We know, if only because Google representatives have told us, that Google is eager to take part in the world of social networking. While Google has a titan’s grip on search, strong presence in media, and a number of other valuable features, their social projects have thus far been lackluster at best. However, Google has been slowly moving in a social direction. This includes using projects like Hotpot to figure out how people determine who their “friends” are. More recently, we can see Google’s social side through the expansion of their “account profile” section.
The new profile, which is attached to Buzz, allows users to put substantially more information up on the web. This includes:
- “10 words” that describe the user.
- An introduction.
- “Bragging rights” of things you’ve accomplished in your life (Google gives the examples of “survived high school” and “have three kids”).
- Occupation, employment, and education.
- “Places I’ve lived,” which allows users to visually map the locations where they’ve found a home.
- “Home” and “Work” contact information, which will not be made public.
- Relationship status.
- A “looking for” field that allows you to declare what types of relationships you are interested in.
- Your gender.
- Your pseudonyms or other alternate names.
There’s little doubt that this information creates a far more full and rich profile than what we’ve seen before, even showing the foundation of different networking types (with a user’s relationship status and occupation mimicking the concepts of Facebook, LinkedIn, and other prominent social networks). Of note, Google users can set this profile to private or public and will now be able to remove Buzz entirely if they prefer. To delete Buzz or to add/change any of the features mentioned above, simply visit Account Settings > Edit Profile through the new Google interface.
[via ZDNet]
