Ok before you read this – if you haven’t already go and read this Google+ post and watch the video – don’t worry I will still be here when you get back!
OK back now?
Right – standby for REALLY random ponderings on Google+, Facebook, The Internet and life in general ….
Google+ > Facebook
That video is one of the many reasons why I love Google+ and why I MUCH prefer it to Facebook. Sure not many of my friends are on there (yet). But that just makes Google+ different – not worse.
I still see what my my friends on Twitter and FB post – their feeds still scroll through to me via Tweetdeck. Sometimes I interact with them. Most of the time, as I suspect most of us do, I smile and move on.
I love my friends on FB – and for those of you that wandered over here to read this – don’t take this the wrong way… But I am finding more and more that Google+ is where I read stuff that interests me, makes me go WOW! or challenges me to think or act differently.
Google+ isn’t a “flop” or “pointless as my mates aren’t on there” – Google+ is different.
And that’s a good thing.
It doesn’t have to be Facebook or be a “better Facebook” it just has to be Google+ and to be honest I like where it is going.
Facebook = AOL
This may well come back to haunt me but what the hell. In 10 years time Facebook will be the new AOL – basically dead.
AOL is a company that introduced so many people to the internet and for many was the Internet. But is now out of touch and a shadow of its former self. AOL brought many new people on line, that’s a good thing. But these people grew up. They realised there was more than just AOL.
The internet has now developed massively into this crazy, informative, dangerous, creative, wonderful place so many of us now spend time in. A place where we learn new things – a place where we create new things – a place we can shape and edit our surroundings to better reflect the people we are.
I’m not sure if that last one is a good thing.
We see …
Just surrounding ourselves with what we want to see means we see … well … what we want to see..
Stuff that we don’t want to see, stuff that annoys us, stuff that makes us mad, stuff that challenges us… we can edit out – choose not to see.
Without those challenges, without those moments that cause us to pause and ponder. What becomes of us?
What becomes new to us if all we do is surround ourselves with stuff we like and know?
Will new become more and more diluted?
Will new things just be various watered down versions of old things we like?
To a certain extent I’m seeing that on Facebook now…
Crazy, informative, dangerous, creative, wonderful
In 10 years time – people will have moved on from Facebook – it will still exist. But it will be a shadow of its former self. People will grow up, move on, move out of Facebook into an even more crazy, informative, dangerous, creative, wonderful place that the Internet will have become by then.
For me, Google+ is that 1st step.
At the moment Google+ is not full of my friends – but I am discovering more and more people on there who I wish were my friends. If I’m honest I’m also discovering that there are a number of people on there who I’m quite happy that they are just a name attached to a picture on a post or comment. People I don’t know and judging by what they have written I’m happy for it to remain that way.
For a while these random, opinionated and sometimes quite frankly stupid people who comment on various posts I read make me wonder if I should just go back to FB… Sure there are random, opinionated and sometimes quite frankly stupid people there too – but hey they are my friends so its not so bad.
But now in the middle of these ponderings – I realised that sure they annoy me – but actually I need to learn from that and move on. If they are being stupid – take a step back and work out if they are stupid – or is it just my view on a situation that is skewed? Are they really opinionated, arrogant little brats – or is English just not their 1st language?
Fog of updates …
This world we live in is massive. The Internet can make it smaller, more manageable, more personal. Your best mate might live thousands of miles away – but they can be right next you throughout your day. Tweets, status updates, check-ins all keep us connected. But if we keep looking inwards this massive world can disappear behind a fog of updates, tweets and pictures of cats playing pianos…
That’s why I loved that video you watched right back at the beginning of this post. (you did watch it right?)
My Google+ circles may not be full of my friends – but they are full of interesting people who post interesting things. I am learning new things on Google+ each day. Sure Google+ isn’t Facebook or Twitter – its Google+. Why should it try to be like everything else?
On a practical level it would be GREAT if all my FB/Twitter friends were on Google+ – then I would have one place to go to – but then thats not the point is it really?
I want to be challenged, I want to develop and I want to see the pictures of my friends cat playing the piano. If they think its important enough to them for them to share it – then as their friend I will read it.
Nearly the end …
Recently I feel like my life has been condensed down to existing and getting though. The difficulty with living life like that is that when you do get “down time”  you just want to relax and take a bit of time for yourself.
If i’m honest I have done more of that than I should have – there are so many things that I have left undone just so I can have a bit of “well earned me time”.
Once again I find myself wishing that I would do more creating and less consuming. Sure I have created this blog post – but its really just a bit selfish – just me pondering through and seeing where it goes. Its been good for me – but you, dear reader… if you have managed to get through to the end of this random pondering I commend and thank you! You may be a friend, or someone I want to call a friend, or someone who stumbled here by accident. Whatever your reason to plough through to the end of this post – thank you!
Now get your ass over to Google+ ….