Google Plus expands on social media

Dear PropellerHeads: I heard that Google now has an alternative to Facebook. What's the scoop?

A: We just recently got our invitations to Google Plus. Apparently, Google thought it would be unseemly to send ours right away and possibly influence our review. At least, that's what we tell ourselves to ease the pain.

Google Plus is the search giant's latest attempt at a Facebook-killer. They've gotten many positive reviews so far and we've been impressed, although we haven't used the service a full week yet.

To sign up, head over to plus.google.com, or see google.com/+/demo for a demo and http://bit.ly/paGIHY video introductions.

There you'll learn about Circles, one of the biggest differences between Google Plus and Facebook. By default, Facebook treats all friends equally. So those videos of you stumbling onto the stage after one too many at karaoke night aren't just viewable by friends, but also by your boss and fussy old Aunt Sally.

Google Plus fixes this by making you put all your contacts in a "Circle," and lets you share different content with different Circles. So put all your party people in your "Friends" Circle, Aunt Sally in the "Family" Circle and your boss in the "Work" Circle. Then, share karaoke videos with your friends only, which is what people do "in real life."

Facebook provides this option using "Groups." But unlike Facebook, where sharing everything with everyone is the norm, Circles makes you think upfront about who should see what.

Another feature is Hangouts, which are group video chats. Click Start a Hangout, invite your contacts and voil - instant video conference.

Snap a picture of everything with your phone? Then you'll like Instant Upload. Install an app from Google on your phone, and every picture you take will be automatically uploaded to a private photo album at Google Plus. Log in later to specify who can see what.

There's also Sparks, a page where you list your interests ("gardening," "recipes," whatever) and Google presents you with news articles, blog posts and other links relevant to those topics.

The last major feature, Huddle, is a smartphone app that simplifies group chat. It does for group text messaging what Hangouts does for group video calls.

Google Plus has its minuses. Categorizing everyone into a Circle is great in theory and curbs inappropriate sharing, but sometimes it requires you to think too much.

We find ourselves pondering "Is Larry really a friend or more of an acquaintance?" before adding Larry. What about one-time friends you haven't talked to since middle school? You could create a Circle just for them, but that seems unwieldy. Does your sister go in both the Family Circle and the Friends Circle so she sees all your karaoke videos too?

The problem of how to divide up your friends will only multiply as more people add themselves to Google Plus, and that could subtract from the experience.

The other challenge for Google is overcoming Facebook's head start. Many people will balk at re-creating a list of hundreds of people on the new service.

Also, Google Plus does not yet have profiles for businesses (what Facebook calls "Pages"). Nor can third-party companies (like game companies) build applications for it like they can for Facebook. If you're tired of seeing 37 poker invitations for every status update, you'll appreciate the difference, although there are plans to "remedy" this in the near future.

Instead of killing Facebook, the best outcome will be for Google Plus just to compete with Facebook. Right now there's only one big player on the social networking scene and practically no competition.

Already, Facebook has added Groups to complete with Circles and announced a deal with video software company Skype to offer something similar to Hangouts. Competition might also keep both companies focused on how best to protect user privacy.

So just this once, we'll give Google a pass on leaving us off the invite list. But it had better not happen again...

When the PropellerHeads at Data Directions aren't busy with their IT projects, they love to answer questions on business or consumer technology. Email them to questions@askthepropellerheads.com or contact us at Data Directions Inc., 8510 Bell Creek Road, Mechanicsville, VA 23116. Visit our website at www.askthepropellerheads.com.