web5design / parallel-ogram

It's like parallel-flickr but for Instagram.

parallel-ogram

It's like parallel-flickr but for Instagram.

parallel-ogram is a simple web application to create an archive of your Instragram photos (and "likes") and to make that archive a living, breathing website of its own. It is not a replacement for Instagram but a shadow copy running in... parallel.

You can filter you photos by well, Instagram filters and your likes by filter as well as photographer.

You can archive photos for other Instagram users or just yourself. That's your business.

parallel-ogram uses the Instagram API as a single-sign-on (SSO) provider so you simply log in via the Instagram website itself.

Caveats

parallel-ogram is not hard to set up but there is still no "one-button" install yet. In the meantime, setting up parallel-ogram is not very complicated if you've ever set up a plain-vanilla website that uses PHP and MySQL.

The Instagram API does not currently expose any consistent indication of whether a person's photos are public or not-public. In the absence of that information parallel-ogram treats everything as private, meaning you're the only person who can see your photos. The exception to this rule is that you can see other people's photos that you've liked and vice versa. At some point in the near-future I would like to add the ability to mark photos in parallel-ogram as public or private, independent of any Instagram settings, but that's not possible right now.

parallel-ogram does nothing about geo. Location information for every photo is recorded in the database but currently it is not used for anything.

Installing parallel-ogram

Installation instructions are outlined in a separate INSTALL.md file.

Actually backing up your photos

Photos and likes are backed up using the backup_photos.php and backup_likes.php scripts, respectively. Those scripts are located in the parallel-ogram/bin directory. They need to be run by hand, like this:

$> php -q ./bin/backup_photos.php

If you want to automate the process you'll need to stick them in a local cron tab or some other similar scheduling tool.

Automagic backing up of your photos (using the Instagram PuSH feeds)

parallel-ogram can also be configured to archive the photos for registered users using the real-time photo update PuSH feeds from Instagram.

By default this functionality is disabled default because in order to use it you need to ensure that the directory specified in the $GLOBALS['cfg']['instagram_static_path'] config variable is writeable by the web server. To enable the PuSH features you'll need to update the following in your config file:

$GLOBALS['cfg']['enable_feature_instagram_push'] = 1;

Also, two are two important caveats about the PuSH stuff:

1. It does not magically start happening as soon as you turn it on. You will need to create a new subscription using:

   $> php -q bin/subscribe-push-feed.php -t user -u http://your-website.com

Or:

http://your-website.com/god/push/subscriptions/

Note that you'll need to have poor man's god auth enabled, in the config file, for that 'god' URL to work.

2. It's only for archiving the photos belonging to user's who've authed with this particular instance of parallel-ogram. It does not expose any "public" UI or deal with photos people have liked. This is because of privacy issues (or simply a lack of functionality) in the Instagram implementation.

See also

• flamework

• flamework-instagramapp

• "flinstagram"

Shout outs

• I blame Insam