By Wren Culp
Staff Writer
Google has one of the best reputations for online products the world has ever seen. They have made countless products, including the biggest search engine in the world, Gmail and even Google Earth. Now, Google is bringing something new to the table.
Social networking site, seem to dominate the Internet now a days. It is becoming the new method of communication, with sites such as Facebook and Myspace seem to pop up all over the place. But a new competitor is joining the party. Say hello to “Google Buzz”.
Months before its release, Google Buzz was hinted but nothing was ever confirmed by Google. People guessed at what Google would unveil next, but no one ever saw a social networking site coming.
On February 9, 2010, in a press conference at the company’s Mountain View world headquarters, Google Buzz was announced and demonstrated before an audience of reporters. It launched on the same day at 11 a.m. PT for the first set of users.
Buzz is integrated into a user’s Gmail account. Users can share photos, videos and post status updates. Buzz allows its users to update sites such as Flickr, YouTube and even Twitter directly from the Buzz homepage.
“Google has such a good reputation and knows how to please the customer that honestly I would give it a try,” freshman Matt Shaw said. “It sounds more capable than Facebook.”
Google executive Sergey Brin said that by offering social communications, we could more easily bridge the gap between work and leisure.
When you open up Google Buzz for the first time, you are presented with a screen that shows you to “share what you’re thinking”, similar to the “what are you doing?” update that Facebook offers.
From there, you can start to follow people, look at their photos and even video chat with them. The site offers easier and faster ways to communicate with people. At the same time, you can also check your e-mail with a click of a mouse.
But like most social networking sites, Google Buzz has been massacred by critics for its lack of privacy concerns. PCWorld’s J.R. Raphael criticized Buzz for both its intrusive nature and privacy concerns, citing above all that it merely adds “more noise into an already buzzing area of my life”.
On February 16th 2010, Eva Hibnick, a student at Harvard Law School, filed a class action lawsuit against Google, alleging that Buzz violated several federal laws that were in place to protect privacy.
“It really depends on the social status of all of it,” junior Emily Fowler said. “It depends on what is has to offer.”
“The only way I would really start to use Buzz is if other people started using it,” junior Nancy Park said. “If it blows up like Facebook then I will give it a shot.”
Since the program is run through the Google’s mailing system, you stay on one screen the whole time, never having to move around much to find what you are looking for.
While Buzz might not be a powerhouse yet, it seems like it could creep up there with the rest of the networking sites in the near future.
