Google+ is a Killer on the Loose – Here are 100 Hot Tips to Improve Your Plus Experience

• By Peter From
• Blog Google Google+ Media Photo Sharing Photography Social Social Networking
• 191 days ago
• 0

I like to share both my private and my professional images on photo sharing services and have been doing that on Flickr for quite a while as well as on the upstart Instagram service (where I just got my 12000th follower). I like Flickr and I like Instagram. A couple of weeks ago I recieved an invitation to join the new Google social platform, named 'Google+'. Interesting I thought and went straight ahead and joined. I have not regretted that for a minute. As a matter of fact, I think it's better than Instagram, Flickr and Facebook combined.

So, What Is Google+..?

Google+ is far from perfect, for example, you can’t search posts on its site

"Today, the connections between people increasingly happen online. Yet the subtlety and substance of real-world interactions are lost in the rigidness of our online tools.

"In this basic, human way, online sharing is awkward. Even broken. And we aim to fix it."

Google+ Main Feed

The idea is to topple Facebook from its throne by making every existing Google product socially compatible. The company certainly has a lot to work with, including Picasa, Gmail and Google Maps and information and functions from all of these will be integrated into the Google+ experience so that you don't have to sign into different services to share your photos and let your mates know what you're up to.

You can add anyone into a circle, even though they are not Google+ users

Google wants to make sharing online more like sharing in real life - different things with different people. For example, you might want to catch up with your pals about your drunken Saturday night out, but you don't necessarily want your parents in your chat. You can keep your conversations separate by putting your contacts into 'circles' such as 'Work crew', 'Uni mates', 'Photo Buddies' and 'Parents'. You may create as many new circles that you wish.

To put your nearest and dearest in neat little online compartments all you have to do is click and drag them into the relevant circle and then they'll only get the information that is meant for them. If only real life were that simple.

100+ Tips To Improve Your Google+ Experience

1. You can get an invite by leaving a comment in this post.

Circles

Google+ Circles

1. You can add anyone into a circle, even though they are not Google+ users.
2. You can add up to 5000 people into a circle.
3. You can create as many circles as you like, and you can also add a same user into multiple circles.
4. One people in multiple circles counts one, and you can’t have more than 5000 people in all your circles.
5. You can remove or block anyone in your circles.
6. People in your circle do not have to add you in their circles.
7. You can add all your Gmail contacts into your circles.
8. You can export your Facebook friends to Yahoo Mail, and then import them to your Gmail.
9. To bookmark a post, you can create an empty circle, and share the post to it.

Extensions

1. Facebook Friend Exporter: To export your Facebook friends and add them to your Google+ circles.
2. Extended Share for Google Plus: To share your Google+ Public messages on Twitter and Facebook.
3. Replies and more for Google+: To reply to a post or its comments in one click.
4. Surplus: To get Google+ notifications everywhere.
5. Native Gmail For Google+: To display Gmail notifications in the Google+ top black bar and show you the titles of the new mails.
6. +Photo Zoom: To zoom photos on Google+.
7. Notification Count for Google Plus™: To check your Google+ notifications every one munite and show them on your browser’s toolbar.
8. +Comment Toggle: To hide the comments on Google+.
9. Color Plus: To change the color of the top black bar to green, pink or blue.
10. Helper For Google+: To share your Google+ posts on Twitter and to translate your posts.
11. G+ Count in Title: To add a notification count in the current page tab.
12. G+ Extended: To add more shortcuts.
13. GPlus Search: To search Google+ public stream posts.
14. Move Your Photos: To export your Facebook photos to Google’s Picasa.
15. Start G +: To show unread Gmail numbers and to sync with Twitter and Facebook.
16. Google+ Ultimate: To float the top black bar and to adjust the page design.
17. Share + Social Buttons: To share to Twitter、Facebook、LinkedIn and more.
18. Usability Boost for Google Plus™: To make Google+ look more sex.
19. Google+ Tweaks: To customize Google+ web design.
20. Google+Tweet: To update Twitter on Google+. (Workable for Chrome, Firefox and IE)
21. Google+Facebook: To update Facebook on Google+.(Workable for Chrome, Firefox and IE)
22. Google+ Safari extension: To show G+ notification counts in the toolbar.(Workable for Safari)

Except the last 3, all the other extensions are workable for Chrome only.

Scripts

1. Google plus reply+: To add reply buttons to Google+ posts as well as their comments.
2. Google+ Enhancer: To make the Google top black bar display notifications for Gmail, Reader and Calendar, no matter what Google-website you’re on.
3. Hide G+ notification box in all Google sites except Google+: To show the notification button on the Google+ site only.
4. Gplus_fixed_panel: To make the Google+ top black bar float on the top of the page when you scroll down or up.
5. Fixed Google+ Notification Bar (for Google Plus & Google Search): To make the Google+ notification bar float on Google+ and Google Search.

