No two social networks are the same, though people tend to see them as replicas of each other.
In September, Google launched its new social networking platform, Google+, to all users. Though Google+ doesn't intend to compete with Facebook, a comparison is inevitable.
Miguel Asse, a 22-year-old finance senior who interned for Google during the summer, said, "People tend to compare Google+ to Facebook right off the bat, but they are two different networks."
The target demographic for Google+ users is 25 to 34 years old. Thirteen percent of U.S. adults have already joined Google+, and 22 percent are projected to join by the end of the year. Its growth has outpaced the initial growth of Facebook and Twitter.
Assistant professor of digital arts and sciences Ben DeVane, Ph.D., said both social networking platforms have their pros and cons.
"For students who just want to meet new friends, I think Facebook is probably better because everyone has an account," DeVane said. "For students who are concerned about privacy or professional networking, Google+ is definitely a better option."
DeVane said he thinks Google+ will continue to grow among young professionals with its collaboration tools and privacy controls.
"But I don't think Google+ will take over Facebook's position in the future," he added.
Google+ revolves entirely around privacy settings and customization. With the "Circles" feature on Google+, users organize people into different categories, which restricts some people from seeing certain information.
Sarah Talty, an 18-year-old computer science freshman, is an active user of Google+ and no longer uses her Facebook account. She says that Circles better reflects how relationships work in real life.
"On Facebook, everyone is seen as a friend, but in reality you have friends, family and co-workers. You want to keep them separate," she said.
Google+ clearly asks its users in which Circles they want to share their photos. While Facebook also allows users to organize friends in lists, it's not used as frequently.
"You don't want to accidentally show pictures of yourself clubbing to your mother, brothers and boss," Talty said.
Another feature both social platforms share is video chatting. However, Google+ offers "Hangouts," allowing users to video chat with nine other people, while Facebook only allows video chat with one other person.
"Hangouts with extras" allows users to enhance their experience. Some features offered are the Sketchpad, which is a drawing tool all participants can use at the same time, and Google Docs, which allows users to read documents, screen share, group video chat and group chat.
A major difference in the look of Google+ from Facebook is the inclusion of advertisements. Google+ does not have any advertisements while the layout of Facebook, with several company pages, groups and side ads, makes it appear more like a business platform.
Asse, who primarily uses Google+ to keep in touch with past Google interns, said, "Facebook is almost more spamming."
Talty said, "It's like watching TV. You don't want to see the commercials, you want to watch the show. Facebook started simple but keeps changing, and people have trouble keeping up. Google+ has laid everything out from the beginning."
Google+ also includes a sharing tool, similar to one that Facebook has, called "Sparks." With Sparks, Google+ users get news, posts and information about their interests. It keeps users like Talty up-to-date on their interests and allows them to share articles to the Circles they choose.
The easiness and integration of Google+ gives users an advantage. Users open a separate tab or window for Facebook. Google+ provides everything in one place by its integration of all the products of Google such as Gmail, YouTube, Picasa, Earth, Finance and, of course, the Google search engine.
Asse predicts that Google+ users will continue to grow because so many people are already utilizing Google products. The strong, existing user base of Facebook means that the transition from Facebook to Google+ will be slow.
"The thing is that everyone who's interested in social media seems to be active on Facebook already," said Ji Hoon Lee, a lecturer in the UF department of journalism. "But overall, it's all about customization, personal preference and how you make use of it. Comparing Facebook with Google+ is comparing an apple with an orange."
