Google+ > When does it go "Mainstream" (1 Viewer)

[Abraham]

Those numbers are wrong. It's down from peak usage once the beta opened up. Google says there are a lot f drive by types but that total usage is still up a staggering amount overall.

just stop already.

Take it up with Forbes and all the other outlets clarifying the story.

 

[Abraham]

Reported 40 million active users on today's earnings call.

 

[RhymesMcJuice]

Page: Google+ will have big effect on other Google products

The new social networking site will influence Google's search engine and ad systems

By Juan Carlos Perez

October 13, 2011 09:43 PM ET

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IDG News Service - Google Co-Founder and CEO Larry Page made clear on Thursday the lofty expectations the company has for its new social networking site Google+.

During a conference call to discuss the company's third quarter financial results, Page outlined the significant effect he foresees Google+ having on the company's business.

"Our ultimate ambition is to transform the overall Google experience -- making it beautifully simple, almost automagical, because we understand what you want and can deliver it instantly," he said.

"This means baking identity and sharing into all of our products so that we build a real relationship with our users. Sharing on the web will be like sharing in real life across all your stuff. Youll have better, more relevant search results and ads," he added.

Although it has been clear since its launch in June that Google+ is a key initiative at Google, Page's latest comments leave no doubt that much is riding on the success of the social networking site.

"Think about it this way: last quarter, we shipped the 'Plus', and now were going to ship the Google part," he said.

Of course, now comes the hard part: Developing Google+ in a manner that leads it to attain a critical mass of users and makes it a real contender to Facebook.

Although Page expressed much excitement on Thursday about the fact that Google+ now has topped 40 million members, success is far from certain.

After all, Facebook has more than 800 million members, and its growth shows no sign of slowing down -- on the contrary. And since the launch of Google+, Facebook has been aggressively rolling out new and upgraded features.

Some industry observers have pointed out that Google+ needs features that give it a marked differentiation from Facebook, such as unique functionality that is compelling enough to prompt hundreds of millions of people to make it their preferred social network.

This week, a Google engineer named Steve Yegge mistakenly published publicly a post in which he leveled some sharp criticism at Google+, calling it "a knee-jerk reaction, a study in short-term thinking" in large part because it lacks a strong developer platform.

Data analytics company Chitika recently published results of a study that revealed that Google+ traffic has deflated, following a spike after the social networking service came out of a limited beta on Sept. 20, and fallen back to the usage level it had before becoming publicly available.

In short, the consensus seems to be that Google+ runs the risk of ending up as a good social networking site that tens of millions of people use but that doesn't come close to matching Facebook's position in the market.

In that scenario, Google+ would fall short of the grand vision Page painted for it on Thursday. Google would be left facing the rising threat of Facebook as an advertising competitor, as a close partner of Microsoft, and as the gatekeeper of a lot of online data that is off limits to the Google search engine.

In the coming year, it will be fascinating to see Google strive to make Google+ the formidable service that Page envisions -- and that the company needs.

 

[Joe T]

Anyone still using this or can I delete it now from my favorites?

 

[toadstool]

Feel free to delete your favorite, come back to it in about 18 months when enough people setup accounts and start using it with an app that updates facebook and g+ at the same time.

Android users will love g+ once more people get there.

 

[No. 16]

Feel free to delete your favorite, come back to it in about 18 months when enough people setup accounts and start using it with an app that updates facebook and g+ at the same time.

Android users will love g+ once more people get there.

That's the hard part.

 

[toadstool]

Feel free to delete your favorite, come back to it in about 18 months when enough people setup accounts and start using it with an app that updates facebook and g+ at the same time.

Android users will love g+ once more people get there.

That's the hard part.

I think Android users will end up there as it becomes more standard on the new Android phones

 

[Maelstrom]

Google Plus commercial ran early during the Lions/Packers Thanksgiving day game. That mean it's mainstream now? Or is it a sign of desperation?

