5 ms·

I still wish for a clone of Google+ v1 to succeed and replace Facebook. Sometimes i still wonder why it failed.

Grumbledour 4y ago
I would still argue it didn't. It worked alright and created long lasting communities that still miss the platform. Of course, it did not kill facebook, but that seemed always like a laughable short term goal. Everything else was just googles M.O., wasn't it? Create new shiny platform, rebuild everything around it, annoying a lot of people but also creating some value for those that opt in. Than never address the issues that arise, change strategy midway and remove all integrations, but maybe create new ones when you do the inescapable surface-level redesign that only creates more issues than addressing existing ones (Because now there is a new "strategy"). Repeat until product is canceled.
baby 4y ago
IMO Facebook used to be perfect, and can still be if they split the content platform from the close social networking platform. Not because you are forced to use the content platform, but I think it drives people away. I got a close friend who deleted his facebook account and I can't find him anymore, nobody knows how to contact him, I went twice to his city and couldn't reach out to him.
- woweoe 4y ago
  LinkedIn would be the best replacement for a peoples directory because it has a certain professional air to it. Facebook initially was a casual platform similar to Instagram.
  - baby 4y ago
    Always used fb for that and it was always great up until some point. Linkedin always felt spammy “hey pay for this feature” and only for professionals
pessimizer 4y ago
Real name policy. Now you practically need to send an id and a birth certificate to get a free email address, but the overton window hadn't been completely forced yet during the period Google+ needed growth. Combine real names with they fact that they would pull your youtube (and any other google property) account in, and it was really repulsive to people. And Google held strong and kept trying to push that for years before shutting it down. I think they thought that it was necessary to leverage the rest of Google to give them an advantage in social media, to draw people into a Google ecosystem, but really they just needed to do Facebook better, and take advantage of whatever anti-consumer move that Facebook would make and market "That doesn't happen here!" You can close the net once people are in. Instead people with gmail addresses and youtube accounts felt like they were under attack.
- hbn 4y ago
  > they would pull your youtube (and any other google property) account in, and it was really repulsive to people Here's a fun anecdote that comes to mind whenever I think of Google+ : On YouTube I had either liked or commented on a video where comedian/pianist Tim Minchin performed his song, White Wine in the Sun. To give a simple summary, this song is about how he likes Christmas, even if he thinks the whole religious aspect of it is silly. This was around my late teens, when I was quietly pulling myself out of my Christian upbringing and had decided I didn't really want to continue pretending I believe all that stuff (part of the reason I was drawn to Tim Minchin in the first place). Well wouldn't you know, apparently interacting with any YouTube video publicly posted your interactions to your Google+ page, where I had added some random people here or there, including my sister who had seen this "post," watched the video, and proceeded to question me a day or two later as to why I shared that video. I can't say that left a great impression on me to continue using Google+

I would still argue it didn't. It worked alright and created long lasting communities that still miss the platform. Of course, it did not kill facebook, but that seemed always like a laughable short term goal. Everything else was just googles M.O., wasn't it? Create new shiny platform, rebuild everything around it, annoying a lot of people but also creating some value for those that opt in. Than never address the issues that arise, change strategy midway and remove all integrations, but maybe create new ones when you do the inescapable surface-level redesign that only creates more issues than addressing existing ones (Because now there is a new "strategy"). Repeat until product is canceled.

baby 4y ago

IMO Facebook used to be perfect, and can still be if they split the content platform from the close social networking platform. Not because you are forced to use the content platform, but I think it drives people away. I got a close friend who deleted his facebook account and I can't find him anymore, nobody knows how to contact him, I went twice to his city and couldn't reach out to him.

woweoe 4y ago
LinkedIn would be the best replacement for a peoples directory because it has a certain professional air to it. Facebook initially was a casual platform similar to Instagram.
- baby 4y ago
  Always used fb for that and it was always great up until some point. Linkedin always felt spammy “hey pay for this feature” and only for professionals

pessimizer 4y ago

Real name policy. Now you practically need to send an id and a birth certificate to get a free email address, but the overton window hadn't been completely forced yet during the period Google+ needed growth. Combine real names with they fact that they would pull your youtube (and any other google property) account in, and it was really repulsive to people. And Google held strong and kept trying to push that for years before shutting it down. I think they thought that it was necessary to leverage the rest of Google to give them an advantage in social media, to draw people into a Google ecosystem, but really they just needed to do Facebook better, and take advantage of whatever anti-consumer move that Facebook would make and market "That doesn't happen here!" You can close the net once people are in. Instead people with gmail addresses and youtube accounts felt like they were under attack.

hbn 4y ago
> they would pull your youtube (and any other google property) account in, and it was really repulsive to people Here's a fun anecdote that comes to mind whenever I think of Google+ : On YouTube I had either liked or commented on a video where comedian/pianist Tim Minchin performed his song, White Wine in the Sun. To give a simple summary, this song is about how he likes Christmas, even if he thinks the whole religious aspect of it is silly. This was around my late teens, when I was quietly pulling myself out of my Christian upbringing and had decided I didn't really want to continue pretending I believe all that stuff (part of the reason I was drawn to Tim Minchin in the first place). Well wouldn't you know, apparently interacting with any YouTube video publicly posted your interactions to your Google+ page, where I had added some random people here or there, including my sister who had seen this "post," watched the video, and proceeded to question me a day or two later as to why I shared that video. I can't say that left a great impression on me to continue using Google+