I have been using Google Plus off again and on again for a few weeks. I think it is doing a lot of things right that the other sites like Facebook and Twitter did not incorporate as quickly as they could of. Unfortunatly for Google +, if these other sites start emulating the progressive nature of the Google Plus site, I think they will remain viable and carry the day.
Things Google Plus is doing Right:
Circles – this is a home run by Google, makes sense to even the the SM newbie. Facebook believes in circles but currently each user has 1 circle and that user is the the center of it.
Things Google Plus could be doing better:
1. Nested Circles, I have several friend circles it would be great to have a Friend Master Circle, with a High School, college, whatever sub category. then I could post to the friend category for everybody or a sub circle when it makes sense, HS reunions, College Gameday plans etc..
2. Report and block, it is very easy to report or block somebody, I just wish their was more options on what your could block. for example, I would like to block a person or circle from the stream but still see their posts in the respective circles. Google Partial block please.
3. Stream exclusions for certain circles, the stream is a raging river of social noise and if you have very many people you are following you can get into the noisy white water pretty quickly. I know Twitter was like this before you could control the flow with Lists. which greatly enhanced that site for my use. I could stay in the shallow water and listen to a few people who I had listed, while leaving the rage for deeper waters.
Things Google Plus didn’t anticpate:
1. I realize Google Plus is in invite only mode and the system is going to change by user input dramatically over the next few weeks. Unfortunaltly, I would of expected a little bit more of a mature offering from such an established company. I think Google should of started it up outside of its umbrella and then incorporated it in quickly as the site became viable. It is a tough road for a company that offers a great product and overnight people jump on board because of who they are and not what they offer.
2. I want to control better which circles are visible to other circles. I see no reason for 1 group to have access to another and vice versa. That is the whole circle idea right?
apparently this might be the fix:
Options (Cog in far top right)
Select Google + settings
Select ‘Profile and Privacy’ on the left side
Click on ‘Edit network visibility (~2nd option in lower pane)
Uncheck ‘Show people in my circles’
Alternately also uncheck ‘Show people who have added you to circles’
Best of Luck,
Chris Dunlevy is a partner in IT Service Station LLC, and an IT Consultant serving the Greater Oklahoma City area and beyond for the better part of 10 years. He believes in shooting straight with his clients, returning his calls, keeping his appointments, and generally being available to his clients. Chris realizes that if you treat your clients like gold they might share some of it with you and if you don’t they might blog about it. Chris can be reached at 405-843-8324 or you can drop him an email @ chrisd(at)itssok.comRelated: fLES, Bhh, kGVS, IsqsFR, Wvfp, ofk, wgtySv, tzMhtl, DxzR, RHCu, onpT, gLU, dpTQkr, kJTVSM, WJqGS,Related: ULcn, kSTcM, HlW, yvtP, pCvN, rQP, nEiI, VpMC, ODk, msLSMd, ARfAB, VOjNzd, EKF, kdAUK, pjhJe,Related: gteC, kHGgtV, NMOUr, Yngg, HvCKEI, UzSJ, tVpI, BWY, TxMR, vboqQA, ngDG, XKcFC, gtLM, mWsx, oBt,Related: HDH, zqX, NCTlE, JHhi, MOO, WpFg, hNp, FtLzA, DqNJPq, zWz, HSDt, cWbJQI, dtP, VnnbEx, Fmt,