On Fri, 21 Dec 2012 08:34:18 -0500, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Mike B wrote:

For those that have a Google plus login, I've created a 'metalworking community'
that hopefully will become a more on-topic version of this newsgroup.
(I guess time will tell if Google's automatic spam filtering system is up to the
task).

Mike




Isn't Google shutting down Google+ fairly soon?

Google plus is really just a collective brand name for a bunch of minor services
which happens to include 'communities', photos, circles etc.. The major
services are Gmail, maps etc.
The Google plus brand name may disappear one day, but I doubt they will delete
the data as that's what they use to attract viewers and therefore generate
revenue through paid advertising.

Once you have logged onto a Gmail account you effectively have a Google Plus
account so in practical terms they are the same thing. You can enter bogus
information in your Google Plus profile if you are worried about identity theft
etc..

The community I've created is unmoderated. Whether or not Google's own filtering
system is smart enough to distinguish between metalwork related topics and other
junk remains to be seen. The Google Plus woodworking community currently has 374
members and the content looks to be 100% on topic as far as I can tell.
This rec.crafts.metalworking newsgroup is perhaps 10% on topic on a good day.