What is Google+ and Can the New Features Top Facebook

Many people have questioned what the new Google + project is about and whether or not its new features can help it become competition for or even top Facebook.

Facebook has a stranglehold on the social media scene but many are believing that the new Google Plus application can at least draw some of its users away.

While Myspace, Friendster, and many other sites have failed in their quest to compete with the big dog on the proverbial block, some new features of the project are drawing some interesting attention. The buzz over the applications and how they will affect certain people is huge right now even on other social sites.

One of the top new ideas to be discovered in this project is the "Circles" feature. Circles are groups, which are of course standard on Facebook, but they are used in a different way on Google+. The new project will allow you to decide who you share certain things with by splitting people up into different categories as part of the interface.

For example you may want to share the latest rap video with a certain segment of your friends but not with your mom. Or you may want to post some sort of personal information that a handful of friends would love to know but others might take advantage of or should not be given.

Everyone has that one creepy Facebook friend, even if it's only one, that likes to take advantage of your openness on the site in odd ways. But putting them in a certain circle will only help in the social networking arena.

Other new features will include the "Hangout" function that will allow for more video chatting between larger amounts of people by signaling when a certain person is ready, and the "Sparks" feature that revolves around sharing content and websites in relation to interests. It has somewhat of a search engine type of vibe to it but remains different and more social than the usual search engine experience you'll find on the Internet.

The company has kept the new project fairly quiet for a long time now but it is starting to find its way into the mainstream by word of mouth. Soon, the communities on the Internet that discover the service will find out whether it's worth their time or not in what's becoming a very crowded social scene online.

Regardless, the new features on Google+ are something to take note in comparison with what is offered on Facebook and only time will tell if the latter site will need to make some changes of its own in order to stop the potential momentum of the project.