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0 pointswyclif12y ago0 comments

That's not what they did. It should be noted that in the announcements that I've seen, Google has counted only active Google+ users.

This is the "ghost town" ruse all over again. It's weak sauce and demonstrably facile. You can bash Google+ all you want, but it's not going to impress people who enjoy using it very much.

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/02/19/the-loyal-users-of-...

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14 comments · 3 top-level

cma12y ago· 8 in thread

Does "active" Google+ users include people who are logged in and have plus-related stuff-they-don't-care-about in their standard google header? Or people who just reciprocate circle-adds but don't engage whatsoever?

wahnfrieden12y ago

Or even just people who click the bell when it's lit up red to make the notification go away.

tripzilch12y ago

Shit I do all those things, I don't even know why...

rhizome12y ago

Engagement hacking!

hangonhn12y ago

Good point. "Active" shouldn't be a binary term. It should be more like "active engagement". Technically I'm an "active" user of Google+ but I don't spend more than a minute on there if I can help it.

notatoad12y ago

the last numbers i saw for Google+ usage specified "active in the stream", which isn't incredibly clear but sounds like they mean actually engaging.

http://googleblog.blogspot.ca/2013/10/google-hangouts-and-ph... (at the very bottom)

res0nat0r12y ago

All of the complaining about ghost towns isn't going to change the fact that G+ isn't going anywhere as long as Google stays as successful as it is right now.

wlesieutre12y ago

At first I thought you mean that in the same sense that my plans for energy-positive cold fusion aren't going anywhere.

I'd say both interpretations apply.

pessimizer12y ago

Did anybody suggest that G+ should go somewhere before you did?

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durga12y ago· 3 in thread

Don't buy the "x million use the google+ site regularly every month" number. The number of people who actively use g+ is miniscule. Don't believe me? Put a status message on fb and ask how many of them use g+. Or post it on linkedin or email all your contacts.

Pretty much any decent product has a small number of fans. That doesn't make it "successful" by any statistical standards.

wyclifOP12y ago

The number of people who actively use g+ is miniscule

[citation needed]

Weak sauce, I say. It's readily apparent that they are the #2 social network in terms of actual usage.

Put a status message on fb and ask how many of them use g+

Shall I also ask MySpace users how many of them use G+?

Seriously, that "ghost town" bullshit simply isn't going to fly. It's been done to death, everybody's heard it, and anybody who is actually, you know, active on Google+ laughs at people who repeat it.

pscsbs12y ago

Googlers like to think that G+ is one of the biggest social networks. The reason the reported numbers are so high is because now YouTube users have to integrate with G+ and all sorts of Google products funnel users in. These users do one thing, and never use the service again.

2 more replies

ianstormtaylor12y ago

The reason the misconception is still around is because the group of people laughing about the ghost-towners on Google+ is so small to begin with that the general trend never gets corrected. In other words, because it's true ;)

PS. I think you're using "weak sauce" incorrectly.

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halostatue12y ago

I'm sure that Google counts me as an active G+ user (maybe twice or even three times, since I have my normal gmail account, my GAFYD, and the GAFYD for the company I work at).

I think I've re-shared three things over the last three years, commented on maybe twice that, and I'm not sure I've posted a single original post there.

I'm almost completely disconnected from whatever “community” G+ purports to offer, and at least one of the G+ profiles that I have was only created so that I could do hangouts with folks in the company (and we end up using Skype more often anyway).

So yes, it's exactly what Google did.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

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14 comments · 3 top-level

cma12y ago· 8 in thread

wahnfrieden12y ago

Or even just people who click the bell when it's lit up red to make the notification go away.

tripzilch12y ago

Shit I do all those things, I don't even know why...

rhizome12y ago

Engagement hacking!

hangonhn12y ago

notatoad12y ago

the last numbers i saw for Google+ usage specified "active in the stream", which isn't incredibly clear but sounds like they mean actually engaging.

http://googleblog.blogspot.ca/2013/10/google-hangouts-and-ph... (at the very bottom)

res0nat0r12y ago

All of the complaining about ghost towns isn't going to change the fact that G+ isn't going anywhere as long as Google stays as successful as it is right now.

wlesieutre12y ago

At first I thought you mean that in the same sense that my plans for energy-positive cold fusion aren't going anywhere.

I'd say both interpretations apply.

pessimizer12y ago

Did anybody suggest that G+ should go somewhere before you did?

1 more reply

durga12y ago· 3 in thread

Pretty much any decent product has a small number of fans. That doesn't make it "successful" by any statistical standards.

wyclifOP12y ago

The number of people who actively use g+ is miniscule

[citation needed]

Weak sauce, I say. It's readily apparent that they are the #2 social network in terms of actual usage.

Put a status message on fb and ask how many of them use g+

Shall I also ask MySpace users how many of them use G+?

pscsbs12y ago

2 more replies

ianstormtaylor12y ago

PS. I think you're using "weak sauce" incorrectly.

1 more reply

halostatue12y ago

I'm sure that Google counts me as an active G+ user (maybe twice or even three times, since I have my normal gmail account, my GAFYD, and the GAFYD for the company I work at).

I think I've re-shared three things over the last three years, commented on maybe twice that, and I'm not sure I've posted a single original post there.

So yes, it's exactly what Google did.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse