Plexodus Month Three Report
Barring further curveballs from Google, we've four months left to G+ shutdown.
TL;DR:
• Make your final or interim future choices NOW and announce them.
• We're officially recommending the Friends+Me Google+ Exporter. It works, it's here, and it's proven. https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Think of moving this discussion off G+ in a month or two.
• Google API shutdown starts January 27, completes March 7.
• Share and gather contacts, talk to your contacts & communities, and make plans now.
111 days to shutdown.
People and Communities should be choosing their interim platforms NOW. Debates over what to choose and breast-beating are well past time. If you're not deciding, you're deciding not to migrate.
Google Data Export is not working, and Google are not responsive. This is what I'd feared. G+MM are making the Friends+Me Google+ Exporter the official recommendation for individuals and groups.
Information: https://blog.friendsplus.me/export-google-plus-feeds-45926c925891
Download: https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
This is not a total solution as it misses mobile-only users, but it does address both text and photography, and Community export. This covers most needs
F+MGE will not be developing mobile support, but there are alternatives possible. There is a rather technical Firebase App which may work for mobile-only users, as all import and export is done on cloud servers. This requires G+ APIs and will not work after March 7, 2019.
https://apps-script-community-archive.firebaseapp.com/
Otherwise, Mobile users might be able to make use of a computer through a friend, work, Internet cafe (yikes!), library, or other public-access facility. Not ideal, but doable.
Or we could pitch import capabilities to third parties, principally blogging sites. Wordpress, Medium, etc. These don't have to be final destinations themselves, and may serve only to extract, and then re-export Google+ content.
We will eventually be encouraging discussion off of G+, if only for archival purposes. The #PlexodusReddit is likely the natural home for now. Even users without Reddit accounts / not logged in can see content. And it's pretty straightforward to create an account there. Yes, I have issues with Reddit myself. Exporting G+MM to a blogging platform is another possiblity, we're looking into this.
I've made the same announcement on Plexodus: The Beginning is Near (P:TBiN) recently.
Raising the visibility of #PlexodusWiki is also a Good Thing. The front page has seen over 25k hits, so it's out there. The FAQ, 4k.
The Google+ APIs are shutting down starting 27 January and completely by March 7. This will mostly affect third-party apps and sites, though there may be spill-over. Some data migration tools are affected. The Friends+Me Google+ Export does NOT use APIs and will NOT be affected.
Make and publicise your plans, talk to your community.
Individuals and groups should be well on their way to making future plans. Many are not. Time is running out. If your community owners/moderators aren't taking initiative, start doing this yourself. Talk, ask questions, state plans, work out disagreements or confusion.
Gather and share contact information.
There are various tools for this. Simple and accessible ones work best: We strongly recommend EMAIL LISTS or GOOGLE FORMS for larger groups.
You can set up your own basic Forms information gathering page easily:
https://forms.google.com
We've topped 3,800 members at G+MMM. Reasonably large by G+ standards.
Otherwise, this is what 2019 looks like for G+ Mass Migrators:
January
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• Commit to new platform(s) NOW.
• Create new accounts as needed.
• Create a full Google+ data archive. Use the Friends+Me Google+ Exporter if possible. https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Update your and community members' contact information.
February
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• No later than now declare new platform(s) live alpha.
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Provide breadcrumbs, hashtags, and other discovery beacons.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Select material for import.
• Perform necessary edits and modifications.
• Import and assess data.
• Update your and community members' contact information.
March
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• No later than now declare new platform(s) live beta.
• Deprecate Google+ services. Consider disabling comments/posts.
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Continue content edits and modifications as needed.
• Make an incremental data export: https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Import and assess data.
• Update your and community members' contact information.
April
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• No later than now declare new platform(s) live primary.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Directly contact missing members, reach out through members.
• Provide breadcrumbs, hashtags, and other discovery beacons.
• Continue content edits and modifications as needed.
• Make a final data export: https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Import and assess data.
• Update your and community members' contact information.
• 30 April: Presumed public Google+ sunset date.
May
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Provide breadcrumbs, hashtags, and other discovery beacons.
• Disable updates to Google+ services if possible (e.g., no comments, no posts).
• Directly contact missing members, reach out through members.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Assess content integrity.
• Address content / community as necessary.
• Rebuild and expand your communities.
