“On the Internet, no one knows you’re a dog,” says a famous New Yorker cartoon. On Google+, at least, no one will know your gender.
Starting this week, Google will no longer require users to state whether they are male or female. The change, explained by product manager Frances Haugen in the video above, came after users requested it. “Gender can be a sensitive topic, especially on the Internet,” Haugen says.
Users will be able to adjust the privacy setting on their Google+ profile, as they can with other personal information, like date of birth.
One benefit to the change is that it paves the way for business accounts. As Christian Oestlien, Google’s group project manager, noted in a blog entry last week on Google+, “It was kind of an awkward moment for us when we asked Ford for his (or was it her?) gender!”
What do you think? Is Google right in making gender information private or is this political correctness gone wild?
Google+ Logo
Follow us on Facebook fanpage
Starting this week, Google will no longer require users to state whether they are male or female. The change, explained by product manager Frances Haugen in the video above, came after users requested it. “Gender can be a sensitive topic, especially on the Internet,” Haugen says.
Users will be able to adjust the privacy setting on their Google+ profile, as they can with other personal information, like date of birth.
One benefit to the change is that it paves the way for business accounts. As Christian Oestlien, Google’s group project manager, noted in a blog entry last week on Google+, “It was kind of an awkward moment for us when we asked Ford for his (or was it her?) gender!”
What do you think? Is Google right in making gender information private or is this political correctness gone wild?
Screenshots: Inside Google+
Google+ Logo
This is the Google+ logo.
Google+ Icons
The Google+ icons. Starting top left and circling to the right: Circles, Hangouts, Home, Sparks, Profile, Photos.
New Google+ Navigation Bar
All Google sites will sport the new Google+ navigation bar. It includes notifications, profile information and content sharing options.
Google+ Stream
This is the Google+ Stream, where users share content and see what their friends are sharing. It is similar to the Facebook News Feed.
Google+ Circles
Google+ Circles is Google's version of the Facebook friend list or the Twitter List. Users can select multiple friends and drag-and-drop them into groups. This makes it easier to send stuff to friends, family or the entire world.
Google+ Circles Editor
This is the Google+ Circles editor in action. Google has created unique animations for adding and removing friends through HTML5.
Google+ Sparks
Google+ Sparks is Google's content recommendation and discovery engine. Users can search different topics and find relevant articles, videos and photos. Users can then share that content with their friends.
Google+ Hangouts
Google+ has a unique video chat feature called Hangouts, which lets you chat with up to 10 people at the ame time.
Google+ Photos
Google+ allows you to upload and share photos with your friends. It includes photo tagging and a simple browser-based image editor.
Google+ Profile
Google+ Profiles are like most profile pages -- it includes basic information about the user like interests, occupation and profile photos.
Follow us on Facebook fanpage
This is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Accordingly, it is difficult to figure out when to end it. But then, this is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Period.
Related Post
Justice Department set to OK Google-Motorola deal, WSJ says
Google could receive approval on its acquisition of Motorola Mobility
from the U.S. Justice- Sprint promises 10 Google Wallet devices this year
The mobile payment system known as Google Wallet will be coming to 10 Sprint phones, including t
- Back to School: 42 Digital Resources for Students & ParentsIt’s getting to be that time of year. Your chances of seeing school supply commercials have increas
- China overtakes US in PC salesChina overtook the U.S. in both PC sales and shipments in the second quarter, according to research
ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon