I’ve started using Stikkit for my to-do lists. I like that it allows you to write mixed content in a single note, so that you can keep dates, contacts, to-dos and little notes all in the same framework. It’s not perfect yet, but it works for me. With the recent launch of the Stikkit API things should get even more interesting.

Here’s a quick demo of how to access your most recent Stikkits in PHP (requires PHP 5, HTTP_Request and Services_JSON):

<?php
// stikkit.php
// Marius Watz - http://workshop.evolutionzone.com

require_once "PEAR/HTTP/Request.php";
require_once "JSON/JSON.php";

$req =& new HTTP_Request("http://api.stikkit.com/stikkits?api_key=xxxx");
$req->setMethod(HTTP_REQUEST_METHOD_GET);
$req->addHeader("Accept", "application/json, */*");
$response = $req->sendRequest();

if (PEAR::isError($response)) echo $response->getMessage();
else {
  $json = new Services_JSON(SERVICES_JSON_LOOSE_TYPE);
  $value = $json->decode($req->getResponseBody());
  printNestedArray($value);
}

function printNestedArray($a) {
  echo "<ul>";
  if(is_array($a))  {
    foreach ($a as $dbkey => $value) {
      echo "<li>".htmlspecialchars("$dbkey: ");
      if (is_array($value)) {
        printNestedArray($value);
      } else if(!is_object($value)){
        echo "'". chop($value);
      }
    }
  }
  else echo "$a</li>";
  echo "</ul>";
}
?>

As great as I think Flickr is, I still wish they would fix or add two things:

1. Black thumbnails: Whenever I upload an image bigger than maybe 4000 x 4000 pixels Flickr is unable to generate a thumbnail, and the picture appears as a black square except when viewed in its original size (see this example.) It’s in the Flickr FAQ, so it’s a well-known issue.

I realize that Flickr is primarily a photo site and that most users will be uploading images in the 5-10 megapixel range, but I really wish they would fix this.

2. Toggle private photos in photostream: I wish there was an option to not show my non-public photos when I browse my own photostream. I regularly upload images that I want to have easy access to but which are not intended for public viewing. Often these are batches of up to 30-50 images. After uploading a private batch I have to click through pages of private images to get to the public ones.

I know I can just sign out to see my photostream as other users would see it. But that seems kind of, well, stupid. A simple option to filter by privacy setting would be a great help to any Flickr power user.

Always save some sugar for last: Flickr recently introduced a nice new feature called Collections, which tackles the issue of having a lot of sets. Collections allow users to organize their photo sets so that related sets can be grouped together. Have a look at my Collections for an example.

Collections get a mosaic of images as icons, which can be randomly generated or painstakingly hand-selected. There is also a new option to choose the layout for your photostream to display collections rather than sets in the right-hand column. This is the first time users get any say in the layout of their Flickr “home pages”, it would be interesting to see if more customization features get added in the future.

I only wish there was an option to simply have single images as collection icons. The new photo mosaics give a decent impression of the contents of a collection, but they can look a bit messy and not as attractive as a single good image.

I’ve uploaded some demo images generated with the aTileSaver class to my Flickr account. They show images at reduced size and at 100%. Make sure to look at the original sizes for the full effect.

As should be expected, OpenGL doesn’t give quite the crispness that a raytracer or similar production tool might yield, but the sheer resolution should be enough to compensate. I have uploaded a 6400 x 6400 pixel JPG (RandBox 0023) as an example, but annoyingly Flickr isn’t able to create a thumbnail for it because of the large size. Go directly to the original size for a closeup view.

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High-resolution images from Processing using tiling (1.6% / 20%)

A while back I posted about rendering very high-resolution images from Processing using a tiling technique. I had implemented a working version of a solution first described by "surelyyoujest", but didn’t have time to post a clean version of the code. (I did however post ImageStitcher.pde, which is code for stitching these tiled images back together.) But after a long delay, here is finally the more useful bit of code.

The code works by panning the camera over the original viewport area, subdividing the image into tiles. This way, OpenGL’s limitations on maximum resolution can be circumvented. As long as enough memory is allocated, the images created can be very big indeed. The images shown above are from a 15360 x 15360 pixel image, shown at 1.6% and 20% respectively. With 1.5 GB assigned to Java I have so far successfully saved 20k x 20k images. That’s large enough to print 2×2 meter prints at 260 DPI.

What follows is the aTileSaver class and a simple demo application. I will post a more complex example soon.

Update: I’ve changed a few minor details in the code. Make note of the version number if you have download it already. This code is likely to change..

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Forgot one Flickr stats tool: Group Trackr. It tracks membership numbers and pictures posted over time. It doesn’t need the massive amount of requests that would be needed to do the same for a user’s photostream. The results can be posted as a static image on web sites etc.

Here is the Processing Flickr group:

I’ve been monkeying around with Flickr tools. I’ve even been getting my hands dirty with phpFlickr, a library that implements the API in classic friendly PHP style.

The API is powerful and well thought out, but can also be frustrating. Multiple HTTP requests are needed to get certain pieces of information. I’m sure there are good reasons, saving bandwidth being the main one. I do wish there was more statistics functionality. As it stands there are only views, favorite and comment counts, with no history of activity.

Getting the view count requires authentication, which is slightly tricky but doable. More annoyingly, Flickr only yields the view count when using flickr.photos.getInfo, which gives detailed info on single images one at the time. The more light-weight flickr.people.getPublicPhotos would have been more convenient. One might wonder if Flickr wants to discourage stats applications.

Some tools for an easy Flickr life:

• phpFlickr is a slick and transparent PHP implementation of the API. There’s little to simplify the basic API, but it lends itself easily to adding some Flickr magic to any web application.
• FlickrAide is interesting but experimental. It provides statistics, information about contacts and other details that can’t be seen so easily from Flickr. It’s a little unstable, and probably heavy-handed on its interactions with Flickr. But it gives an idea of what could be done with statistics etc. PC only.
• Portable Flicka is a good backup tool, particularly if you have more than 1000 images in your account. I tend to backup high-res images on Flickr for easy retrieval, this makes it even easier. PC only.
• Flickr Leech is a web interface for wallowing in Flickr’s “interestingness”. Not for people who are already showing signs of Flickr addiction, but good for avoiding flicking through sets page by page.

More can be found on The Great Flickr Tools Collection.