“Easily organize, optimize and share your pictures”

Windows Live includes a pack of beta services that Microsoft has made available for downloading. One of these utilities is Windows Live Photo Gallery, which is included in Vista as the standard photo viewer.

This app enables you to organize your photo collection, see it as a slideshow, use it as a screensaver and even optimize them with a set of basic editing tools such as red eye removal, brightness and contrast adjustment or image crop, amongst others.

After a somewhat garbled installation, you'll find that the program itself is very easy to use. The interface follows the typical Microsoft's design for some other tools of theirs, like Windows Media Player.

However, there are some issues that make it clear why this program is still in beta. It seems that Windows Live Photo Gallery has trouble when rendering thumbnails and sometimes uses the default icon instead of the actual photo. Also, I found the optimization tools quite clunky and their results not really that rewarding.

Languages:

English

OS requirements for Windows Live Photo Gallery:

OS: WinXP/Vista

Pros

Very easy to use
Basic editing tools included
Generates screensaver

Cons

Lengthy installation
Problems with thumbnails
Optimizing tools need improvement

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From the publisher of Windows Live Photo Gallery

This application enables you to create a photo gallery and share it online in your Windows Live web space.

Easily share your photos

The "Publish" button makes it simple to share your photos and videos online. You can also display your photos with cool screensavers and slideshows.

Quickly find your photos and videos

Import your photos from your digital camera, and the Windows Live Photo Gallery will automatically organize them into events based on date and time. Keep your photos organized by name, date, rating, and type. Locate similar pictures with tags you add.

Enhance your photos and videos

Create a cool panoramic view by combining multiple photos. Capture the moment by adding captions. Enhance your photos by adjusting things like color and exposure. Improve your photos with simple crop and red-eye fixes.