Clash of the Titans "“ Is Google taking on Facebook, Twitter, and the other "Ëœgods' of social media? Or can they all coexist?  A look into Google's new social platform, Google Plus and its "Ëœlike' feature, +1

 

(Source:  Forbes Blog)

Google recently launched its latest concept, Google+. This social network is currently in "field test", per Google, and you can only use it if you have received an invitation (sound familiar? It was how they got Gmail popular, but I am pretty sure they borrowed the "exclusivity" concept from Facebook. Facebook was originally only open to students of select universities.)

 

How does Facebook and Google+ compare?

 

Both have standard social network features, such as profiles with photos, a wall (or Stream), ways to manage your friends, ways to post and interact with other people's profiles, chat, etc.  Google+ stands out in that it has a very clean, simple interface that makes it very easy to put your friends in Circles that defines your relationship, such as Work, Family, etc, and you can share selectively based on these circles. Facebook lets you assign people to Groups, but is more limited in letting your choose what and how to share with these groups. You can elect to share and view streams from all circle, or only specific circles.

 

How do you "Like" something? Click the +1 (which you can do for any web page on the Internet, so people in your circles see what you've recommended when "googling".)

 

Google+ borrows the idea of following people you don't know but find interesting from Twitter, having a circle that you can put people you are Following.

 

From StumbleUpon (which has now surpassed Facebook as the number one social sharing spot), Google+ borrows, well, their entire concept and build Sparks, where people can "Ëœstumble upon' (I meant to say "Ëœbrowse') their interests and share with people in their circles.

 

Photo sharing is pretty similar, although they allow you to instantly upload photos from your phone into a folder automatically. Still not sure if this is a "Ëœplus'.

 

The profile you can build seems pretty basic, which can be an advantage, as interaction and shared media are more important to many social media users than a detailed life story. (Unless you are on a dating site, but Google+ doesn't seem to be moving in that direction. Yet.)

 

So what is new? "ËœHangouts' lets you start a hangout with people from select circles so you can hangout online. A little scary to think that this may be the beginning of a new era- who needs to leave the house? Lets just have a drink together tonight on Google+. Say, 5pm?

 

One feature that is even more scary, in my opinion, is the ability to allow Google to post the Geo position of your photos (and perhaps other posts?) for others to see. Naturally, you can elect not to allow this feature to preserve your privacy (pretty sure "Ëœinternet privacy' is an oxymoron).

 

If you like to spend time online, this could be an excellent choice for you to combine your online social life into one spot. It will be interesting to see how this battle is played out.

 

Want an invitation to Google Plus? Follow us on Twitter or Like us on Facebook and request one!

(Source: Buzzom)