 

[tdoss]

It's not hindsight...they really should've just went mainstream initially. It was dumb to do the invite thing...lose all it's steam and now go mainstream after all the anger over FB changing is done.

 

[Maelstrom]

It's not hindsight...they really should've just went mainstream initially. It was dumb to do the invite thing...lose all it's steam and now go mainstream after all the anger over FB changing is done.

I agree with this. If anything, it should have been a very brief invite only period to build buzz and then open it up at the height of the buzz. That being said, I think they have a lot longer term vision of this than most of us want to admit, and it'll be around for a while. The increased focus from Google shedding projects should help as well.Whether it'll actually challenge Facebook is probably more up to Facebook, basically Google is providing an alternative and people will switch when/if Facebook makes mistakes.

 

[Maelstrom]

Google+ Reaches 50 Million User Mark in About 88 Days

...

But yesterday (give or take a few days) Google+ likely crossed the 50 million user mark. And since being opened to the general public (over age 18) last week, Google+ has been growing by at least 4% per day, meaning that around 2 million new users have been signing up each day.

Link to shared postAlso read that Google is asking people to sign up for Google+ as they activate their Ice Cream Sandwich Android devices, which gives them a potential 550,000 new users each DAY (based on activations of Android devices/day.) Obviously some of those users are upgrading and may already be on Google+, but it is a great move by Google to increase the number of people using Google+, even if all they get is the initial signup. For Google, the value is in that initial signup as they get the personal data they really want (need) to compete with Facebook.

Ice Cream Sandwich Prompts Users To Join Google+, Enter Credit Card

 

[[icon]]

What good is a user base of 50MM users if nobody is actually USING the service?

 

[Maelstrom]

What good is a user base of 50MM users if nobody is actually USING the service?

It is good for Google - they get the personal data they have been missing from those that sign up, and are able to correlate that personal data with search results (even if just internally.) Whether people actually use the network is pretty much irrelevant to Google's needs from Google+. I saw an article that explained it better, along with why, but I can't seem to find it.

 

[SacramentoBob]

Google+ up to 62M and adding 625K per day.

 

[[icon]]

Google+ up to 62M and adding 625K per day.

Google actually losing ground as Facebook adds 870k users per day from May 30th to Sept 22nd posting a user base that has been accelerating in growth for all of 2011. Some could argue that a lot of Google+'s growth in user base is simply attributable to overall growth in the social space, combined with activation of android mobile accounts. Google+ users are creating accounts but still choose to actually USE Facebook. Facebook actually rapidly GAINING ground on Google overall in unique vistors... and crushes google in time spent (includes ALL Google pages, not just Google+)

Timeline was a huge blow to Google+ as most experts believe it will increase time spent on the site (already at a staggering 15mins a day, or 1/3rd of all time spent online).

 

[Maelstrom]

Google+ up to 62M and adding 625K per day.

Google actually losing ground as Facebook adds 870k users per day from May 30th to Sept 22nd posting a user base that has been accelerating in growth for all of 2011. Some could argue that a lot of Google+'s growth in user base is simply attributable to overall growth in the social space, combined with activation of android mobile accounts. Google+ users are creating accounts but still choose to actually USE Facebook. Facebook actually rapidly GAINING ground on Google overall in unique vistors... and crushes google in time spent (includes ALL Google pages, not just Google+)

Timeline was a huge blow to Google+ as most experts believe it will increase time spent on the site (already at a staggering 15mins a day, or 1/3rd of all time spent online).

As I posted before:

Google doesn't need people to actually use Google+. Google gets the personal data they have been missing from those that sign up, and are able to correlate that personal data with search results (even if just internally.) Whether people actually use the network is pretty much irrelevant to Google's needs from Google+.

 

[Abraham]

Google still makes a lot more money then Facebook, and growing. That is the ultimate scoreboard.

 

[No. 16]

Google still makes a lot more money then Facebook, and growing. That is the ultimate scoreboard.

