# The General GOOGLE+ Thread for tips, tricks, questions, etc. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 11, 2011, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595 "2011-07-11T06:17:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/21 "2011-07-12T02:47:14Z")
> [@KellyCriterion](#): > > Some questions, if I may: > > 1. Unlike Facebook, I seem to be able to add people to my circles the instant I add them, ie the system clearly doesn’t wait for the other person to “accept my friend request”. Huh? Yeah, there is no mutual accept/reject friend request function like on Facebook. When you add someone to a circle, you are allowing that person to see anything that you post to that circle. They don’t have to accept the request; they’re just in there. However. If you are not in any of their circles, then your posts will show up in their “Incoming” feed, which is separate from the main stream. You can access the Incoming feed via a link on the lefthand side of the screen. Once the other person adds you to a circle (any circle at all), then posts you publish to the circle they are in will show up in their main stream. Example: I add my college friend Mary to my Friends circle. I make a post and publish it to my Friends circle. Mary doesn’t have me in any of her circles yet, so my post goes into her Incoming feed. She checks her Incoming feed and sees my post there. “Ah ha,” she thinks, “that’s MsWhatsit. I know her from college.” She adds me to her College Friends circle. As soon as I am in one of her circles, my Friends post will show up in her stream, instead of in the Incoming feed. However, if I make another post and publish it only to my Acquaintances circle, then Mary will not see that post, because she’s not in my Acquaintances circle. She’ll only see the stuff that gets published to Friends. (Or “all circles” or “Public”.) > [@](#): > > 1. I can add people to my circles that don’t even have Google+ accounts. When I add these people, does it trigger an email to them that I am inviting them to join Google+? Yes. You can also select a checkbox that will email people without Google+ accounts every time you make a post to a circle you’ve added them to, but I would recommend against this because it can become spammy and annoying. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/22 "2011-07-12T03:33:03Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > The reason I’m interested in Google+ is because theoretically you can quite literally have one account for every aspect of your life and yet keep them all separate. Shove coworker accounts into a Coworker circle and just be sure to keep them out of the loop on personal stuff you don’t want getting back to the office, and voila. You just have to be careful about what’s displayed to everyone who views your page, but thankfully Google seems to grant a decent level of control. > > Not that I’m saying you should only have one account, but I like that it’s possible. All the horror stories about bosses seeing their employees’ personal stuff was a big reason I’ve stayed away from Facebook. Part of the problem is that my name itself is something that I like to keep separate from my online identity. I mean if someone really wants to find it it’s not that hard, but I don’t like to publicize my real name when doing my online things unless I’m specifically doing online things with real-life friends and family. AFAIK there is no way to set your name to only show to certain circles and show a different name to other circles. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/23 "2011-07-12T03:37:52Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > Part of the problem is that my name itself is something that I like to keep separate from my online identity. I mean if someone really wants to find it it’s not that hard, but I don’t like to publicize my real name when doing my online things unless I’m specifically doing online things with real-life friends and family. AFAIK there is no way to set your name to only show to certain circles and show a different name to other circles. True that. That’s something I was wrestling with before I realized nobody cared about me enough to do anything with the information. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/24 "2011-07-12T03:49:39Z")
> [@KellyCriterion](#): > > Unlike Facebook, I seem to be able to add people to my circles the instant I add them, ie the system clearly doesn’t wait for the other person to “accept my friend request”. Huh? This is actually one of the main strengths of G+. Facebook is built around the assumption of reciprocal relationships – you’re my friend and I’m your friend and we share equally with each other. But G+ makes no such assumption, making it really great for asymmetrical relationships. For example, I’m interested in what PZ Myers has to say, but I doubt that he’s interested in me. So I can put him in a circle and read his public posts, but he doesn’t need to have his feed clogged with noise from thousands of “friends” like me. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/25 "2011-07-12T03:56:19Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > This is actually one of the main strengths of G+. Facebook is built around the assumption of reciprocal relationships – you’re my friend and I’m your friend and we share equally with each other. But G+ makes no such assumption, making it really great for asymmetrical relationships. For example, I’m interested in what PZ Myers has to say, but I doubt that he’s interested in me. So I can put him in a circle and read his public posts, but he doesn’t need to have his feed clogged with noise from thousands of “friends” like me. It also helps avoid the idiotic drama surrounding defriending someone. Since people don’t know what circle you’ve put them in, you can move someone from Friends to Acquaintances or even drop them entirely, and they won’t get an active message; they’ll just stop receiving your updates aside from the Public or all-Circles ones. Depending on how close they actually are to you, they’ll probably never even notice. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/26 "2011-07-12T04:24:33Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > True that. That’s something I was wrestling with before I realized nobody cared about me enough to do anything with the information. 🙂 Unfortunately I’ve had online people fuck with my real life before. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2011, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/27 "2011-07-12T23:58:18Z")
