Disclosure: I’ve been mad at Facebook since the first time they redesigned their main page, removing birthdays as the first thing you saw. Since then I’ve messed up countless birthdays, leaving me with far fewer IRL friends that I’d have otherwise.
But this isn’t going to be a Facebook vs. Google+ blog post. I’m just here to let fly my first impressions of Google+, which I’ve been using for days now, and have dubbed myself an expert. In the early days of Google+, nothing happened. I made some circles with people who couldn’t get in yet. It was like getting to a dinner party before anybody arrived and rearranging the name cards. Here are my observations:
Google+ is Prettier than Facebook
Ok I lied, there’s no way to talk about Google+ without comparing it to Facebook. Google+ is clean. Facebook is noisy and obnoxious. Google+ isn’t.
Google+ Makes it Obvious Who You’re Sharing With
I’ll show instead of tell.
Note the “disable comments” and “disable reshare” settings. Nice!
Never Underestimate the Power of Good UI
Circles are organized the way our brains actually work. Whereas Facebook is closer to how a box of Tinker Toys is organized when you realize you’d rather be playing outside but your mom won’t let you until all your toys are put away. Where was I going with that? Oh right. Google+ is stepping toward how we actually interact with people in real life.
I can put my best friends in a Besties circle, my local friends in a Portland circle, and have a bigger circle with all of them in it. Why? Maybe I just want to see who wants to grab a beer after work (message the Portland kids only, because my friends in California aren’t going to jump on a plane to have a beer, even though the stuff here is that much better). Or maybe I want to plan a trip to Vegas with all my best friends. That’s when I could message my Besties circle.
I could even make an Enjoys Internet Humor circle with people I want to show pictures of cats doing dumb shit. Thanks Google+! The world really is my oyster.