I care why? In terms of social networks Facebook pwns Google+.

 

[[icon]]

As I posted before:

Google doesn't need people to actually use Google+. Google gets the personal data they have been missing from those that sign up, and are able to correlate that personal data with search results (even if just internally.) Whether people actually use the network is pretty much irrelevant to Google's needs from Google+.

X

The fastest growing segment of online ad sales is in social media. Facebook is making a mint from this service and in my personal experience it's more effective than advertising on Google because of HOW targeted you can get and the way in which the ads are handled. This is a very common perception.

Google realizes this alternate ad-space is a significant threat to their other ad-sales products. They both want to steal market share from Facebook, but also to create their own successful network because the more pages they serve on G+, the more revenue they make from ad sales. In fact, Facebook currently generates double the online ad revenues of Google.

 

[Maelstrom]

As I posted before:

Google doesn't need people to actually use Google+. Google gets the personal data they have been missing from those that sign up, and are able to correlate that personal data with search results (even if just internally.) Whether people actually use the network is pretty much irrelevant to Google's needs from Google+.

X

The fastest growing segment of online ad sales is in social media. Facebook is making a mint from this service and in my personal experience it's more effective than advertising on Google because of HOW targeted you can get and the way in which the ads are handled. This is a very common perception.

Google realizes this alternate ad-space is a significant threat to their other ad-sales products. They both want to steal market share from Facebook, but also to create their own successful network because the more pages they serve on G+, the more revenue they make from ad sales. In fact, Facebook currently generates double the online ad revenues of Google.

You forget that Google can use this information about its users no matter where they are on the web, but particularly on Google properties, whether a user is actually using Google+ - like if they are using GMail, Google search, etc. As soon as a user is signed in, if Google has a profile for that person, you can bet that person is getting personalized ads. And because of that, Google, given enough people signed up, will have the data they need, whether people use Google+ as a social media hub or not. And once they have the data they need, their ads will become more targeted and the revenue will go up accordingly.Would they LOVE to have G+ become a mainstream competitor/alternative to Facebook? Sure, and they are going to do everything they can (heck, they tied all employee bonuses to social in 2011) to make it a success, but the initial goal has to be just to continue to get signups. Predictions are that they will go over 400 million users in 2012, and so really, what happens is that enough people will be signed up that if Facebook stumbles (which they have been known to do) it'll become easier for people and their network to move en-mass to Google+. I've seen Facebook posts in my circle of friends saying they would be moving to Google+ if it weren't for feature X or Y missing still.

For example, the same personalization that allows Facebook to make so much money, is the same personalization that creeps people out about how much of their personal data Facebook owns/can use. Now Google+ would be no different, but Google is marketing it (or should be) it as a better way of sharing where you control who knows/sees your posts/data.

 

[[icon]]

Predictions are that they will go over 400 million users in 2012,

I think you're missing the point of my post.... I agree they get the information they need upon signups. But they were getting most of that info from Gmail signups. The money is in the page-views and ads served on the social side of things. Google+ is currently little more than a bunch of dead accounts and a few active ones. And regarding the quoted above. Come on... that was a prediction by Paul Allen (the same guy who ridiculously claims Google+ gets 5x more daily photo uploads than FB) who's methodology for this "guesstimate" is suspect at best

"His approach was to track a big list of unusual names in the U.S. and note how many people with those names mentioned they were on Google Plus when they applied for work through recruitment site Elance."

Regardless... I'll state again that Google+ is in no danger of becoming a real threat to Facebook (or even a truly viable social media platform) until people actually start USING it. Everyone activating an Android 4 phone is required to set up a Google+ account. That doesn't mean they're actually using it (and current numbers indicate they're not).