[GPlusTips](https://plus.google.com/115516333681138986628) ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/28 "2011-07-13T01:11:31Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > J scrolls down one post at a time. > K scrolls up one post at a time. 😃 This makes the geek in me very, very happy. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/29 "2011-07-13T12:26:48Z")
I just added you and created a new Straight Dope circle; my description is ‘scifisam,’ so it should be pretty obvious which one I am. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/30 "2011-07-13T13:34:40Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > True that. That’s something I was wrestling with before I realized nobody cared about me enough to do anything with the information. 🙂 Something to think about though - employers Google potential hires, so I’m hesitant to link my real-world name to posts I’m made here on controversial topics. I could see an employer not hiring a person because they have a differing opinion, or at least it being the deciding factor between two different people. Of course, it might be the deciding factor to choose me over the other guy, I guess. But I have some unpopular views, so I think that’s less likely. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/31 "2011-07-13T13:41:17Z")
Okay, just diving in, so I’ll start off with a few easy ones. First one. I have a notification that says “\_\_\_\_\_added you on Google+. " Does that mean that person is following me” Also, am I to understand this works more like Twitter then facebook? Hence it makes more sense to use the word follow? Next question. How the hell do I clean up my Google contacts. I’m sick of it suggesting people that I’ve received spam from, or people that I sent one email to years ago. I’ve found ways in Gmail to block them, but I’d like to just get delete them. I really don’t need to to keep suggesting that I follow Heronder Tittsoff to me. I swear, I don’t know him. Actually, I just clicked on it and hit “remove” at the top (in G+), I doubt that reflects in Gmail, but at least it won’t bug me in G+ anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/32 "2011-07-13T13:56:32Z")
Next question, if someone posts something, but not to everyone, it shows me who it was posted to. Why? Also, is there some way to not allow someone to follow me? Can I delete them? In the mean time, can I block my feed, make it private until I’ve ok’d someone? I know that can be done with Twitter. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/33 "2011-07-13T15:07:57Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > Something to think about though - employers Google potential hires, so I’m hesitant to link my real-world name to posts I’m made here on controversial topics. I could see an employer not hiring a person because they have a differing opinion, or at least it being the deciding factor between two different people. > > Of course, it might be the deciding factor to choose me over the other guy, I guess. But I have some unpopular views, so I think that’s less likely. But will you be sharing those posts as Public, or limited only to your circles? If it’s circles only, nobody from the outside is going to see them. > [@Joey\_P](#): > > Next question, if someone posts something, but not to everyone, it shows me who it was posted to. Why? Because you’re in one of their circles, so presumably you have some connection, however vague, with the other people in the circle(s) the post was posted to. Google’s trying to give you decent control over content distribution, but it _is_ a social network site. > [@](#): > > Also, is there some way to not allow someone to follow me? Can I delete them? > In the mean time, can I block my feed, make it private until I’ve ok’d someone? I know that can be done with Twitter. You can [block](http://www.google.com/support/+/bin/static.py?hl=en&page=guide.cs&guide=1358051&answer=1047934&rd=1) profiles. However, as I mentioned above, if you share posts only with your circles, the only way a person will see those posts is if they’re in one of your circles. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/34 "2011-07-13T15:44:06Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > Because you’re in one of their circles, so presumably you have some connection, however vague, with the other people in the circle(s) the post was posted to. Google’s trying to give you decent control over content distribution, but it _is_ a social network site. It still seems odd. Even just from a drama POV. I could see someone saying “Nuh Uh, look, you announced that party on G+, but you didn’t let her see the invitation.” or “Honey, why is it that whenever you mention something about me on G+ you don’t let anyone in your family see it” It just gives me flashes back to myspace. Facebook was pretty good about minimizing as much drama as the had the ability to control. > [@](#): > > You can [block](http://www.google.com/support/+/bin/static.py?hl=en&page=guide.cs&guide=1358051&answer=1047934&rd=1) profiles. However, as I mentioned above, if you share posts only with your circles, the only way a person will see those posts is if they’re in one of your circles. I figured there was a way. Also, I just stumbled across the privacy controls. I’ll have to look at those closer later on. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/35 "2011-07-13T16:14:25Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > It still seems odd. Even just from a drama POV. I could see someone saying “Nuh Uh, look, you announced that party on G+, but you didn’t let her see the invitation.” or “Honey, why is it that whenever you mention something about me on G+ you don’t let anyone in your family see it” It just gives me flashes back to myspace. Facebook was pretty good about minimizing as much drama as the had the ability to control. My only response to that: “WHY DID YOU DEFRIEND ME” What you say could be a possibility, but it seems to me that if someone’s taking that many notes and pestering you about what you choose to share with other people, they’re _looking_ for drama. I suppose we’ll have to see if it becomes a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Shadez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Shadez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shadez)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/36 "2011-07-13T16:32:39Z")