111 days to shutdown.
https://blog.friendsplus.me/export-google-plus-feeds-45926c925891
Barring further curveballs from Google, we've four months left to G+ shutdown.
TL;DR:
• Make your final or interim future choices NOW and announce them.
• We're officially recommending the Friends+Me Google+ Exporter. It works, it's here, and it's proven. https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Think of moving this discussion off G+ in a month or two.
• Google API shutdown starts January 27, completes March 7.
• Share and gather contacts, talk to your contacts & communities, and make plans now.
111 days to shutdown.
People and Communities should be choosing their interim platforms NOW. Debates over what to choose and breast-beating are well past time. If you're not deciding, you're deciding not to migrate.
Google Data Export is not working, and Google are not responsive. This is what I'd feared. G+MM are making the Friends+Me Google+ Exporter the official recommendation for individuals and groups.
Information: https://blog.friendsplus.me/export-google-plus-feeds-45926c925891
Download: https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
This is not a total solution as it misses mobile-only users, but it does address both text and photography, and Community export. This covers most needs
F+MGE will not be developing mobile support, but there are alternatives possible. There is a rather technical Firebase App which may work for mobile-only users, as all import and export is done on cloud servers. This requires G+ APIs and will not work after March 7, 2019.
https://apps-script-community-archive.firebaseapp.com/
Otherwise, Mobile users might be able to make use of a computer through a friend, work, Internet cafe (yikes!), library, or other public-access facility. Not ideal, but doable.
Or we could pitch import capabilities to third parties, principally blogging sites. Wordpress, Medium, etc. These don't have to be final destinations themselves, and may serve only to extract, and then re-export Google+ content.
We will eventually be encouraging discussion off of G+, if only for archival purposes. The #PlexodusReddit is likely the natural home for now. Even users without Reddit accounts / not logged in can see content. And it's pretty straightforward to create an account there. Yes, I have issues with Reddit myself. Exporting G+MM to a blogging platform is another possiblity, we're looking into this.
I've made the same announcement on Plexodus: The Beginning is Near (P:TBiN) recently.
Raising the visibility of #PlexodusWiki is also a Good Thing. The front page has seen over 25k hits, so it's out there. The FAQ, 4k.
The Google+ APIs are shutting down starting 27 January and completely by March 7. This will mostly affect third-party apps and sites, though there may be spill-over. Some data migration tools are affected. The Friends+Me Google+ Export does NOT use APIs and will NOT be affected.
Make and publicise your plans, talk to your community.
Individuals and groups should be well on their way to making future plans. Many are not. Time is running out. If your community owners/moderators aren't taking initiative, start doing this yourself. Talk, ask questions, state plans, work out disagreements or confusion.
Gather and share contact information.
There are various tools for this. Simple and accessible ones work best: We strongly recommend EMAIL LISTS or GOOGLE FORMS for larger groups.
You can set up your own basic Forms information gathering page easily:
https://forms.google.com
We've topped 3,800 members at G+MMM. Reasonably large by G+ standards.
Otherwise, this is what 2019 looks like for G+ Mass Migrators:
January
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• Commit to new platform(s) NOW.
• Create new accounts as needed.
• Create a full Google+ data archive. Use the Friends+Me Google+ Exporter if possible. https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Update your and community members' contact information.
February
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• No later than now declare new platform(s) live alpha.
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Provide breadcrumbs, hashtags, and other discovery beacons.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Select material for import.
• Perform necessary edits and modifications.
• Import and assess data.
• Update your and community members' contact information.
March
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• No later than now declare new platform(s) live beta.
• Deprecate Google+ services. Consider disabling comments/posts.
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Continue content edits and modifications as needed.
• Make an incremental data export: https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Import and assess data.
• Update your and community members' contact information.
April
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• No later than now declare new platform(s) live primary.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Directly contact missing members, reach out through members.
• Provide breadcrumbs, hashtags, and other discovery beacons.
• Continue content edits and modifications as needed.
• Make a final data export: https://gplus-exporter.friendsplus.me/
• Import and assess data.
• Update your and community members' contact information.
• 30 April: Presumed public Google+ sunset date.
May
• Provide updated status, plans, goals.
• Direct Google+ members to new services.
• Provide breadcrumbs, hashtags, and other discovery beacons.
• Disable updates to Google+ services if possible (e.g., no comments, no posts).
