Google launches Google+ to rival Facebook

In its bid to rival Facebook, Google has launched a new social networking site aimed at making online sharing selective and more like real life.

According to the creators of the new site, Google+ the features in the new offering beat Facebook, Twitter and Skype and allow users to experience social networking that is less rigid and has more flexibility.

According to analysts, Google has thrown a challenge to rivals with this latest offering. They say Google+ will challenge the domination of Facebook with the more real life online sharing the new site offers.

The site, which has been over a year in the making, lets users share things with smaller groups of people through 'circles' with say only university friends, workmates, or families. This would ensure that shared items including links, photos, etc, would be shared with selected categories and not all at once. 

With another feature called 'sparks', people will be able to find online content they care about, whether fishing or recipes. This can then be shared with friends who might be interested in it. Google calls it "nerding out" and exploring a subject together.

The feature asks users to choose from a list of possible interests (biking, sailing, sewing, etc), or to enter their own specific interest. Google goes about gathering the relevant content from all over the web which analysts who have used the site say is completely on-topic. What they is important is that the site allows sharing with friend circles or single friends that users want to share the content with. The post shows up in the news feeds of friends.