and used to build an advertising profile for you. Google has not mined emails in GMail for ad targeting for years now: https://blog.google/products/gmail/g-suite-gains-traction-in-the-enterprise-g-suites-gmail-and-consumer-gmail-to-more-closely-align/ https://blog.google/products/gmail/g-suite-gains-traction-in...
  - wizzwizz4 6y ago
    They have, however, let (apparently) arbitrary third-parties have access to said emails.
    - joshuamorton 6y ago
      Context? This sounds nefarious, but for all we know you're talking about the people in the To line.
      - wizzwizz4 6y ago
        According to Google, it's “apps” – but this isn't Android apps; it's something that lets them directly fetch your emails from Google. I think it might be associated with OAuth, but despite their incredibly clear privacy policy I'm still not sure who exactly it is. Don't worry; I'm fairly sure it doesn't happen unless you click through a pop-up.
        dragonwriter 6y ago
        Are you just saying "Gmail has an API, and it is possible to authorize apps to access your Gmail via the API", which will be listed (along with every other app with access to your Google Account in any way) in your account permissions page @ https://myaccount.google.com/permissions https://myaccount.google.com/permissions Or something else?
        wizzwizz4 6y ago
        It would be very embarrassing if I were. I vaguely remember it being something Bad, but I didn't make notes on it.
  - jwr 6y ago
    Ok, I stand corrected. Your mail WAS fed to machines and used to build an advertising profile for you. I am constantly amazed and how people trust and defend corporations like Google, given what the incentives are. Why do you think Google provides services like GMail or Google Photos? Look at their revenue streams: it's an ad-tech company.

mceachen 6y ago

I'm working on one that's cross-platform, and, critically, self-hosted. The beta is available for free in exchange for your feedback. It's an early product, but I'm pushing out new features monthly. Face detection and sharing are coming soon. https://photostructure.com/faq/why-photostructure/ https://photostructure.com/faq/why-photostructure/ FWIW, I recommend to my beta users that they personally store at least one of their backup copies. https://photostructure.com/faq/how-do-i-safely-store-files/ https://photostructure.com/faq/how-do-i-safely-store-files/

warrentr 6y ago
Thanks for this! This sounds very interesting and your stated values align exactly with mine. I will check it out.
SpyKiIIer 6y ago
Thanks for this, I am giving it a try on UnRAID at the moment.

janoc 6y ago

ipernity.com/ ?

NikolaeVarius 6y ago

You could always pay for Google Photos

lelandbatey 6y ago

The only option that I know of is Dropbox. they're a classic player in this space with an acceptable track record (afaict). They have a nice app with auto-uploading of pictures, they dump them into a single folder with zero modification, preserving all metadata. Creating a photo album to share is as simple as putting all the jpegs into a folder and choosing "share" in their UI. You can create share links with the usual expected gradients of public accessibility, or you can share them with only specific authorized Dropbox users.

jl6 6y ago
Minor nitpick: Dropbox doesn’t preserve the original filename (e.g. IMG_1234.JPG), instead changing it to a timestamp-based filename. It also doesn’t preserve Live Photos on iOS.
- lelandbatey 6y ago
  You're correct, turns out Dropbox does rename the files and I'd forgotten. It seems you're right about some quirks in their automatic photo saving system on iOS. Ive been using them with Android exclusively and had good support for auto saving pictures of all kinds. OP, if you're on iOS Dropbox may not be for you.
  - jl6 6y ago
    I do use paid Dropbox on iOS and aside from the two defects I mentioned, it’s very reliable. Actually there’s a third: the Dropbox iOS app cannot reliably run in the background, so mass uploading is only possible when the phone is plugged in and the screen switched on with the app in the foreground (e.g. overnight) - but this is the fault of iOS. Is there an alternative you’d recommend? I also use Dropbox for its cost-per-TB and Linux client.

benbristow 6y ago

Amazon Photos is an alternative, free if you're a Prime member, but it's definitely not as polished as Google Photos. https://www.amazon.co.uk/photos/ https://www.amazon.co.uk/photos/ Microsoft 365/OneDrive also offers a similar facility https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/onedrive/online-cloud-storage https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/onedrive/onlin... I'm sticking with Google though as I don't use the 'unlimited' feature as it compresses your photographs, I just pay for extra Drive storage.

ABeeSea 6y ago

Probably not the answer HN is looking for, but if you are in the Amazon Prime ecosystem, their access control using “groups” is really nifty. And you are technically paying for it (unlimited photo storage for Prime members + optional additional paid storage for video.)

gowld 6y ago

> - Ability to require a full/proper login for guests (no hard-to-guess urls as security) What is the difference between a hard to guess password and a hard-to-guess URL?

gabagool 6y ago
Someone with a hard-to-guess URL could share the link with anyone else or just put it online, thereby eliminating any sense of security. Of course, that "someone" could also just take a screenshot or copy the image.

amerkhalid 6y ago

I use Apple Photos with iCloud. Lightroom with 1TB plan might work too.

andrewia 6y ago

I like Jottacloud. Quasi-unlimited storage (realistically up to 5 TB without issue) and a small but long-running company. Bonus points for BSD and Linux clients. https://www.jottacloud.com/en/pricing.html https://www.jottacloud.com/en/pricing.html

Dylan16807 6y ago
> realistically up to 5 TB without issue What size of issue? Just the reduced upload speed, or something more? For most use cases you can probably ignore the throttling up to 10 or 15 TB.

treis 6y ago

We use Tinybeans and it checks all your boxes.

adharmad 6y ago

www.smugmug.com

plater 6y ago

kDrive from Infomaniak is pretty good. It also has iOS and Android apps for automatic upload from your phone. It's a privacy focused company and have been around a long time. They also offer file sharing with passwords and backup solutions. https://www.infomaniak.com/en/kdrive https://www.infomaniak.com/en/kdrive

ru552 6y ago

I have all of this with amazon. Included with Amazon prime.

jlarocco 6y ago

It depends on what you mean by a few of those, but SmugMug is worth taking a look at.

renchap 6y ago

You can have a try at https://www.notos.co/ https://www.notos.co/ for the privacy-minded sharing part. This is my main focus for the product. No mobile app (yet) or sync as backups and sharing require very different products and my focus is on the later for now.

jamesbr 6y ago

Check out Mylio. Happy user here. Doesn't quite tick all your boxes but it's been a great Aperture/Photos.app/iPhoto replacement for me.

TheArcane 6y ago

If you want a self-hosted solution, check out Nextcloud. I use the version that works on my Rasbperry Pi (nextcloud-pi)