Two weeks after a (very) soft launch — read: invitation only — Google+ already has a user base of 20 million. And it’s growing fast. Industry analysts predict that this new social “sharing” site will hit 100 million users before the year is out.
That’s nothing compared to Facebook’s 750 million users, of course; but it’s definitely a good start for a product that hasn’t even officially launched.
So what is Google+, and how will it change our lives?
Developed by the folks behind Google, Gmail, and uh, Google Buzz, this new “project”, as Google terms it, consists of four main elements: circles, sparks, hangouts, and huddles.
“Circles” are groups of close friends, professional contacts, fellow skateboarders, family members, etc. It’s no longer an “all or nothing” experience: Separate out your contacts into distinct circles, and never the twain shall meet.
The point here is that you only share information with friends who want that information: your fishing buddies aren’t interested in your techy work posts, and your boss doesn’t need to see photos of your new tattoo. With Google+ you don’t have to share it with them. Of course, this is pretty much what Facebook’s recent add-on, “Groups”, already allows you to do.
“Sparks” is essentially a checklist of hobbies or other things that ‘spark’ your interest. According to Google, it is “a feed of highly contagious content from across the internet, on any topic you want, in over 40 languages.” So… not much new here.
“Hangouts” is a webcam interface that enables on-screen interaction between two or more friends. Free video calls are, of course, internet gold, and likely to be a major attraction for Facebook convertees.
“Huddles” is basically a group text forum; a simple way for two or more people to agree on where to meet for dinner or what to buy their parents for their 50th wedding anniversary. No more “Reply All” email ping-pong.
There’s also a “Mobile” function that allows you to tag your location, and enables automatic uploading of photos from your smart phone to a private album online. This feature is handy for those of you who are too lazy to sort your photos and end up deleting the good stuff to make way for fuzzy July 4th parade photos.
Early adopters describe G+ as “well executed”, “logically constructed”, with a “simple and accessible” interface. Naysayers dismiss it as “uglier than a website from the early ’90s”, “overly complex”, and “just like Facebook.”
For us, one of the major bonuses of Google+ is that it offers a social network site that is free of spam, games, and teenagers (for now). It’s nice to have a more professional way of socializing without wading through Bieber fever and Farmville posts. We also like the fact that there are no “friend” requests, which means you can “follow” anyone at all — like industry professionals, or competitors, for example.
But, undoubtedly, one of the main attractions in G+ is its superior attention to privacy concerns. G+ has an abundance of privacy options that enables you to keep much tighter control over what and how you share. Mark Zuckerberg’s cavalier attitude towards our private information may just end up being the main reason people migrate over to Google+.
But it’s unlikely we’ve heard the last from Zuckerberg: He is currently the most followed person on Google+.