"For instance, the Coca-Cola Facebook page has 36,547,311 likes, with ~250 posts a day (all by users, not counting comments on those posts). Meanwhile, the Coca-Cola Google+ page has has 2947 +1s, and hasn’t had an update in two days. "

-link

 

[Maelstrom]

Predictions are that they will go over 400 million users in 2012,

I think you're missing the point of my post.... I agree they get the information they need upon signups. But they were getting most of that info from Gmail signups. The money is in the page-views and ads served on the social side of things. Google+ is currently little more than a bunch of dead accounts and a few active ones. And regarding the quoted above. Come on... that was a prediction by Paul Allen (the same guy who ridiculously claims Google+ gets 5x more daily photo uploads than FB) who's methodology for this "guesstimate" is suspect at best

"His approach was to track a big list of unusual names in the U.S. and note how many people with those names mentioned they were on Google Plus when they applied for work through recruitment site Elance."

His estimates have matched up fairly well with the few times Google has released real numbers. I agree that method probably starts to break down as more and more people sign up. However I do disagree with you about "the money in is the page-views and ads served on the social side of things." Or maybe not disagree with you - there is a lot of money there. But while Google would love that, they have PLENTY of page-views, and if Google+ allows them to target ads better then it doesn't matter if people are on a "social" page or not. I still maintain that Google wants the social signals, to better serve both search results and to better target their advertising. Google doesn't need it to challenge Facebook (I do have my doubts they can do that without a stumble by Facebook), they just need to get enough use to extrapolate the social signals they need.

Regardless... I'll state again that Google+ is in no danger of becoming a real threat to Facebook (or even a truly viable social media platform) until people actually start USING it. Everyone activating an Android 4 phone is required to set up a Google+ account. That doesn't mean they're actually using it (and current numbers indicate they're not).

"For instance, the Coca-Cola Facebook page has 36,547,311 likes, with ~250 posts a day (all by users, not counting comments on those posts). Meanwhile, the Coca-Cola Google+ page has has 2947 +1s, and hasn’t had an update in two days. "

-link

I agree that Facebook won't be threatened by Google+ unless Facebook screws something up. In fact, I said early on that Twitter is in more danger from Google+ than Facebook is.

 

[No. 16]

Predictions are that they will go over 400 million users in 2012,

I think you're missing the point of my post.... I agree they get the information they need upon signups. But they were getting most of that info from Gmail signups. The money is in the page-views and ads served on the social side of things. Google+ is currently little more than a bunch of dead accounts and a few active ones. And regarding the quoted above. Come on... that was a prediction by Paul Allen (the same guy who ridiculously claims Google+ gets 5x more daily photo uploads than FB) who's methodology for this "guesstimate" is suspect at best

"His approach was to track a big list of unusual names in the U.S. and note how many people with those names mentioned they were on Google Plus when they applied for work through recruitment site Elance."

His estimates have matched up fairly well with the few times Google has released real numbers. I agree that method probably starts to break down as more and more people sign up. However I do disagree with you about "the money in is the page-views and ads served on the social side of things." Or maybe not disagree with you - there is a lot of money there. But while Google would love that, they have PLENTY of page-views, and if Google+ allows them to target ads better then it doesn't matter if people are on a "social" page or not. I still maintain that Google wants the social signals, to better serve both search results and to better target their advertising. Google doesn't need it to challenge Facebook (I do have my doubts they can do that without a stumble by Facebook), they just need to get enough use to extrapolate the social signals they need.

Regardless... I'll state again that Google+ is in no danger of becoming a real threat to Facebook (or even a truly viable social media platform) until people actually start USING it. Everyone activating an Android 4 phone is required to set up a Google+ account. That doesn't mean they're actually using it (and current numbers indicate they're not).

"For instance, the Coca-Cola Facebook page has 36,547,311 likes, with ~250 posts a day (all by users, not counting comments on those posts). Meanwhile, the Coca-Cola Google+ page has has 2947 +1s, and hasn’t had an update in two days. "

-link

I agree that Facebook won't be threatened by Google+ unless Facebook screws something up. In fact, I said early on that Twitter is in more danger from Google+ than Facebook is.

