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Workaround lets you upload Instagram photos from your desktop computer
Swiftly upload photos stored on your desktop to Instagram with this easy workaround.
(Credit:
Screenshot by Sharon Vaknin/CNET)
Though Instagram recently added likes and comments to its Web interface, a complete Web experience, filled with photo uploads, streams, and and profile-viewing is still on my wish list.
Many have adopted their phone as their primary camera, but there's a niche group of users -- like bloggers and photographers -- who work around Instragram's limited app environment to upload full-res photos from their dSLR cameras.
Possibilities include uploading photos through the iPad Camera Connection Kit, or even e-mailing a photo from a desktop computer and uploading it to Instagram through that route. Savvy Android users might even utilize the USB OTG adapter for on-the-go dSLR photo-uploading.
However, a new, less-complicated option has cropped up, and it's all thanks to Bluestacks.
Bluestacks, which debuted last year and has since expanded to support a variety of operating systems, offers the unique experience of running Android apps on your Windows or Mac desktop.
From Angry Birds to Draw Something, many apps are available -- and that includes Instagram. When used in Bluestacks, the app works just as it does on Android. Browsing, comments, photo uploading -- it's all possible with just a short setup process.
With Instagram installed on your desktop PC via Bluestacks, Android and non-Android users alike can easily take those high-quality photos shot on a point-and-shoot or dSLR and upload them directly to Instagram.
(And, of course, it's worth mentioning that this is a decent temporary solution for Windows Phone and BlackBerry users waiting for a dedicated Instagram app.)
Follow the step-by-step below to get started.
1. Download and install Bluestacks. Once installed, click the search button (magnifying glass) in the upper-right corner of the program. Search for Instagram. Select it, and install the app.
(Credit:
Screenshot by Sharon Vaknin/CNET)
2. Once Instagram is installed, you'll see it appear in your dashboard. Click the app icon to launch it. Log in as usual.
3. To upload a photo from your desktop, click the camera button, then select the polaroid icons in the lower-right of the app window. This will prompt you to select a photo from your drive. (If you use Instagram on Android, this entire process will be familiar.) Then, edit and upload the photo as usual.
(Credit:
Screenshot by Sharon Vaknin/CNET)
