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Is there any measurement of social networks that doesn't count people viewing a web page on the social network as a user?

hosay123 14y ago
A social network that does nothing but serves web pages isn't a "social network", it is a "web server" A social network that does nothing but allow the user make use of web applications is not a "social network", it is often called an "application server", or perhaps still "web server". A social network as originally defined, was a particular kind of web application where one could describe real-life relationships to a machine which would then attempt to assist the user in maintaining those relationships, for example by sharing drunk shots or funny cat videos. Google+, in almost all its integrations with other Google products, does not count as a "social network" in the traditional sense -- rendering a "G+" button in an endless series of places where it might accidentally be clicked does not constitute helping the user maintain real world relationships. Forcing users of older web applications to create a Google+ account in order to remain a user of that older web application does not constitute helping the user maintain real world relationships. Integrating arbitrary applications tightly with Google+ does not unconditionally constitute helping the user maintain real world relationships. In every conceivable way Google+ is a failure as a social network: almost everyone uses Facebook for what Google+ tries and fails to achieve, these "stats" only serve to highlight this each time they appear in the news. In the meantime, it has turned into some kind of mediocre blogging platform, except it doesn't support RSS (because that would encourage people to never visit the site – undistorting the stats against Google's favour). To count me as a "social network user" I would first expect said network to have helped me maintain real life relationships somehow – Facebook does this, and not by pilfering my Gmail address book, not by tricking me into clicking a share link while I watch a lolcat on YouTube, not by crippling my favourite applications (Reader), and least of all not by rendering blog posts. Google's only successful social applications to date (IMHO) have been Gmail (including Talk) and Reader, and they already managed to kill one of these in their panic to beat Facebook.

hosay123 14y ago

A social network that does nothing but serves web pages isn't a "social network", it is a "web server" A social network that does nothing but allow the user make use of web applications is not a "social network", it is often called an "application server", or perhaps still "web server". A social network as originally defined, was a particular kind of web application where one could describe real-life relationships to a machine which would then attempt to assist the user in maintaining those relationships, for example by sharing drunk shots or funny cat videos. Google+, in almost all its integrations with other Google products, does not count as a "social network" in the traditional sense -- rendering a "G+" button in an endless series of places where it might accidentally be clicked does not constitute helping the user maintain real world relationships. Forcing users of older web applications to create a Google+ account in order to remain a user of that older web application does not constitute helping the user maintain real world relationships. Integrating arbitrary applications tightly with Google+ does not unconditionally constitute helping the user maintain real world relationships. In every conceivable way Google+ is a failure as a social network: almost everyone uses Facebook for what Google+ tries and fails to achieve, these "stats" only serve to highlight this each time they appear in the news. In the meantime, it has turned into some kind of mediocre blogging platform, except it doesn't support RSS (because that would encourage people to never visit the site – undistorting the stats against Google's favour). To count me as a "social network user" I would first expect said network to have helped me maintain real life relationships somehow – Facebook does this, and not by pilfering my Gmail address book, not by tricking me into clicking a share link while I watch a lolcat on YouTube, not by crippling my favourite applications (Reader), and least of all not by rendering blog posts. Google's only successful social applications to date (IMHO) have been Gmail (including Talk) and Reader, and they already managed to kill one of these in their panic to beat Facebook.