Google Buzz is going away, but your posts are yours to keep

Google Buzz service is going to be terminated, however, it is still possible to view and retrieve your posts.

Your existing content will remain accessible in two ways:

1. You can view it on your Google Profile
2. You can download it using Google Takeout

Google to be audited every 2 years

Google has reached an agreement with the FTC over its privacy concerns over Buzz.

Google violated its own privacy policies and used "deceptive tactics" when it launched Google Buzz in 2010. According to the FTC, when Buzz was integrated into Gmail, users were not given a good enough explanation about how the new social network would operate. Specifically, controls for limiting the share of personal information were hard to find and trying to leave the network all together was confusing and sometime ineffective.

For this, Google has officially apologized over this mistake on its blog:

We’d like to apologize again for the mistakes we made with Buzz. While today’s announcement thankfully put this incident behind us, we are 100 percent focused on ensuring that our new privacy procedures effectively protect the interests of all our users going forward.

An update on Buzz [via]

Improved comment collapsing for Google Buzz posts

Any Google Buzz post can turn into a lively discussion. Sometimes these conversations can gather lots of new comments very quickly, turning them into "skyscraper" posts that can dominate your entire screen, especially if you don't check Buzz for a few days. We've heard from many of you that these big posts can be a lot to skim over.

Today, we’re making some changes to how comments get collapsed in Google Buzz. In the past, old comments were sometimes collapsed, but new comments (posted since your last visit to the Buzz tab) were always expanded. Now, if there are enough of them, new comments may be collapsed as well.

Improved comment collapsing for Google Buzz posts [via]

How to stop Buzz from sending you emails into your inbox?

Gmail has added a new configuration setting to allow users to choose not to allow Buzz from sending emails to your inbox whenever there is a new posting or reply.

You can find the new settings from the Buzz tab of Gmail Settings.

Better controls for buzz in your inbox [via]

Google Buzz Desktop

If you are using Google Buzz but would like to use it without going through Gmail, now you can do so by installing an application called Google Buzz Desktop.

However, do not that Google Buzz Desktop is built by a Spanish developer, someone not from Google. The desktop application is based on the Adobe AIR platform. Since the application is built by a Spanish developer, you may spot labels used in some of the icons and buttons to be in Spanish.

Google Buzz Desktop
http://www.avenidanet.com/2010/02/google-buzz-desktop/

5 more Buzz tips: post by email, follow the Buzz team, and more

5 more Buzz tips are published on the Official Gmail Blog:

1. Post by email
2. Prevent your boring chat status messages from being posted to Buzz
3. Look for the yellow line to see what's new
4. Link to a post
5. Follow the Buzz team in Google Buzz

This is in addition to an earlier post.

5 more Buzz tips: post by email, follow the Buzz team, and more [via]

Official Gmail Blog: 5 Buzz tips

Google recently released 5 tips on usage of Buzz.

1. Format your posts.
2. View a summary of your own Buzz activity at
   www.google.com/dashboard.
3. Use an @reply to send a post directly to someone's inbox.
4. Try keyboard shortcuts to fly through buzz.
5. Mute posts so they don't get sent to your inbox.

Official Gmail Blog: 5 Buzz tips [via]

Local class action complaint suit filed against Google Buzz over privacy

The number of news related to Google Buzz is getting really HOT since its launch.

Local class action complaint filed over Google Buzz [via]

Gmail launches new Buzz Settings Page to allow total disabling

Google has updated Gmail to include a new "Buzz" tab under the "Settings" page, where you can remove Buzz from your inbox, delete Buzz altogether, or to hide from the public whom you are following and being followed by from your Google Profile. Do note that it is set to show to public by default.

How to disable Google Buzz completely?

Exactly one week ago, I posted a tip on Disabling Google Buzz. It talked on disabling Buzz through merely removing it from showing in Gmail.

Google recently added a new option to disable Google Buzz integration in Gmail and delete your Google profile and Buzz posts. It will also disconnect any connected sites and unfollow you from anyone you are following. This unfollowing process will also unfollow you from the ones you follow in Google Reader, which is rather unnecessary.

To find the new option, go to the profile editing page, scroll to the bottom of the page and select "Delete profile and disable Google Buzz completely".

Which Social Network Is Right For You?

An article on LifeHacker attempts to compare popular social networking sites, namely Facebook, Twitter and Google Buzz, to help us make a decision which social network is right for us.

Which Social Network Is Right For You? [via]

12 Google Buzz Tips

Find some rather useful tips on Google Buzz.

1. Send direct messages
2. Disable email notifications
3. Add more connected sites
4. Link to a Google Buzz message
5. Quickly open Google Buzz
6. Hide Google Buzz's counter
7. Subscribe to a Google Buzz account in a feed reader
8. Find public Google Buzz messages
9. Save searches
10. View Google Buzz photos in a slideshow
11. Add rich text messages
12. Google Buzz on a map

Google Buzz Tips [via]

How to follow, unfollow or block in Google Buzz?

It finally looks like Google finally make it easier for us to follow, unfollow and block people in Google Buzz.

MUST check it out and make sure your settings are set correctly. [via]

How to remove Buzz email notifications from Gmail Inbox?

If you do not wish Google Buzz social notifications, count as emails and appear automatically in your Gmail inbox, you can try creating a filter and then redirect/archive it right away, skipping the inbox.

A filter for Has the words label:buzz is to be created and action Skip the Inbox (Archive it) is to be created to make the filtering happen.

Disabling Google Buzz

If you wish to disable Google Buzz from your Gmail, there is an easy to do it.

To disable and remove Buzz completely from Gmail, you can click on the "turn off buzz" located somewhere near the bottom.

Disabling Buzz
http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=171460

Introducing Google Buzz

Google today announced a new service, Google Buzz, that automatically brings social networking into Gmail and the rest of the Google-sphere.

Google Buzz

Buzz for mobile

Currently social services supported include:

• Flickr
• Twitter
• Picasa Web
• YouTube
• Blogger
• Any feed connected to your Google profile

Google Buzz
http://www.google.com/buzz

Buzz for mobile
http://www.google.com/intl/en/mobile/buzz/

Google is still currently rolling out Buzz to all Gmail users in phases.