Twitter is not in trouble either.

 

[cstu]

The Google is gonna getcha...

 

[goonsquad]

The Google is gonna getcha...

So they have to trick people into signing up and count any activity on any Google service as "usage" of G+. Yep, G+ is winning the internet alright.

 

[SacramentoBob]

Obama Administration officially endorses Google+

Pretty much the beginning of the end for FB at this point.

 

[dgreen]

Chat isn't working at work today in gmail. But, it's working in Google+, so I'll actually be spending some time in there today. Score one for Google+.

 

[[icon]]

Google+ drops from 0.24% to 0.22% of Web Referral Traffic in January 2012

By comparison: Facebooking up from 25.6% to 26.4% (about 120 times more than Google Plus)

Even the mighty Google (all inclusive) is down from 3.69% to 3.62%.

Girly site Pintreest is even now referring about 15 times more web traffic than Google Plus.

There is a reason google is forcing G+ activations and refusing to release traffic numbers of G+ on it's own without lumping it in with the entire Google Network.

 

[3C's]

Google+ drops from 0.24% to 0.22% of Web Referral Traffic in January 2012

By comparison: Facebooking up from 25.6% to 26.4% (about 120 times more than Google Plus)

Even the mighty Google (all inclusive) is down from 3.69% to 3.62%.

Girly site Pintreest is even now referring about 15 times more web traffic than Google Plus.

There is a reason google is forcing G+ activations and refusing to release traffic numbers of G+ on it's own without lumping it in with the entire Google Network.

Just killed my g+ profile.Pinterest is girly? Come to think of it, the only ones I know on pinterest are my daughter, some former Hooters girls and my gay friend. hmm, guess I'll stick with FB.

 

[[icon]]

Google+ drops from 0.24% to 0.22% of Web Referral Traffic in January 2012

By comparison: Facebooking up from 25.6% to 26.4% (about 120 times more than Google Plus)

Even the mighty Google (all inclusive) is down from 3.69% to 3.62%.

Girly site Pintreest is even now referring about 15 times more web traffic than Google Plus.

There is a reason google is forcing G+ activations and refusing to release traffic numbers of G+ on it's own without lumping it in with the entire Google Network.

Just killed my g+ profile.Pinterest is girly? Come to think of it, the only ones I know on pinterest are my daughter, some former Hooters girls and my gay friend. hmm, guess I'll stick with FB.

Yep. Pinterest is 80% women. Referred to as a Tumblr for ladies:http://econsultancy.com/us/blog/8796-revealing-the-demographics-behind-pinterest-s-users

 

[Mister CIA]

Google+ drops from 0.24% to 0.22% of Web Referral Traffic in January 2012

By comparison: Facebooking up from 25.6% to 26.4% (about 120 times more than Google Plus)

Even the mighty Google (all inclusive) is down from 3.69% to 3.62%.

Girly site Pintreest is even now referring about 15 times more web traffic than Google Plus.

There is a reason google is forcing G+ activations and refusing to release traffic numbers of G+ on it's own without lumping it in with the entire Google Network.

Facebook usage is is up sharply in the 13-13 demographic in my household; dramatically down in the 15-17 range.

 

[Arsenal of Doom]

If everything goes right for Google, I think they could hit 100M by the end of this year and 500M by the end of 2012. They already have more unique users than Facebook, 1 billion to 750 million, so the question is whether or not they can create a critical mass in converting those users. I don't really think there is a middle ground here, it will either grow fast and furious or it will quickly wither on the vine like Wave did. Someone in the other thread said it pretty well, (paraphrasing) the tool itself is important, but the value is in the community. If they don't quickly grow the community, they'll be no reason to use the tool no matter how cool it is.

I've changed my original opinion. I think Google Plus will be around for the long haul as the social portal for Google's products. It probably never "replaces" Facebook, but it doesn't really need to for it to be valuable to Google. Google's Ad revenue's are 10x what Facebook's are right now, and I'm not of the opinion that Facebook has much more upside potential.

