Spring cleaning is really summer cleaning when it comes to new media, I guess. On the heels of an announcement that Maker Studios is closing YouTube-esque website Blip.tv, Google has now announced that they are closing Google+ Photos in favor of … Google Photos.
This is only news because it is likely the second nail in the coffin for the much maligned Google+ social media platform. The first one came when they stopped requiring Google+ enrollment to access YouTube. And the third will hopefully be when chuckleheads finally get the memo and stop adding me to “their circles.”
Don’t worry about losing all your previously uploaded photos of your cat sleeping in about a thousand different and equally adorably boring ways, however:
Mashable offers helpful hints for this transition process: “To ensure uninterrupted service when switching from Google+ Photos to Google Photos, the company advises users to download and install the new photos app or export data using Google Takeout. Users will also find their photos and videos backed up at photos.google.com.”
Google+ Photos is scheduled to shut down operations on Aug. 1, so you still have time. Of course, considering you used Google+, you likely have more time than the rest of us … like a lot more time.
