Quickstart

Trouble Shooting

FAQ

Documentation

Camera Database

Quickstart


[1] Starting the EXIF Hamster Client


Option 1: JAVA WebStart (Run from browser)

Option 2: Download, Save & Run

 
Then:

  • open the folder you've downloaded the file to
  • double-click (Mac/LINUX: right-click > open) on ExifHamster.jar
  • confirm warning about unidentified developer / unknown publisher

or

  • open a terminal / command-line window
  • change to the directory you've downloaded the file to
  • type: java -jar ExifHamster.jar

[2] Select image directory

After the application has started you will see this window:

Start screen

Select the directory with the pictures you want to scan and click "Choose". (Currently you can only select a single folder and/but all existing sub-directories of this folder will be scanned as well)

Select folder dialog

[3] Let the hamster collect & upload the image data

After pressing "Choose" in the previous step the EXIF Hamster will start immediately to scan all images from the directory specified. (Currently supported formats are JPEG and TIFF)
Attention: this can't be interruped except by closing the application. In this case all data collected so far will get lost. (The "Cancle" button is on our todo list)

EXIF Hamster scanning images

Upload to digicam4.me wil automatically start once collecting is finished. (Give it a few seconds)
Attention: It's a good idea to note / copy & save the UUID (red box) - this is your personal key to access your data on the digicam4.me website

Successful scan and upload

[4] Explore your data

If everything went fine the explore page on digicam4.me will open in your default browser and you are ready to explore your uploaded data. For details about the options see documentation below

Expore page

Trouble Shooting


Application blocked by Security Settings


application blocked

This happens when using JAVA WebStart (Option 1) to run the Hamster client because we are currently using a self-singed certificate. But don't worry: as long as you start or download it from digicam4.me website you will be safe and it can be easily solved by setting the security level to "medium" (older JAVA versions) or adding an exception for our webiste (latest JAVA versions) in the JAVA Control Panel. For detailed instructions check out these links:

Actually we are in the process of getting an application certificate but this requires us to see an notary and we didn't find the time to get this done yet. (Sorry folks, we're truly working on it...)

“ExifHamster.jar” can’t be opened because it is from an unidentified developer. (Mac / OSX)

Unidentified Developer

This happens when you double-click the ExifHamster.jar in Finder. The reason is again that we don't have an "official" application certificate yet (see above). To solve this problem adjust your security seetings or use "right-click - open" instead.

Expore page not automatically shown in web-browser after upload

There could be various reasons for this. As a workaround you can try to copy the URL shown in the client (e.g.: http://digicam4.me/explore.php?UUID=291a08b2-1816-4ca8-a1c2-42adf16cada5) and open it in your web-browser manually.

I'm using the WebStart option and it looks like I get an outdated version

After the first run of the EXIF Hamster via WebStart the application will be cached locally. That's a great thing because this means it will load much faster the second time. This may however lead to situations where you don't get the latest version with new features and bugfixes. To ensure that you get the latest version you have to clear the JAVA cache. Check out the following links for instructions: How do I clear the Java cache? (Deutsch, Français, Español, Italiano, 简体中文, 繁體中文)

