New SkyDrive photo timeline and uploads 2x faster

People put a lot of their stuff in SkyDrive, but photos are the most common file type we see in SkyDrive, both in sheer number and in total storage consumed.

All photos view

Starting today and rolling out over the next 48 hours, we’re making it easier for you to see all of your photos in SkyDrive across all your albums and folders based on a timeline view.

In the timeline view you can scroll down to navigate through all the images. They’re organized into groups by event and time. Take 20 pictures at a birthday party with your phone, and then a photo of your parking spot at the airport a few hours later? Now they’ll appear as two different groups in the timeline.

The new view is convenient when you want to quickly get to a photo from June and you only have access to a web browser. Maybe the reason you only have access to a web browser is because your laptop was accidentally destroyed by a random camping accident.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n69r9S0wfg4&feature=player_embedded

We also think this view is particularly excellent for your camera roll folder, since that can contain thousands of photos taken over many years (at least in my case).

If you want to quickly navigate to a specific month, just click the month name.

You can also view all your photos in the filmstrip view, and then watch them in a slide show.

Improved performance uploading photos via the SkyDrive desktop app

In the past few months we’ve also been hard at work addressing the feedback we’ve received about how long it sometimes takes to upload via the SkyDrive desktop app. To improve upload times, we worked on changes to both the app and the server code. The end result is that in our internal tests, we’ve seen a 2-3x improvement in upload times for photos.

Windows Phone full-resolution camera upload comes to all markets

We’re also excited to share the news that we now have full resolution uploads of photos and videos in all markets where Windows Phone 8 is available. Now everyone with a Windows Phone 8 can have a complete backup of all the photos they take in their SkyDrive camera roll.

New layout for thumbnails and now PowerPoint and Word docs get thumbnails, too

Thumbnails make it easier to find the file you’re looking for, and so we’re also introducing some changes to our thumbnails view. We worked hard to improve the readability of the files and folders you have in SkyDrive and are introducing new thumbnails for your PowerPoint and Word files.

We hope this saves you time finding the stuff you need. Check it out and lets us know what you think.

Omar Shahine, Group Program Manager, SkyDrive.com