> [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](#): > > [This](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cUjZ_7rlAmKRDVB6GXId73h_eUdXGKdjtSff0svbaz0/preview?hl=en_US&pli=1&sle=true)should help a ton. The linked document is a collaborative document written in Google Docs – a few hundred folks have edited it so far. Here are my favorite tips from it, regarding circles (Tips \>\> Creative Ways to Use Circles): > [@](#): > > Create an “\*Inbox” circle and include the people you’d like to see every post from. The friends, family, and acquaintances circles are on top by default. > > Create a “Read later” circle and include no other person (Google+ calls it an empty circle). When you see a post you want to read later, share it only with the “Read later” circle. Then when you have some time, open that circle and read through (and delete) the saved posts. > > Similarly, create an (empty) “Drafts” circle. When you have an idea for a post, but no time to write it, draft a rough version and share it to the “Drafts” circle. Edit the draft by using “Edit this post” from the drop down menu. Then, when the post is complete, copy it to a new post that you can then share to your circles and delete the draft post. > > Yet again, create a similar (empty) circle called “Bookmarks” so you can go back and find that tidbit of information to read and use again and again. Also, it’s helpful to note that people can be in multiple circles, depending on the content you are posting. I also liked the post “[Searching on Google Plus for Librarians](http://philbradley.typepad.com/phil_bradleys_weblog/2011/07/searching-on-google-plus-for-librarians.html)” – helpful even if you are not a librarian. It talks about searching for subjects, rather than specific people. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/37 "2011-07-13T16:34:13Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > My only response to that: > > “WHY DID YOU DEFRIEND ME” > > What you say could be a possibility, but it seems to me that if someone’s taking that many notes and pestering you about what you choose to share with other people, they’re _looking_ for drama. I suppose we’ll have to see if it becomes a problem. I know, I just remember in the very very early stages of Myspace, it would actively say things like “John is no longer friends with Marcy” and then Facebook came along and did away with as much drama as they had the ability to do away with. Like I said, I just think it’s really odd that if I post something to some people, but not all that they’ll be able to tell who specifically I posted it to. I’m going to guess that at some point that ‘feature’ will be turned off. I just can’t see a good reason for it. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/38 "2011-07-13T16:56:21Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Like I said, I just think it’s really odd that if I post something to some people, but not all that they’ll be able to tell who specifically I posted it to. To nitpick, ‘only’ the first 21 people. I’m in an author’s Followers circle, since he doesn’t want to make any Public posts, so I see 21 random profile icons (+2937 others) or whatever the number is at now. That hardly changes what you were saying, I just find it kind of amusing in that particular instance. > [@](#): > > I’m going to guess that at some point that ‘feature’ will be turned off. I just can’t see a good reason for it. Again, possible, but I doubt it’ll cause as much trouble as you think. The intention is to help people find and connect with each other. “Oh hey, you’re friends with Joey too? I’ll put you in my Acquaintances list!” ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/39 "2011-07-13T17:06:36Z")
I just got signed up with Google+ a few days ago…it’s ok so far. Obviously, there’s a smaller amount of people, so I can go a day with just one person posting something, but I do like the ‘circles’ idea, and the minimalist approach. One thing that some may not know: if you have an Android phone and download the Google+ app, you can set it to automatically put all your photos from your phone into a private folder in Google+, making it easier for you to then share one, should you desire. You have a few options, like only upload on wifi, only upload while charging, etc… Although…it’s not perfect. Rather than try to upload just the photos in my camera folder, it tried to upload lots of other random images, like custom icon packs, screenshots from games, etc…so I disabled it on mine…it does the same thing in the app if I just manually go to the photos section to upload something…it scans all my folders and I have to sort through hundreds of useless images to get to one I might want. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2011, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595/40 "2011-07-13T18:46:37Z")
Here is info on how to import your contacts, photos, etc from Facebook to G+ > **[How to Import Pictures Videos ,Contacts and Information from Facebook to...](http://googlepluses.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-import-pictures-videos-contacts.html)** > > How to Migrate from Facebook to Google+ If you have a lot of time and information invested in Facebook, it’s not easy moving to a new soci... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-general-google-thread-for-tips-tricks-questions-etc/588595.md?page=3)