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Sanne Moderator

If you want an invite, please PM me with the email address that you want the invite sent to. You may post your email address in this topic, but for privacy reasons I don't recommend it.

What is this Google+?
It's the new Facebook! Google's concept however revolves around privacy, something which Facebook lacks. G+ allows me to organize all my friends/contacts into circles, and every little bit of information on my profile, photos, videos and Stream (the G+ equivalent of a Facebook Wall) can be specifically targeted towards a single or multiple circles or single/multiple specific friends.

New features Google brings out for Plus are also always set to private, nothing is shared with the public eye or even your friends unless you tell it to do so. I've found that Facebook releases new features silently without informing its users and exposing sensitive information.

Why can't I join G+?
It's still in beta phase and requires an existing G+ user to invite you. Google is accepting feedback and making changes to their service constantly (much like Kim!!) and by issuing out invites, it makes the service attractive and builds a network of its own.

How can I get an invite?
Just let me know! :) Sometimes Google closes invites, but they appear to be open now. So send me a PM with your email address and I'll send an invite your way.

Do I need to be invited when the service goes fully live?
No, Google will open G+ to everyone once they're officially opening. Invites are temporary.

What is your Google+ profile?
https://plus.google.com/117127584122991616866/
Feel free to add me to a Circle! If you want me to add you back and your username on G+ differs from your RPR name, let me know, else it gets confusing. :p
Kim Site Admin

Google+ is a boon unto the internet. Facebook has never done anything but made me frustrated and enraged and forced me into increasingly awful social situations.

Everything about Google+ is more natural and intuitive than Facebook, right down to the basic premises it was designed around. Some of what they're doing is inspiring me with ways to improve things around here.

I'll still maintain the RPR facebook page, but my personal facebook page got thrown out like spoiled leftover surprise the second I saw G+.
Darth_Angelus Moderator

I've seen many people echo those sentiments over the last few days and very few people actually saying they prefer Facebook (most of whom haven't actually tried Google+).
I've never had issues with facebook, then again, I don't have enough friends to seperate them in different circles. (Nor would I want to, ught too much effort) so anythign I ever put on the internet I have no issues with everyone seeing it.

This G+ thing ti me seems like more work too, organizing friends, putting everything on view for different people. Not my thing. Barely even issue facebooks and never had to hide something from someone.
Darth_Angelus Moderator

I'm the opposite, I have many friends but don't always like them all knowing my business.

For example, I have an online friend who lives in New York. I'm quite content to be online friends but I have no real desire to meet him in person. So both times I visited New York, I've been unable to post anything about it on Facebook, before or after, even though I would actually like to share the details and photos of those trips.
Kim Site Admin

It's not really any work at all, it comes extremely naturally, doesn't take any more effort than clicking the +friend button. It is a lot of work to separate them on Facebook, granted, but the Google+ interface is far more intuitive.

For me, it's not about "hiding" anything, it's about basic internet etiquette. I have about 500 contacts on Facebook. Some of them are from work (I do client work so I meet a loooooooooooooot of people). Some of them are school friends. Some are people I LARP with. My work friends don't give a rat's behind about LARP, and every time I make a post about it, it annoys them just a tiny bit. My LARP friends don't care about work, and every time I post about it, I clutter up their streams with yet more stuff they don't care about. And vice versa. For me, talking only to the people that are interested is just a matter of politeness. I appreciate it when people do me the same courtesy. Otherwise I end up with what Facebook was: Information soup. Not even tasty information soup. Most of it aimed at a social circle I wasn't a member of, because I know the person through some other way. If they're talking about school policies to their student friends but I know them from work, it doesn't make sense to me and I don't care about the little disembodied snippets that come through in that media. So mostly the irrelevant stuff just drowns out the things I actually want to see on Facebook.

In real life, people naturally gain different social circles over time, that may or may not interact much or at all. Being able to "hang out" with my co-workers and the clients that I like online, and with clubs that I'm a member of, or school friends, without forcing all the others to come to a party that will probably bore them is GREAT. And I don't speak to my best friend the same way I speak to my Grandma (both of them are on Facebook). It makes me feel free to post and interact in much more natural ways.
Darth_Angelus Moderator

It's not that I'm hiding, I just have better things to do with my time than deal with the drama that arises when you don't want to meet a friend :)
That's why I just post random things on Facebook, like song lyrics or lines from movies. (I mostly post for lulz. *snerk*) I think I might give this Google+ thing a try, though..sometime..
Sanne Topic Starter Moderator

I feel rather limited with facebook. I have many friends from.different places, and it makes it hard to separqte my hobbies between these people. My coworkers don't need to know about Furcadia or RPR or anything like that, I tire of explaining the concept to them knwing they won't get it anyway.

I like that with one coick or tap, I can make sure posts are relevant to th riht groups.

Also, when adding a friend the only way to do it is by assignjng thm to q circle. You can't add someone without doing so, so prganizng friends into the right circles is easy as pie.
Ell

You all make it sound so wonderful! Also, I have far too much family on Facebook and having one makes my family life a tad awkward. Also, I've had all that stuff happen that Kim said, only I can't say it as eloquently as she said it. Color me interested!
Interesting. A new social network thing? Hmm..given what I'm hearing/reading about it here I think it'll be worth at least checking out.
Sanne Topic Starter Moderator

Another reason why I love G+: I can edit my posts when I made them (Facebook doesn't let you do that) plus I can close a post from being commented on.

http://i55.tinypic.com/34pxeu1.png
Well...shame. I at least started an account but I won't be able to do crap to it till I get a new comp.
Sanne Topic Starter Moderator

Lance2011 wrote:
Well...shame. I at least started an account but I won't be able to do crap to it till I get a new comp.

There is an android and an iPhone app available that lets you modify circles and such.
Does said app allow me todo the whole initial public profile making stuff cause that's what it's tellingme I need a comp for.
Sanne Topic Starter Moderator

Lance2011 wrote:
Does said app allow me todo the whole initial public profile making stuff cause that's what it's tellingme I need a comp for.

No, but do you mean a Google account to sign up for G+ or do you mean thr profile with info and stuff?
Eh. Doesn't matter either way right now. Dang app is saying my email ain't been verified and it won't let me verify it from my phone. Ergo I need a dang comp either way.
Sanne Topic Starter Moderator

Poopiebunny. :( I didn't account for a lack.of computer on this one.

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