Please help me with Picasa, and duplicate files.

[returningstress]

Ok I have posted about this before, I now know how to find the duplicate files, but when I press delete the following message appears

'Are you sure you want to send the selected file to the recycle bin? (it will also be removed from any albums in which it appears).

I am not sure as do not want to loose all copies only the 2nd and 3rd copies.

Help I am useless with computers and photos.

I think Albums and Files are distinct. Files contain the actual data image of your photos, while albums exist only in Picasa and really only store a kind of replica image link... if you know what I mean?!

I would go ahead and delete them. I only say this because if it goes wrong and does delete all the originals (which I don't think it will), they are not being wiped out of all existence but simply sent to the Recycle Bin.

ie, if you suddenly find all your photos have vanished from the files you kept them in, just double click on the Recycle Bin and they will all be in there.
You can then simply drag them out onto your Desktop (or wherever) and try again!

Hi - I've asked a computer expert who works at Web User magazine!

It depends what the duplicates are. Are they duplicate copies of the original files because they've been downloaded more than once off a camera? If this is the case it would be best to go to the original files and folders, and tidy them up from there. Picasa should only be showing duplicates if there are literally more than one copy of the picture on the disk (as you seem to suspect) or if you are looking at two different views - perhaps a folder view and a people view or something, which may appear to be duplicating the picture but is actually only showing it in two different contexts (by the place it's actually stored and by the people named in the photo).

Perhaps it's time you did a big photo tidy up. I've got mine organised by date, which is a bit anal but works really nicely. Go into My Photos and make folders for each year you have photos for. In that, if you like, make folders for each month. Then tidy old photos into the new dated photos, deleting old folders and duplicates as you go. It'll probably take bloody ages to start from scratch but would be worth it in the long run I think.

Hope that helps.

More info on duplicates in Picasa:

picasa.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=11484