• Directly contact missing members, reach out through members.
• Publicise new location(s).
• Assess content integrity.
• Address content / community as necessary.
• Rebuild and expand your communities.
111 days to shutdown.
https://blog.friendsplus.me/export-google-plus-feeds-45926c925891
In the absence of ANY meaningful engagement from Google, it’s safe (and realistic) to assume that Google+ will fall flat on it’s face as soon as the API goes out on March 7th, at which point we won’t be able to do anything with it, and Google will whistle as if nothing’s happening (no point in investing resources in something that will be deleted in 60 days).
ReplyDeleteI guess we have 60 days.
Jose Pina Coelho Assuming things don't go south starting january 27th, when the API starts to break down.
ReplyDeleteWe could have setup a service like keybase.io meanwhile, to share our new addresses. Authenticated via our profile pages, of course. Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteJose Pina Coelho I'm not (yet) quite that pessimistic, but recognising that 111 days is the maximum amount of time remaining is probably useful.
ReplyDeleteI've been strongly recommending actions which increase rather than decrease options. And waiting until the bitter end before doing anything tends to decrease them.
Mostly a reminder to myself, but also noting: I'm going to be changing references for data export to highlight F+MGE in various places. We'll still mention Google Data Takeout, but it will not be the default recommendation from here on. It's to complicated, buggy, error-prone, and frankly, useless.
ReplyDeleteI'll also be looking at the Firebase option and reporting on that, though if anyone else wants to take that on or take a look, I'd appreciate it.
Filip H.F. Slagter, Bernhard Suter and Michael K Johnson have all been working with Google Data Takeout and should have tips and/or tools for making use of htis. I think those will work on pretty much any major OS (Windows, Mac, Linux, BSDs, etc.), though you'll want to have a set of Linux/Unix tools for doing that. Even android can work if you have a Termux environment (or similar) installed. Command line may sound intimidating, but in truth it's generally pretty friendly.
(Choosey about who its friends are, as the old joke goes.)
But for those who've wondered what they can do with JSON extracts, that'll be helpful.
I've got my own reasonably recent extract and will be looking at that myself.
Jürgen Christoffel Could you expand on your keybase.io idea? I thought that was just for key exchange, or am I missing something?
ReplyDeleteEdward Morbius just a short sketch (as it's bedtime here and I have appointments early tomorrow):
ReplyDelete- gplus might go away completeley in 111 days, so having pointers to one's new "home" in the profiles might fail then too.
- keybase.io maps social media identities onto public keys, cf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keybase, but without encryption keys is not generally usable, IIRC. So:
- if we/someone would set up a site with a similar database for gplus identities, we could register our new places there.
- this might work similar to Let's Encrypt, e.g. you request a record in the db, get a token (sha256 hash or whatever) to identify with a machine readable note on your gplus profile page (so we know that you "own" it) and are than allowed to enter links to your new social media home to the db.
- when someone sees your gplus id in their takeout later, they can enter that into the db's interface and find your whereabouts. (I would not make the entries world readable by default to keep spammers at bay)
en.wikipedia.org - Keybase
I've got my data exported (including photos, which are my most important G+ content - I honestly don't care about having a record of my posts, probably 80% of which have been photos, anyway). I've been posting my #signalflare posts. The most important G+ photo communities I take part in have set up alternate homes - on Flickr, on FaceBook, and on custom-built Websites - and we're beginning to use them. I plan to keep posting here until we can't. And I'm ditching most of my Google-based bookmarks, other than Search (because, dammit, they still do that better than anybody).
ReplyDeleteIn the practical sense, I'm as prepared as I can be. In the emotional sense, I'm far more saddened than I ever expected to be by the demise of a social network.
Jürgen Christoffel Ooh! Interesting, thanks.
ReplyDeleteDoes Internet Archive factor into this at all?
Jürgen Christoffel I'm thinking of a few other approaches as well.
ReplyDeleteGoogle Forms seems to be about as good a capture device as any, and I'm thinking of setting up some sort of guest book for my private circles to register to. Might also set these up for the G+NNDB / G+NCDB lists at #PlexodusWiki:
https://social.antefriguserat.de/index.php/G%2B_Notable_Names_Database
https://social.antefriguserat.de/index.php/G%2B_Notable_Communities_Database
(I really need to figure out how to make MediaWiki into a quasi-database for those....)