The Google+ project begins with +You.

I unsuspectingly clicked the 'Join' Button upon receiving the invitation from Google to test drive it's new Google+ feature.  Now I wish that I could click 'unJoin'.  Somehow, I'm reminded of Google Buzz and the 'fun' that followed.  I guess like Alice in Wonderland, I shouldn't be so trusting of what I'm clicking or what pill I'm popping for that matter.

I got locked into sorting my contacts in their 'circles'.  Wondering, how do you sort a friend who's a family friend who's also an aquaintance?  I have about 400 contacts and about 50 people in I realised - this is too time consuming and somehow, I've been tricked into playing 'contact basketball' dunking people into the circles that were provided and creating more.  Half an hour has passed and I still don't know what I'm doing here and why.

So this is the competition to Facebook?!  I feel like it's a white and bland facsimilie.  I think that the circles idea would be cool - IF I didn't have to recreate what I already have on Facebook.  Also, why create a product that has four new features/aspects to it - when the unsuspecting account holder hasn't a clue about any of them?  Yes, a bit peeved at google.  I searched about for 'privacy' and had to go and find things to manually make my circles viewable to 'me only' and suddenly my picassa account has also become public to click to.  I purposely keep my name and my picassa account separate and yet here's google catching up to me and saying "whoops, you dropped this - shall we display this to the world?".  

Also notifications - the default setting means that I'll suddenly get a plethora of emails from my bewildered friends, colleagues, and family as they too stumble into Google+ and plod around like elephants.  You want a service that allows for 'sharing'? You already have it google - it's called gmail.

The only redeeming feature seems to be 'sparks' where you can apparently have a group video chat (which skype and others charge for).  This could be useful.

So in summary,

1.  I don't like being signed up to something that I can't un-sign up for.

2.  I don't like wasting my time because someone re-created the wheel - the original works just fine for me, thank you.

3.  I don't want my private details suddenly blasted across the web when someone does a search for me - I've taken eons to fine tune all the other social networks, only to have it blasted open by a trumpetting elephant?

In conclusion - my first take on Google+ is a negative one.  Its also a cheap attempt to try to pry away people from Facebook, Twitter and the like just because you have a google account.  I'm delighted with Google providing a common interface for blogger, picasa, youtube, etc... but when you try to recreate services that I'm already subscribed to elsewhere... I really feel that this is too much.  I'm actually reconsidering having gmail.  When Yahoo pulled stuff like this eons ago, I switched.  Maybe its time to switch again.

UPDATE (6th July 2011):  The seamless integration with gmail means that google+ is growing on me - that and the fact that all my friends are adding me to their circles and as a result I don't have to!  I still haven't started using it to the same extent that I do Facebook - but I can see how since I have a gmail account - I may end up using it pretty regularly sometime soon.  Also, the new google interface is very clean cut and smooth.  I like it. 

UPDATE (12th July 2011): I'm converted.  I still haven't managed to get the 'permissions' just right to my liking.  But I am definitely liking the Google+ interface.