So Google has taken the world by storm. Google says it already has about 10 million people signed up, sharing a billion of pieces of information in just a couple of weeks.

My thoughts on the new platform.

  • I like the idea of dividing your contact into circles, based on your relationship with them. But many of the relationships I have developed online (which make up a big number of the first adapter crowd on G ) have undefined roles. Friends, business associates, Twitterati? I”ve been throwing a lot of people in friends. Basically, anyone I”ve ever had lunch with.
  • The photo feature looks great, but as an iPhone user, it”s not a perfect solution for me until there is an easy upload app. Maybe I should just buy an Android and sell myself totally out to Google.
  • I do like the idea of only sharing certain content with certain followers. A great strategy for someone who is still on the fence about social media or has a big distinction between their work and home life. Again, a skill I haven”t developed.
  • The more I think about it, the more G would have been good as one of the first social networks instead of coming after Twitter and Facebook. Would have made us all more disciplined.
  • So, obviously that means they are developing a Google time machine.
  • Love the hangout group online casino video chat. This I think has the most application for businesses. Easy for staff meetings, brainstorming sessions, so you can be sharing content, docs and links with at the same time. The future of web collaboration.
  • Sparks? Kinda meh.
  • The bottom line, of course, is adoption. We are still living with a zero-sum game when it comes to time online. What Google has going for it is that is already my primary home for my browser, documents, calendar and email. If there is a great coming together that allows we to socialize all of those things into one mother-of-all-dashboards, then I will be very interested. As a consultant though, it”s hard for me to dissuade clients from adopting something new when Facebook has a 700 million user lead.