1. Google + Commander: To use hotkey to play with Google+.
2. Google+ -> Contrast, Denser, More Features: To change the design of the Google+ site.
3. Google+ : Facebook: To make the Google+ site look like Facebook.
4. Google+ Tweaks: Same as the Chrome extension of the same name.

+1

(You can add "+1" buttons in the browsers with the following extensions or bookmarklets:)

1. +1 Plus One Extension(Chrome extension)
2. +1 Button – Plus One Button(Chrome extension)
3. Plus One(+1)Button(Chrome extension)
4. Google +1 Button Extension (Firefox add-on)
5. The Google Plus One Bookmarklet(Bookmarklet)

Posts

Google+ Photos

1. You can add photos, videos or webpages to your posts by dragging their links directly to the share box.
2. You can drag photos into the share box.
3. For your Google+ photos, you can tag them, rotate them, select effects for them, etc.
4. You can upload multiple photos and videos at a time.
5. You can click on the “Limited” link to see who else can see the post.
6. You can reshare the posts on Google+, unless the authors disable that.
7. You can reply to or mention Google+ users by adding "+" or "@" in front of their names in the message.
8. You can send private messages to people by only sharing your post with them.
9. Clicking the timestamp on a post, you can see its permalink.
10. Clicking the "+1" button on a post to like it, clicking again to undo.
11. You can click the Google+ photos to enlarge them, to view their comments, and to add comments.
12. You can edit or even delete the posts you published, you can forbid others to comment on your posts, you can mute the posts that are boring, and you can also prevent people from sharing your post.

Hot Keys

1. Space or J = scroll down
2. Shift + Space or K = scroll up
3. J = move to next post
4. K = move to previous post
5. Q = jump to chat
6. Return = start comment
7. Tab + Return = end your comment
8. Tab + Tab + Return = cancel writing a comment

Text

1. *Word* = Word
2. _Word_ = Word
3. -Word- = Word
4. _*Word*_ = Word

Websites:

1. PlusFeed: To subscribe to any Google+ user’s public stream.
2. GPlus: To get a shortened URL of your Google+ profile page.
3. Google Plus Widget: To add a Google+ widget on your blog or website for people to follow you.
4. SocialStatistics.com: To find out the top 100 most popular Google+ users.
5. GPhangouts: To share your hangout or to view others’ hangouts.
6. Gplus.sagg.im: To sync Google+ to Twitter、Facebook & Identi.ca.
7. You can make a Google+ desktop app according to Mashable’s instructions.
8. You can upload iPhone photos to Google+ according to Mashable’s way.
9. You can finish this form and get Google+ API notification once available.
10. You can export and back up your +1 sites with Google Takeout.

Mobile Phones:

1. You can use Google+ in mobile phone browsers, but can’t add photos or videos.
2. There is an official Google+ app for Android.
3. There is an official Google+ app for iPhone.
4. You can upload videos and pictures from your Android app to Google+, but not the iPhone app yet.
5. You can post to Google+ in your iPhone using the app DoAT.
6. You can send Huddle messages to a group with the Google+ mobile app.

Other features:

1. You can invite anyone with an email address (except Google APP’s) to join Google+.
2. You can create a search engine in Chrome to search the posts on Google+ with the following URL:

{google:baseURL}search?q=site:plus.google.com inurl:posts/* %s

1. You can create a search engine in Chrome to search Google+ profiles with the following URL:

{google:baseURL}search?q=%s&tbs=prfl:e

1. You can video-chat with up to 10 people at a time via the Hangout function.
2. You can add and track your interesting news in the Sparks page.
3. You can play with GTalk and chat with your friends in the Google+ site.
4. You can resize chat window in Google+ by dragging it from corners.
5. Don’t run Google+ ads on Facebook, which may ban you.
6. You can’t use Google+ if you are under 13.

Settings

1. You can choose what kinds of notifications to receive by email.
2. You can show photo geo location information in newly uploaded albums and photos.
3. You can select your favorite language.
4. You can back up your photos, profile information, contacts, circles, stream posts, and Buzz posts to your computer from the Data liberation page.
5. You can choose who can send you an email and what personal information to display on the Profile and privacy settings page.
6. On the Account overview page, you can delete your Google+ account.

By the way, Google+ is far from perfect, for example, you can’t search posts on its site, you can’t filter the posts you +1ed, the check-in service sucks, etc., so there will be more and more tips in the future, especially when the Google+ API is released.