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What data from my images is stored on the digicam4.me server?
A: Currently we read, transmit & store the following information from your digital images:
  • Camera maker and model
  • Date and Time when image was created (for stats and future use)
  • Exposure
  • Aperture
  • ISO
  • Focal length
  • Focal length at 35 mm
  • Exposure Program
  • Lens information
Q: Are you storing any personal or location information with my data?
A: No, we only store the data as stated above.
Q: Is my data safe and why I can't protect it with a user id and password?
A: Your data can be accessed using your unique Hamster-ID only which is as safe as a random combination of a 16 characters user id and 16 characters password (which is pretty strong and close to impossible to guess). An individual user id / password is somewhat a dilemma: it's convenient but would require you to register. We want to keep our solution both secure and user friendly so we decided to go this way. Personal registration with this site or using Facebook / Google+ / Twitter is planned as an option. And again: currently no personal information about you will be stored on our server nor can the data be linked to you in any way. We think this is an acceptable risk for what you get.
Q: How long will my data be stored on the server?
A: Currently there is no limit for this. You can return at any time to analyze your data. However this may change in future when the capacity of our database is reached.
Q: Can I delete my data on the server?
A: There is no such function yet. If you really want to have it deleted from our server then contact us. (Don't forget to state your Hamster-ID!)
Q: Will I be informed when my data is deleted from the server?
A: Yes, in case you have requested deleting of your data. Otherwise no - we don't have any contact information from you unless you contact us and provide your email address.
Q: I can't get the EXIF Hamster Client working / I don't like to use the client: can I collect the data with an other tool (as ExifTool, exiv2) and upload my data manually?
A: Currently not but this is in our feature pipeline. For the moment please contact us, we'll find a way.
Q: Will the EXIF Hamster Client run on my Mobile or Tablet?
A: No, this is neither possible nor planned at the moment and although we support images from mobile devices we see little sense in scanning them directly there because these are most likely just a part of your entire portfolio anyways. To include your pictures from mobile device just copy them to your computer and scan them there with the EXIF Hamster Client
Q: My list of camera makers contains entries like "Unknown Maker (xyz)" - why?
A: This means the image(s) actually contained something in the maker tag (xyz) but we couldn't match this to any entry in our camera maker database. We are scanning our database frequently for these cases and add the missing information.
Q: My list of camera makers contains entries like "Unknown Maker" - why?
A: This is when we get no maker information at all and there is little we can do about this now. For future releases we have planned to identify and correct the maker from the model information as far as present and possible.
Q: I get (a lot) of "unknown" entries (Maker, Model, Lens) for my images - what's wrong?
A: Most likely the images you have scanned are simply missing these information. This often happens for (older) mobile phones or when you have processed your pictures with some image editing software (e.g. batch resizing) which doesn't preserve the EXIF data. In case of lenses we are currently only able to identify interchangeable lenses of Nikon and Canon DSLRs but more Makers will be added soon (watch the News or follow us on Facebook, Google+, Twitter or LinkedIn to receive the latest updates)
Q: Why I can still see all lenses I'm using when I'm filtering for maker "xyz"?
A: The lens drop-down is not yet dynamic and just shows all lenses we've found in your portfolio.

Documentation

Explore online

Menu options from Explore Menu on the website are:

View:

This is the main selector to see the different aspects of your camera usage

  • Overview: Some basic infos about your portfolio
  • Camera Usage: How many photos you've shot with what camera
  • Lenses: How many photos you've shot with what lens
  • Focal (grouped): Focal length (converted to 35mm equivalent based on the information available from camera or our database, grouped in common ranges)
  • Focal (all): Focal length (converted to 35mm equivalent based on the information from your camera or our database)
  • Aperture: Aperture values used
  • Exposure: Exposure values used
  • ISO: Sensitivity settings used
  • Camera Type: Type of camera used
  • Mode: Picture modes used

Filters:

  • Maker: Camera brands you are using
  • Model: Your camera models (dynamic, for Models of the selected Maker only)
  • Type: Camera types as DSLR, Compact, Bridge, Mobile, etc. (non-dynamic, filter-list will always contain all camera types but result will consider the other filters as Maker and Model)
  • Lens: Lenses used (non-dynamic, filter-list will always contain all lenses used but result will consider the other filters as Maker and Model)
  • Limit: Actually a "Top-X" selector. A value of "10" means the 10 most often used Cameras, Lenses, Aperture values, etc. Makes it easier to read / to get the values which matter.
  • Chart Type: Choose from Pie / Column Chart or plain data table.
  • Language: Menu names & items in English, German, Simplified Chinese & Traditional Chinese (experimental, not yet completed)