Flickr Keeps Getting Better; Is It a Waste of Time?

I have not been using Flickr that long, but since there have been, on and off, problems with posting remotely using pictures as part of the posting on this column, I have found that Flicker is my friend, making the posting, and retrieval of pictures, through Windows Live Writer, easy.

It is much easier (for me) than using the Microsoft add-in to photo retrieval, as the Microsoft product hotlinks to the picture, no matter if you have the feature turned on or not. As Robert has stated in no uncertain terms, hotlinking is verboten in these parts! I’ve also tried Picasa, as there is an add-in for WLW to use Picasa, but I find the uploading of files to Picasa to be more trouble than it is worth. Flickr is easy, fast, and free. What could be better!

Noted yesterday on gHacks , the search function has gotten better, and, indeed it has. Almost the moment I read the article, I went online, and tried the search. It is better and faster! This is truly an area (unlike the abysmally slow Yahoo Mail) where Yahoo excels. Another article, on Instant Fundas makes it clear what a change for the better this is.

The question is, and made more poignant by the announcement on my morning TV news, of Yahoo to Microsoft employee movement (400 workers to go from Yahoo to Microsoft, not one word on how many will go away, now considered redundant). How long will it be before Flickr is considered redundant, as Microsoft (mistakenly) feels its offering is superior?

The stories appear far and wide of the Microsoft destruction of Hotmail after its purchase, due to the company trying to recode it to run on Windows, when it was extremely efficient and happy on Unix. Not being sure, but guessing what powers Flickr, will the same thing happen; that is, if Flickr is allowed to continue to exist?

If you have any strong (or not so strong) feelings about the future of Flickr, put up a comment. I am wondering how many feel as I do.

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