Google+ allows you to add people to your Circles. Every Circle can be a different group of people you interact with, such as a family, friends, co-workers and even strangers. You can then choose who you share with based on the Circle and others can also choose to share with you the same way. Your Stream is where you see the information others are sharing when they are included in your Circles. However, Google+ also has a second type of Stream: Incoming.
The Incoming Stream allows those who are not part of your Circles to share with you by name or e-mail address. From there, you can see what they shared as well as add them to your Circles so you never miss a post again.
Many Google+ users forget about the Incoming Stream and this guide will show you how to use it and what to do with it to benefit how you interact with people on the social network. The Incoming Stream is a powerful Google+ tool, and you will understand why, when you finish reading this guide.
How to Manage your Incoming Stream
On the left-hand side of Google+ after logging in, you will see all the options for your Stream. Your Stream itself will list every post shared by your Circles; you can use the options on the left-hand side to sort through based on your Circles.
You will see the Incoming and Notifications options for your Stream as well.
Click on “Incoming.”
This will load your Incoming Stream for you.
If you have nothing available, you will be alerted to the fact.
If you have something available, you will be shown what has been shared with you.
When an item is shared to you by someone you do not have in your Circles, you can see what they have shared on your Incoming Stream.
You will also have the option to add them to your Circles by clicking “Add to Circles” next to their post.
Once you have added them to your Circles, you will see posts they have shared with you in your regular Stream as opposed to the Incoming Stream from now on. None of their future posts will appear in the Incoming Stream so you will never miss out on what they are sharing with you.
Let’s say someone has shared something with you through your Incoming Stream that is spam, offensive or you just do not want to interact with them, you can use one of three features to stop them from appearing again.
You can utilize mute, ignore or block to keep them from sharing with you on Google+.
Muting a post will simply eliminate it from your Stream but it will not block the user from sharing with you again. They can share again, you can mute the post itself again or you can take one of two more considerable measures to avoid these users.
Ignoring a user will eliminate them from sharing or seeing what they are up to on Google+. However, they can still interact with you through other user’s posts, shares, and chats. This is a mild way to stop them from interacting with you but still see what they are up to on Google+ elsewhere.
Blocking a user is the most extreme method of dealing with someone you do not want to interact with on Google+. Blocking eliminates seeing anything or having any contact with another user on the social network. They will not be able to post, share and other information they share with others will not appear to you. They also will not be able to join or interact with you through Google Talk or Hangouts while using them through Google.
The Incoming Stream is a great way to filter sharing on Google+ from people you do not know or have added to Circles already. By learning how to use this tool, you can find new friends to connect with on Google+ and eliminate those who seem to annoy or spam you.
How does the Incoming Stream impact your experience on Google+?
Google+ does not just want you to connect with those you already know, they want you to branch out and get to know strangers you spark up discussions with on the site. By using your Incoming Stream, you can see what others think you might be interested in when they share with you whether you know them or not. You can then gauge what they have shared as a means to determine if you should add them or not to your Circles and interact with them on a daily basis.
The Incoming Stream is also an excellent way to filter out spam and other posts you just do not care about from other users on Google+. You can mute, ignore and block posts and users as you deem fit without causing a scene on your regular Stream. The Incoming Stream is something many Google+ users often forget about, have you checked yours recently? If so, have you missed out on some interesting conversation starters or have you made new friends because of it? Check out your Incoming Stream today and see if you have missed out or gained from the feature.
See Also:
- Use the Google +1 Button in Chrome to Share the Latest and Greatest Online
- Latest Updates on Google+: Quick Chats with Circles, Face Tagging and Nearby Streams for Mobile Users
- How to Tag Friends and Send Private Messages On Google+
- Google+ Adds Map Sharing, What Else Can +Snippets Feature Do?
- Getting Started With Google+ Hangouts and How to Host Conference Calls
