
Google takes another run at social networking with Shoelace - munchor
https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/12/20691430/shoelace-google-area-120-event-organizing-new-york-beta
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hmhrex
I actually like the idea of this type of hyper-local "social networking", but
I think my fear of it being run by Google is valid. I would love to see
another company do well at this, but I'll be skipping over Google's iteration.

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sli
I'm not sure how good Nextdoor actually is, but it's another "hyper-local"
social network.

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scarface74
I’ve only heard that it is only used by people in the same neighborhood to
talk about people “who don’t belong there”.

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Fins
It's actually quite useful for "hey, did you see my dog?" or "do you know what
happened at ... last night?" things. But being a social network (so basically,
evil by definition) you do get a worrying amount of "these people look weird
here" , political fights and other BS that comes weith the social network
territory.

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scarface74
Why join a “hyper local network” when everyone is already on Facebook and you
can just make a Facebook Group?

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w3rhn2j34oh5o
'everyone'. Ive never used FB in my life, and never will. More people are
ditching ZuckNet every day because it is so awful. Good to have alternatives.

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scarface74
Well despite your anecdote, the actual numbers disagree with you. A few geeks
staying off Facebook is about as relevant as the “I don’t own a TV” crowd.

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AlchemistCamp
If you've owned one for decades that might make sense, but why would I buy a
device that shows me what various media companies choose to provide at each
given hour instead of watching what I want, when I want?

We're _decades_ into the web.

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scarface74
So instead of watching video on demand on a TV - since almost all TVs sold
these days are “smart TVs”, it’s a different experience watching it on a phone
or computer?

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AlchemistCamp
Not sure... I haven't actually owned a TV since 2002! My roommates several
years ago had one with cable, and it really was necessary to flip channels to
find something interesting and there were still ads. I just didn't have
patience for it.

I generally get what I want from Amazon or a local equivalent, either
streaming or just buy the seasons of shows I want (e.g. Halt and Catch Fire)
and watch it on my 27" computer monitor. Sometimes, if there's a group, I'll
use a projector.

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scarface74
So you own a 27 inch monitor connected to a computer that allows you to watch
video over the internet and that’s somehow different than the typical
household these days that owns a television connected to a Roku device (a
specialized computer) or that has built in processor that allows them to watch
video on demand over the internet?

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AlchemistCamp
I'm not the one to ask. I'm not familiar with Roku devices and haven't owned a
TV since 2002.

I'm sorry if you don't like this, but it's the truth.

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anoncake
> Shoelace is currently in an invite-only testing phase

So Google is using their proven method of building a social network. It's
proven to not work, mind you, but it's proven.

Are there any reasons why Google might be doing this apart from broken
incentive structures?

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whydoineedthis
Yeah, Gmail was such a flop. Orkut also comes to mind, although they
botched/killed that for different reasons.

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anoncake
Gmail isn't a social network.

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wakupsheeple
> “hand-picked” local activities

I wonder what the team's process is for hand picking local activities.