 

[[icon]]

If everything goes right for Google, I think they could hit 100M by the end of this year and 500M by the end of 2012. They already have more unique users than Facebook, 1 billion to 750 million, so the question is whether or not they can create a critical mass in converting those users. I don't really think there is a middle ground here, it will either grow fast and furious or it will quickly wither on the vine like Wave did. Someone in the other thread said it pretty well, (paraphrasing) the tool itself is important, but the value is in the community. If they don't quickly grow the community, they'll be no reason to use the tool no matter how cool it is.

I've changed my original opinion. I think Google Plus will be around for the long haul as the social portal for Google's products. It probably never "replaces" Facebook, but it doesn't really need to for it to be valuable to Google. Google's Ad revenue's are 10x what Facebook's are right now, and I'm not of the opinion that Facebook has much more upside potential.

Actually the numbers for 2011 were around 6x I believe (7% vs 40%) and projected to be narrower in 2012. Not saying Google isn't making significantly more money, but to compare it's entire stable of products to Facebook (while facebook is absolutely crushing Google's directly competitive product) is a bit disingenous. It's not unlike the Fandroid segment touting a market share lead with the 1000 different android devices over the 3 different iOS devices. Well no ####. The point, when comparing Google+ vs Facebook, is that right now Google is getting smoked and despite all the puffed up misleading numbers they're throwing out.... it's getting worse, not better. Now, comparing the entirety of the Google portfolio (Search, GMail, YouTube, Google+) against Facebook and we have a different (and very unfair... at least for now) fight on our hands.

 

[Arsenal of Doom]

If everything goes right for Google, I think they could hit 100M by the end of this year and 500M by the end of 2012. They already have more unique users than Facebook, 1 billion to 750 million, so the question is whether or not they can create a critical mass in converting those users. I don't really think there is a middle ground here, it will either grow fast and furious or it will quickly wither on the vine like Wave did. Someone in the other thread said it pretty well, (paraphrasing) the tool itself is important, but the value is in the community. If they don't quickly grow the community, they'll be no reason to use the tool no matter how cool it is.

I've changed my original opinion. I think Google Plus will be around for the long haul as the social portal for Google's products. It probably never "replaces" Facebook, but it doesn't really need to for it to be valuable to Google. Google's Ad revenue's are 10x what Facebook's are right now, and I'm not of the opinion that Facebook has much more upside potential.

Actually the numbers for 2011 were around 6x I believe (7% vs 40%) and projected to be narrower in 2012. Not saying Google isn't making significantly more money, but to compare it's entire stable of products to Facebook (while facebook is absolutely crushing Google's directly competitive product) is a bit disingenous. It's not unlike the Fandroid segment touting a market share lead with the 1000 different android devices over the 3 different iOS devices. Well no ####. The point, when comparing Google+ vs Facebook, is that right now Google is getting smoked and despite all the puffed up misleading numbers they're throwing out.... it's getting worse, not better. Now, comparing the entirety of the Google portfolio (Search, GMail, YouTube, Google+) against Facebook and we have a different (and very unfair... at least for now) fight on our hands.

I don't particularly care one way or the other. I've used Facebook for years and love it so I have no interest in seeing it go away. In many ways I do think Google+ is already a superior product, but as I said in my first post way back the value is really in the quality of the network more than the functionality of the tool. My skepticism about Facebook ever becoming a legitimate competitor to Google in the ad space is that they simply lag so far behind as a marketing company. They are great at driving traffic, but traffic and revenue are different things and Google is on top for the foreseeable future because they drive the latter. I don't know that I've clicked on an ad on Facebook in any of the time I've been using it, though I've clicked on a million links to pictures and news stories. When I want to buy a product I search for it, which means Google. Google's size/scope is their biggest challenge right now IMO. Apple has been successful by having laser focus on a handful of products and making them so well that they have blown the market away. Google on the other hand is going head-to-head with Apple, Microsoft and Facebook on various fronts, not to mention side projects like the autonomous car.

