Every social network in existence has some sort of feed for users to stay in the loop with family, friends, co-workers and the random people we meet online. Google+ has used the Stream concept prevalent in other networks, such as Facebook to share this information with you.
You simply browse through your Stream for status updates, location markers, photos, videos and other multimedia shared directly to you and to Circles you belong to. You can also post your own updates to share with those following you either publicly or that you have added into you Circles. The Google+ Stream is easy to use and we will show you how it works in this guide.
How does the Google+ Stream work
Google+ considers its Stream to consist of a left, middle and right column.
The left column of your Stream contains your name, access to any Pages you may have created as well as your profile photo.
It also has links to your Circles to filter your Stream as well as your Notifications and Incoming updates from those not in your Circles. Your Sparks, what’s hot on Google+ and the Games you play can also be found in the left-hand column of your Stream.
At the bottom, you will see a button to enable Google Talk chat while logged into Google+.
The middle column of your Stream consists of your Circles’ and Pages status updates.
This includes anything shared with a Circle you are in as well as any filters you place to weed through updates. At the top of the middle column, you can post your own updates, photos, and videos to your Stream.
The right column of your Stream consists of an overview of everyone in your Circles and suggestions for adding people to them.
It also contains a way to send invites to Google+ to friends, the ability to start a Hangout, a place to create Google+ Pages as well as more access to Games.
On the far right of the column, you will see a small YouTube icon giving you access to the video service directly from Google+.
How to filter results in your Google+ Stream
One of the best ways to get the most out of your Stream is to learn how to filter results. If you are following a lot of people on Google+, it can be hard to keep up on everything. By filtering your results, you can break your Stream up by Circle, Pages or Incoming Notifications to stay on top of what is going on with those you follow.
In order to filter results, you want to take a look at the Stream sub-header in the left-hand column.
You will see a list of every Circle you have, along with Pages and Notifications. You simply click on the one you want to go through and it will load just those results in your Stream.
This will help you stay on top of what is going on with everyone on Google+.
How to update your Google+ Stream
At the top of your Stream, you have the ability to update your own status on Google+.
The textbox is where you include your comments. You can also add a picture, video, link or location.
If you simply want to add a text update, begin typing your message in the box.
It will expand to allow you to choose which Circles you want to share with. When finished, you just click “Share” and it will post to your Stream.
If you want to add a picture, you click the “Camera” icon.
A small pop-up will appear allowing you to attach a picture from your computer, create an album for the picture you are uploading or share a picture from your mobile device. If you opt to use your mobile device, you will have to login to Google+ on the device and upload the picture from there.
Once you have chosen a picture, you can add text, pick your Circles and then click “Share.”
If you want to add a video, you click the “Play” icon.
Another small pop-up will appear letting you upload a video from your own computer, from YouTube or from your mobile device. Again, if you opt to upload from a mobile device, you will have to do so from the mobile phone itself.
You follow the same steps to finish uploading and sharing a video as you do a text or picture update.
If you want to add a link, click the “Link” icon.
You can either type or copy and paste the link into the box provided, choose your Circles and add your text to it. Click “Share” to update your Stream.
If you want to check in on Google+, click the “Map marker.”
Google will automatically try to find the closest location address for where you are. When it finishes, you can double check to make sure it is accurate, then add text, choose your Circles and click “Share.”
Google+ makes it easy to share but even easier to filter who you share with by creating, maintaining and utilizing your Circles. So the next time you share, make sure you are sharing with the correct Circles.
How does the Google+ Stream work differently than other social networks?
For the most part, Google+’s Stream works just the same way other social networks, like Facebook, use this concept. The primary difference is that Google worked to make updates more manageable to stay on top of first before other networks jumped on the bandwagon. You can filter and keep up with updates with your Circles, Pages and more by using the Google+ Stream to the fullest of its capabilities.
