Revisiting Some Platforms & Chatting About What's (Relatively) New

I love it when conversations emerge on Twitter in between Tuesday night chats. I especially love when people respond to a call for topics. Our community is indeed lively, thought-provoking, and generous! Once again, UMC pastor, the Rev. Robb McCoy (@FatPastor) has come through with some great ideas. Thanks, Robb!

Last week, he and I had a public, then DM, then email exchange about Google Plus. Has it really captured the #2 spot for social media? I questioned that latest bloated bragging by Google and according to this post from FastCompany, I'm not alone. Take a look at, "So How Popular Is Google Plus?" As a sociologist I'm compelled by training and education to ask, "#2 for which population of users?" And that's just for starters.

Also featured during our email exchange: MySpace (newly redesigned and relaunched), Snapchat, and FB Poke. The last two are scaring the snot out of parents. Robb also mentioned new-to-me Keek, which is in beta. Here are some take-aways from The Duh Department:

• New platforms are always emerging.
• Existing platforms are forever being tweaked.
• We need to keep having the conversation about which work, for which audience(s), and why or why not.

What deserves another look and why? Mark your calendar for this Tuesday, February 5 (9PM ET) and let's chat.

Some background:
A Parent's Take on Snapchat (on Mashable)
SnapChat the new "It' App (from YouthWorker Circuit)
Facebook's new Poke app sends self-destructing messages (on NBCNews.com GadgetBox)