Are you on Google Plus (aka Google+ or G+) yet? What do you think so far?
Maybe it’s just me, since I’m not huge on video chat and haven’t tried Hangout yet and rarely open Skype, but to me Google+ isn’t a Facebook or Twitter killer. My mother isn’t on Google+, nor is she clamoring to use it. Most of the people in my Circles aren’t long-time friends from college or high school or family members, they are people I’ve met through networking and social media. They’re Pod Campers, web designers, marketers, or social media people in some form or another. Not to say that these people aren’t friends, but they’re my geeky or tech savvy friends. A lot of what they post, I’ve already seen on their Facebook or Twitter pages.
From how I’ve seen people use it to share articles, blog posts, and things they find amusing and to comment on others’ posts, Google+ is more like a Tumblr alternative. Or maybe an extension of LinkedIn’s discussions. Or perhaps Google Plus’ Circles are an advanced version of Facebook’s privacy settings and Friend Lists, but instead of Everyone, Friends, and Friends of Friends, you categorize people into whatever groups you want further refining who sees what. Circles are the advanced controls we wish Facebook had. GooglePlus’ Sparks are similar to StumbleUpon or Amazon’s suggestions or any site making recommendations based on your search history, browsing, or purchases. While I like Google and love Gmail, I’m curious to see if Google+ stays around or if it goes the way of Google Wave.
Am I missing something? Do you disagree?