Your own Flickr Slideshow on your Mac care of 1001

I wrote a little while ago about attending the Shanghai Flickr group's meet up at La Bella Cafe a few weeks ago. I consider events like these to be one of the best things about Shanghai because (a) Shanghai's a big city, (b) Shanghai attracts a lot of talented people, and (c) there is so much life and change to document in Shanghai.

In fact, I believe that you need both a lot of (b) in (a) so you get a lot of (c) covered [yeah, I got confused just writing this].

I liked the slideshow so much, that I have basically streamed it as my OS X screensaver to enjoy in my spare moments (just a like a changing picture frame).

This is how I did it.

• You need Mac OSX.
• You need a Flickr account.
• You need to install a screensaver plug-in that allows you to display your choice of Flickr photos on your own OSX system. The screensaver is can be obtained along with the fabulous (and free) Flickr accessory software, 1001. This is created & distributed from the gang at Kula Software, and allows you to do heaps of cool stuff with Flickr. Read their online How-To to get a better feel on what 1001 can do for you.

1. Install 1001 program (optional).
Download the 1001 package and install it on your OSX system. After installation of the software, run 1001. You will then be presented with an authorisation screen which will allow 1001 to use your Flickr account. You will need to be online for the authorisation process to go ahead.

You don't need to install 1001 to use the screensaver plug-in - essentially they are separate entities, but 1001 is so handy that I can't see a reason as to why you wouldn't install it anyway.


2. Install 1001 Screensaver.
Ensure that you've installed the 1001 screensaver into the correct location as described in the Installation instructions.


3. Enable 1001 Screensaver.


Go to System Preferences -> Desktop & Screensaver -> Screensaver. If you followed the installation instructions correctly, there should be a '1001' option to select from in the left frame.


4. Configure 1001 Screensaver.


Select 1001 from the left-frame, and then select Options from the main panel. You will be presented with another window from which you'll need to make choices.


1. Select the Authorization tab.


You need to authorise the 1001 screensaver to stream photos from Flickr. This authorisation is separate from the 1001 program authorisation, so you will need to do it again. This also means that you can install the 1001 screensaver without installing the 1001 program (but why would you?). Click on the Authorise button.


Your web browser will then launch, and ask you to allow the screensaver program Use your flickr login details to do this. The authorised program should be s1001 (screensaver 1001).


Then return to the System Preferences -> Desktop & Screensaver -> Screensaver -> 1001 -> Options -> Authorize window and select Finish to complete the authorisation process. You should then see that you're logged in under your Flickr account name.


2. Select the Streams tab.


Here you can select from a wide variety of options on what flickr images to stream to your screensaver. You can select from default options like flickr's Interestingness option, or from your own customised options. To create your own stream conditions, select the '+' icon to create a new stream. Rename the new stream to 'my stream name' and then use the pull-down options to configure this new stream. You can choose to stream images either from any flickr tags, or from your own flickr contacts, groups or tags. The options are limitless, so play around with it. In my case, I chose 'Groups', and from my flickr account options, 'Shanghai Flickr Meetup Slideshow'. You can also select more than 1 stream to display at once if you choose.


3. Select the Options tab.


Here you can select how often your streamed images will be refreshed, how many images you will store on your own computer, and the minimum size of the images you want to display. The last is a good one to play around with, as I've found that many photos streamed from flickr can appear pixellated on screens showing greater than 1024x768 pixels. This tab also shows you a big selection of 'keyboard shortcuts' to manage your 1001 slideshow. I usually use the following. Side-arrow keys for for browsing through your slideshow, 'd' to remove photos from your slideshow, but to also (which is the best function IMHO) the 'f' key to select an image as a flickr Favourite. Yes, this shows up in your flickr profile and helps you to browse flickr without having to hit your web browser.




Then hit OK to save all your 1001 option configurations.



5. Test & Use the 1001 Screensaver.
You should still be in the Screensaver System Preferences panel. If not, navigate back to it.

Go to System Preferences -> Desktop & Screensaver -> Screensaver.

Use the handy 'Test' button to see how well the 1001 screensaver works.

Now all you have to do is configure the settings on your OSX system to manage when your screensaver activates. I usually choose 3 minutes without activity as when to start my screensaver. You may need to check that your Energy Saver configurations to send your computer's display to sleep doesn't conflict with your Screensaver settings. You can check this by navigating to...

System Preferences -> Desktop & Screensaver -> Energy Saver

At first use, you may not have a lot of images to display. This is due to the refresh rate that you choose on the 1001 screensaver options. You will also have to have an internet connection to download images. If you're not online, the caching function in the 1001 screensaver allows you to store some images on your computer's hard-drive.

So, that's how you can get your Shanghai Flickr Meet-up Slideshow (or insert group of your choice) fix until the next time!