Five Hurdles Google+ Still Faces in the War Between the Social Networks

​Google+ launched to much fanfare in June and there were all sorts of people proclaiming either its superiority to Facebook or what an utter failure it would be. Since June, the social networking platform has added 25 million users, but there isn’t a whole lot of buzz about it and using it still feels like an afterthought.

Several people I’ve spoken with tell me that they often forget to use it. I’ve thought on a few occasions that if I had something important to post — a link to a blog post on the Houston Press, for example — I would immediately go to Twitter and Facebook, but think, “Oh, right, I guess I should add it to Google+ too?”

There is a lot to like about Google+ as well. The video conferencing, group chat and ease of use in creating and managing circles are impressive. But, setting “buzz” aside for a moment, there are still some legitimate issues that leave me concerned about its future and wondering why I should even bother continuing to mess with it at all. Some of them could be fixed. Others are a little trickier. Here are five hurdles Google+ faces in the battle for the hearts and minds of social networkers.

5. Familiarity
One of the biggest problems Google+ will continue to face is the simple issue of users not being in the habit of using it to post updates or look for updates from friends. Facebook and Twitter, for many who use various social networking platforms, are automatic. Branching out, YouTube, Flickr and FourSquare are all widely used. Google+ would seem to have a pretty big mountain to climb to become a habit for online social networkers.

4. Open Windows
This is more a minor annoyance than a real issue, but when is Google going to stop forcing a new window or tab to be opened with virtually every click of a mouse? Just because I’m in Gmail at the moment and click on Google+ doesn’t mean I want a new window to open. Let me decide how I want to navigate pages. That’s why God invented the right-click.

3. The Name Game
It’s been widely reported that Google+ recently kicked large numbers of people off of the network because of odd or suspicious names, accusing many of them of masquerading as a business. User names and monikers are so common on the Web, it seems antiquated to not allow people to use them, but if there is a real concern that the site will be populated by businesses, create fan pages like Facebook did and circumvent the problem.

2. Google Apps All Linked
One of the biggest and most substantial issues, at least for me, facing Google is that your Google+ account is linked to every other Google app including Gmail. When you do want to delete your Google+ profile, as was explained to me by a friend who did it, you have two choices: 1) delete your Google+ profile and 2) delete your entire Google account. Also, when you do have multiple Gmail accounts — many of us do — trying to make sure you are in the right one and managing multiple logins is a pain.

1. I Don’t Want Everyone Following Me
Since I got on Google+ about six weeks ago, I’ve added lots of familiar faces and names to the list of people I follow and others have done the same with me, but there has also been an influx of people adding me who I don’t know at all. Many of them appear to be people in social networking or technology and their streams, which I see if I look at the feed of everyone who is sharing with me, are filled with links to tech stories, many of which seem like subtle marketing efforts. One of my favorite things about Facebook is that it must be mutual to be friends. I shouldn’t have to block every person who wants to follow me if I don’t want them seeing my feed.

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Teacher suspended, reassigned for anti-gay Facebook comments

Mount Dora High School’s Teacher of the Year was suspended from the classroom and reassigned pending an investigation by the Lake County School Board after controversial comments he made about same-sex unions on Facebook.

Jerry Buell, a long-time Lake County social studies teacher, said during a recent Facebook exchange that he “almost threw up” in response to a news story about legalized same-sex marriage in New York.

On the same July 25 Facebook post he said same-sex marriages were part of a “cesspool.” He went on to call the unions a sin.

The comments were made on Buell’s personal Facebook page but were visible to friends in his network. Buell argued he made the post on his own time on his personal computer.

“It wasn’t out of hatred,” he said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel. “It was about the way I interpret things.”

School districts across Florida have recently adopted policies on how teachers should use social media. In Orange County Schools, teachers are reminded their “private use of internet and social networking is not private” and employees should remain professional in using the communication at all times.

Lake drafted similar guidelines for teachers in January, and district officials will distribute them in the coming weeks.

“Social media is a minefield,” said Chris Patton, communications officer for Lake County schools, who helped develop the guidelines. “People think they’re free to say what they want to, but in some aspects it can come back to haunt you.”

The guidelines warn teachers if they “feel angry or passionate about a subject, it may not be the time to share your thoughts in a post” and to “delay posting until you are calm and clearheaded.”

Brett Winters, a former Mount Dora high school student, said he was disappointed after learning about Buell’s comments.

“This type of hateful language is dangerous not only to gay students, but also to anti-gay students,” said Winters, 27.

Others argued the comments would make gay students, who have triple the suicide rate of non-gay students in the U.S., feel unwelcome in the classroom.

“I would hope a teacher would be there to help them and not hurt them,” said Michael Slaymaker, president of the Orlando Youth Alliance, a support group for homosexual youth.

Buell said all his students have equal value in his eyes.

“I’ve had kids that I’ve known that have been homosexuals,” he said. “They know that I don’t hate them. I love them.”

The school district said Buell will be reassigned to an administrative position pending an investigation into whether he violated the district’s code of conduct for educators.

School districts are legally required to make all students feel welcome in their learning environments, said Scott McLeod, who studies educational leadership and technology at the University of Kentucky. Those who discipline teachers who aren’t welcoming are typically backed by courts.

“Bottom line, if I’m a gay and lesbian kid and I’m headed in to that guy’s class tomorrow, I’m not feeling very welcome,” he said.

Erica Rodriguez can be reached at ericarodriguez@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-6186

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