 

[No. 16]

Pinterest #3 Social Network

Looks like people don't want another Facebook clone.

 

[cstu]

Pinterest #3 Social Network

Looks like people don't want another Facebook clone.

women accounting for 60 percent of the visitors

No surprise there, I checked it out and it seemed like nothing more than makeup and shoes. I prefer Gentlemint.com.

 

[Maelstrom]

People still miss the point of Google+. It is here to stay and it will get it's adherents. And a whole bunch of other people will use it without even realizing it, whether it's by getting an account when they get an Android phone or when setting up a Google account. Google is in it for the long haul, and G+ is an integral part of their plan for the future. I've said it before, but it bears repeating.

They don't need to beat Facebook. They don't need to have what Facebook has or to have a clone of Facebook (or the network.) Of course, they'd love to do both, but they really just need a social network where they control the signals and get all of the data.

 

[Joe T]

'Never' appears to be the correct answer.

 

[[icon]]

'Never' appears to be the correct answer.

Sure is looking that way isn't it? Sure, google is forcing a bunch of people into creating accounts... and making a few people accidentally use it. Sure they claim 300 million "Active" users, But I don't know anyone who is actually using it as a social media / facebook type platform.

You might accidentally end up on a page on occasion through google playing link trickery, but thats not the same as people actively using it as a social media sharing platform.

 

[Joe T]

My barometer for "mainstream" is when one person asks me, "Hey, are you on Google+?"

...still waiting.

linkedn, facebook, twitter, > all of those are "mainstream" in my book.

 

[Maelstrom]

Still depends on the industry - tech industry there are quite a few people using it for sharing news and the conversations on those news items. I don't see it being used like Facebook, it's more like deeper tweets with a way to have an actual conversation.

Mainstream yet? No. I wouldn't be them out though, it's a long game item for Google.

 

[CrossEyed]

We use Google+ hangouts all the time. But that's pretty much the extent of it.

 

[SacramentoBob]

My barometer for "mainstream" is when one person asks me, "Hey, are you on Google+?"

...still waiting.

linkedn, facebook, twitter, > all of those are "mainstream" in my book.

Hey Joe, are you on Google+?

 

[SlaX]

I have 3 real friends who are active on G+. But I have to admit that everything they post is worth reading, unlike Facebook and Twitter.

 

[Joe T]

My barometer for "mainstream" is when one person asks me, "Hey, are you on Google+?" ...still waiting. linkedn, facebook, twitter, > all of those are "mainstream" in my book.

Hey Joe, are you on Google+?

Lol

 

[The Commish]

I have 3 real friends who are active on G+. But I have to admit that everything they post is worth reading, unlike Facebook and Twitter.

There's only a handful of people I know on G+ and I agree. I'll go out to facebook on occasion, but we communicate mostly over G+ simply because there isn't all the nonsense and noise. I'm starting to get annoyed with the ads popping up on my facebook page as "suggested links".

 

[Worm]

We use Google+ hangouts all the time. But that's pretty much the extent of it.

Hangouts >>> skype. Use hangouts pretty frequently.

But that is about the extent of G+ for me.

 

[dgreen]

Did Google Chat disappear from Google+? My work blocks the chat within email, but I've been able to use the chat built into Google+ for a couple years. With the new format, I don't see Chat anymore.

 

[FlapJacks]

Feel free to delete your favorite, come back to it in about 18 months when enough people setup accounts and start using it with an app that updates facebook and g+ at the same time.Android users will love g+ once more people get there.

Update?

 

[Jaysus]

Did Google Chat disappear from Google+? My work blocks the chat within email, but I've been able to use the chat built into Google+ for a couple years. With the new format, I don't see Chat anymore.

The services were unified into "Google Hangouts"... which was formerly Google Talk, which is what was linked to email before.I suspect that may be the culprit.