I signed up for Google+ a while back to see how the other side was going to play the Social Networking game. Since that time, the site, and its functionality, has changed quite a bit; and all for the better.
For starters, you no longer require a Gmail account to sign up! I have since closed my old account, and created a new one, since owning my own domain provides me all the email I need. This change was one of the major driving forces to cause me to leave “other” social networking sites in the dust.
Next, they removed the requirement to be invited to the program. In other words, it has gone public! I’m hoping to see a huge increase in the number of users over the next year or so as the word gets out. However, if you’d still like to be invited, simply click here: https://plus.google.com/i/wfxmBmH6Je0:S9gg8OR9I6U (Only 150 invites to go, though!)
I’m really digging the ability to separate people into multiple Circles for easy distribution of information. It’s fast, it’s simple, and it’s very easy to keep up with. And that brings me to the aspect of Google+ which I like the most: the interface.
The site for Google+ is clean. It’s not as “busy” as other networking sites, with news feeds appearing in a side-column, along with advertisements and other links I have no use of. Instead, the layout presents very easy-to-see buttons which you use to control what information appears on the screen. I love it.
My news feed is cleaner, as well. I can choose which Circles I want to read, and I’m not bombarded with “game updates” trying to get me to play some stupid advertising game. Like Myspace before it, Facebook has stared getting out-of-hand. And just as I left Myspace, I am now leaving Facebook behind.
Hopefully, Google+ won’t follow the same path to destruction.
