Even though Flickr has had an API since 2004 its never been very good at showcasing applications built using the API. Until recently, there was the Third Party Flickr Apps list on Flickr, and also lots of other websites took up the challenge to showcase Flickr apps such as Flickrbits and the Great Flickr Tools collection.
Well, this glaring omission is now over. On 3rd of November, Flickr removed the Third Party apps list and launched the Flickr App Garden, an area specifically designed for showcasing third-party apps, its a great repository for Flickr users wanting to find all sorts of cool new ways to show off their photos, whether it be a desktop, mobile or online.
Because of the success of iMapFlickr, Flickr invited us to a closed beta of the App Garden, so we've had a few weeks to play around with all the settings and really get a feel for it. Needless to say, if you want to create custom Google maps using your Flickr photos, you can find iMapFlickr in the App Garden, its just on the left, past the first flower bed by the shed :-)
For users there's loads of ways to find apps, either by tag, developer or Flickr "apps we've noticed" panel. Although, refreshing the page a few times makes it clear they are just loading at random.
The dedicated screenshot bar in the App Garden.
We heart this.
For app developers growing their own (sorry...) there's a lot of new toys, the /services/ section of Flickr has been completely revamped, and you can now give your app a title and description, modify privacy settings, and our favourite feature, its possible to add photos and/or videos to demonstrate how it works (see the boxout on the right). If your an app developer, ther'e a really good post on code.flickr.com that explains all.
We're curious as to what sort of SEO effect having these apps listed will have on overall traffic, time will tell on that one, but it can only be positive.
From our involvement in the beta, we suspect this is just the beginning, and additional features may very well popup once the initial launch has been running for a while (not, of course, we'd be able to tell you ;-). Thanks Flickr for introducing a well overdue feature!