All posts in Google Plus

How to Search Google Plus for Content Not Just People

by Michael D. Jensen on August 2, 2011 in Google Plus, Search with No comments

One of the things I’ve wanted to do is to “monitor” what is being said on Google Plus for things I’m interested in and my own brands. Without a Developer API yet available, it isn’t really possible unless you follow everyone and keep up with your G+ stream.

I did discover a way, however! It’s not perfect or automated, but at least it is a step forward. All of G+ is indexed, so if you use Google’s own “site operator” and then your search term, it limits your search and returns results. I’ve been able to narrow down some search terms and see some posts I had not seen before, so it is already a valuable tool for me.

Here’s how it works and some examples to boot:

*Search for G+ users talking about “favorite iPhone apps”*
http://www.google.com/search?q=site:plus.google.com+favorite+iphone+app

*Search for G+ users talking about “Debt Ceiling Plan”*
*Search for G+ users talking about “Abstract Photography”*

 

Whether you are looking to find new people to follow in your hobby or industry, or want to monitor a search term or brand name, this search query will help!

Backup Google+ with Google Takeout

by Michael D. Jensen on July 5, 2011 in Google Plus with No comments

What you probably missed (as I did) with the launch of Google+ is the launch of Google Takeout, a quick and easy service to download your Google data (not all yet, but soon).

Just like Chinese takeout, you’re not taking it to another restaurant, you’re taking it home. That’s what Google is hoping, that you’ll be more willing to side with Google if they are freely letting you access your data, and that you won’t just go somewhere else simply because you have your data now.

This comes on the cusp of big Google+ vs Facebook news where a popular Facebook tool was shutdown by Facebook that lets you export your Facebook users and bring them over to Google+. That doesn’t sound as nice as Google, letting you take all your data with you, now does it? Interesting dynamics.

I tested out Google Takeout and it took under a minute to gather and download everything, and the data now is in one folder, separated by subfolders for each Google service. The data is also in common file formats, like my contacts are all in VCF, my profile is in JSON, Buzz and G+ Stream is in HTML, and of course Picasa is in the original file format.

The announcement was made with a fun video from Google’s own “Data Liberation Front” team.

Google Plus Killed Twitter, Not Facebook

by Michael D. Jensen on July 5, 2011 in Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter with 4 Comments

Most comparisons out there for Google Plus (G+) surround its comparisons to Facebook and how it is going to be a Facebook killer. Of course I have found myself spending more time with G+ but more so because its new and fancy and there is a lot of learning and connecting to do as an early adopter kind of a guy. I don’t think we can have 3 players in the game, its too much. But just one isn’t enough either. That said, here is why I think G+ will kill Twitter, and G+ and Facebook will coexist as sister social networks.

Facebook vs G+

The more I’ve been thinking about features, users, functions, and aims the more I am convinced that G+ is a Twitter killer, not a Facebook killer. For me, Facebook is more of an extension of real life. I only friend people I know, have met, or have interacted with online enough to genuinely say, “oh yeah I know that guy”. There is very little “following” of big names and super stars (aside from brands and celebrities with the use of Pages). I don’t think G+ is going to move a lot of the non-savvy group that has used Facebook for a while. Their families are there, their friends are there, and they are comfortable with it. And let’s be honest, despite Google’s huge brand recognition and global appeal, Facebook just has some flavor and character to it. Heck, there’s a movie about it.

Twitter vs G+

Now I love Twitter, I do. I’ve built Twitter tools galore (TweetBeep.com and others that have since been retired), and have used it for my go to drop off point of information, news, and status updates. The appeal for Twitter was its all about people I don’t know following me, and then following lots of people that I don’t necessarily know but that give lots of good info or are fun to listen to. This also ends up making Twitter a bit noisy and spammy. Enter G+ … now I get an open (non-2-way-friend-thing) community where people can freely follow me, and I them. I now get G+ Circles that reduces the noise, and even lets me aim before I fire out what I have to say. The spam part is still to be determined, but it’s one thing Google knows best it is spam.