I must admit, I've been using Google+ for a few months, and I'm a huge fan. However, as with anything, it could be better. The biggest issue I have with Google+ at the moment is circles, and how they have failed me.
Circles
With g+ circles have a few different purposes, or at least seem to have been created with that intention.
1. Circles allow you to control who sees what you share
When you make a post you select your audience by selecting specific people, specific circles, all of your circles, the enigmatic "extended circles", or Public. If you add your mom to your "family" circle and then select your family circle when you post - she and everyone else in the circle can see it.
2. Circles allow you to control what you see
If I add you to a circle (maybe the "people who've visited my blog" circle), everything you post to Public should show up in my main stream. I can filter what I see by selecting circles on the left - so I could select the "people who've visited my blog" circle and see only shares from people in that circle.
3. Circles allow you to share themselves with other g+ users
If you're new to g+ a good thing to do is find a post where someone has shared a circle. Some people have/make the time to categorize g+ users into circles based on what they tend to post - or by shared interests. For example, one of the groups that seems to share circles often is the g+ photography subculture. People like to share their artistic endeavors and photographers seem to be finding g+ ideal for that purpose. Someone adds photographers to a circle and then shares that circle. You can add it to one of your existing circles or make a new circle for it.
1. Circles allow you to control who sees what you share
When you make a post you select your audience by selecting specific people, specific circles, all of your circles, the enigmatic "extended circles", or Public. If you add your mom to your "family" circle and then select your family circle when you post - she and everyone else in the circle can see it.
2. Circles allow you to control what you see
If I add you to a circle (maybe the "people who've visited my blog" circle), everything you post to Public should show up in my main stream. I can filter what I see by selecting circles on the left - so I could select the "people who've visited my blog" circle and see only shares from people in that circle.
3. Circles allow you to share themselves with other g+ users
If you're new to g+ a good thing to do is find a post where someone has shared a circle. Some people have/make the time to categorize g+ users into circles based on what they tend to post - or by shared interests. For example, one of the groups that seems to share circles often is the g+ photography subculture. People like to share their artistic endeavors and photographers seem to be finding g+ ideal for that purpose. Someone adds photographers to a circle and then shares that circle. You can add it to one of your existing circles or make a new circle for it.
How Circles Fail
G+ circles fail me in purpose #2, controlling what I see. The reason:
I have no idea what you're going to share.
Human beings are a multifaceted species with each individual having a variety of interests. A photographer might also like to cook. When he decides to share original content it could very well be a new picture or a favorite recipe. Maybe he just watched the Republican debate and wants to share his opinion about that.
Despite my having added him to my photographer circle so I can see the pictures he shares, when I filter my stream by my photography circle there might very well be recipes in there. Now, there are work arounds. You can let the photographer know you're interested in photography, and he can put you in a circle for "people that like my pictures". Then he can share his pictures with that circle and his recipes with his recipe circle, etc.
However, that's a giant pain in the rear. I have around 1300 people circled at present and contacting them all to let them know what kind of content I want to see (what circle they should put me in), is pretty unrealistic. My current situation is that I can't predict what categories of content these 1300 will be sharing, so I can't correctly put them in a certain circle. Similarly, even if I tell you that I like your photos when I first circle you, you might decide later to share a recipe. You'll have no idea if I'd like to see that too.
As a result of all this, I have a very rapidly scrolling stream that I can't filter by type of content. Therefore, I propose the following solution:
I have no idea what you're going to share.
Human beings are a multifaceted species with each individual having a variety of interests. A photographer might also like to cook. When he decides to share original content it could very well be a new picture or a favorite recipe. Maybe he just watched the Republican debate and wants to share his opinion about that.
Despite my having added him to my photographer circle so I can see the pictures he shares, when I filter my stream by my photography circle there might very well be recipes in there. Now, there are work arounds. You can let the photographer know you're interested in photography, and he can put you in a circle for "people that like my pictures". Then he can share his pictures with that circle and his recipes with his recipe circle, etc.
However, that's a giant pain in the rear. I have around 1300 people circled at present and contacting them all to let them know what kind of content I want to see (what circle they should put me in), is pretty unrealistic. My current situation is that I can't predict what categories of content these 1300 will be sharing, so I can't correctly put them in a certain circle. Similarly, even if I tell you that I like your photos when I first circle you, you might decide later to share a recipe. You'll have no idea if I'd like to see that too.
As a result of all this, I have a very rapidly scrolling stream that I can't filter by type of content. Therefore, I propose the following solution:
