"Sharing what you want, with who you want."
You've probably heard the whispers, rumblings, and rumors... TODAY I'm excited to confirm that Gather's next great upgrade is just around the corner. Here at Gather, we call it "Guthrie" and it's all about friends.
Right now on Gather, we have "people" we call "connections"… a little impersonal, right?
With the new upgrade we'll call these folks "friends". Ahhh… so much better! But that's just the beginning. If you're like me, you have all kinds of friends on Gather. Favorite writers, family members, colleagues… you name it. And they all live under "My People."
That's about to change.
When Guthrie is released, you'll be able to group your friends into meaningful, relevant sets. For example, here's a look at some of the friend sets I'll be using:
- Family
- Friends
- Neighbors
- Co-Workers
- Syracuse Buds
- NHS Girls
- Correspondents
- Fave Gatherers
For example, my Syracuse Buds and/or Fave Gatherers won't see how I've named or grouped them. So, feel free to get creative and name your friend sets in ways you'll remember. Additionally, once you create your friend sets, you'll be able to add people to these sets at the same time you accept them as a new connection... oops… I mean friend! You'll also be able to manage email preferences for each individual friends.
Beyond naming and organizing; friend sets will be incredibly powerful when it comes to sharing. Guthrie will allow you to share just what you want, with just those whom you want.
Right now I share pictures of my children with all my "connections" on Gather. With Guthrie, I can spare my co-workers, favorite Gatherers, and former colleagues from yet another Johnston Family Kodak Moment. Instead I'll just share those photos with my family and friend sets.
I know what you're thinking. What if some of your "Friends" are also "Co-Workers" and "Favorite Gatherers"? No problemo! One friend can be put in multiple sets. This upgrade will allow you unprecedented control over you own experience on Gather and enable you to connect with the people you care about in a more meaningful and relevant way.
There are other cool features that accompany the Guthrie release, including a simplified registration process, a "Getting Started Guide" for new members, improved privacy control around your profile, and enhancements to the publishing process.
But, the big win here is the relevance you'll experience by being able to group your friends into meaningful sets.
We still don't have an exact release date… but one thing is for certain, it's coming soon!
Stay tuned!
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Comments: 109
My question................. will our current preferences stay as is after the update until we can change them? Meaning, I use the current friends, colleagues and family for specific reasons. What will happen to my settings immediately after the update?
It seems as though this option would lift a gigantic responsibility off the Gather, and place this option where -- imho -- it should be, in the hands of the individual member.
Thank you!
It seems as though this option would lift a gigantic responsibility off the Gather team, and place this option where -- imho -- it should be, in the hands of the individual member.
Do you see an upgrade allowing this soon??? I mean, if I have someone BLOCKED from sending me email, then how hard would it be to make an upgrade to block that person from being able to comment and rate my stuff?
Thanks for the update.
Any thoughts?
Thanks Pam
Looking forward to playing with Guthrie!
I also think that if someone doesn't want particular people looking at or viewing or commenting on their stuff they should possibly look into setting up their own blog elsewhere; as I thought that all editorial was and is either public or private.
Guthrie: Gather Upgrade Three(thrie)
Guthrie: Tom got a Woody when he heard it was ready
Sorry, but I just HAD to....
Book Review: This is How It Happened
10 4 u
Speaking of the cumbersome email--anything happening with that to make it more user friendly? Like making it a screen that I can go from one email to the next without having to bounce through the inbox?
I'm not enthused about another update so soon after the last one. I was just beginning to become accustomed to the current set up...but I AM grateful for the heads up. Will we be notified when the update is scheduled?
I have AOL and in my experience for several days in a row they will change screens and links without warning. It will stay that way for a couple of weeks, it seems--and then here we go again. I'm thinking of giving that account up....
Thank you for letting all of us on Gather know this.
However, you will have the option to categorize your friends in ways that mean something to you. For instance, you can create a group of photography friends and set up your email notifications so you are notified (or not, whatever is your choice for that group) when they publish new pictures.
Another feature of Friend Sets is that they are private. Only you have a view to your friend sets.
Am I going to be able to organize my groups in the same way? I really would like that.
This all sounds...well, too good to be true, and you know what the rule of thumb is on that, so I won't be holding my breath.
Announcing this at the end of one of the worst months for Gather system performance is even more perplexing. A month that kept many of us offline half the time, and caused all kinds of problems with publishing, deprived us of points (for whatever Gather activities now earn points), reeked havoc with email, photos, and groups.
This also comes on the heels of Tom's denouncement of article "comments". Which continues the evisceration of the rewards program and flies in the face of the concept of a "social network". The Gather points system has practically quit functioning! Nothing seems to earn points anymore - not comments, not ratings - not even reading articles and viewing images, known as "page views", is earning members points. It is no wonder people are stampeding their way out of Gather, there are many other social networks available and those sites are giving the rewards to their members!
Should we mention the demise of the Guides? Another dark spot for February and "social networking".
...Does Gather really think we're so simple and stupid that we will accept some new-fangled bells and whistles with open arms and forgive all the system cock ups of the past month? Don't bet on it! The Exodus will continue in spite of, or quite possibly because of, the soon to happen "Guthrie" upgrade.
I had to start a new account to get back on after the last one...
I never liked calling someone I didn't know and had just "connected" with either friend or colleague or family.
For two years, since I first joined in 2006, I have asked for away to be able to click on a button that says "view new comments" - that would allow me to see if anyone had written a comment on an article I wrote last week or last month or last year...right now there is no way to do that...
I don't know that I personally will benifit from these changes though, as most of my gather "friends" I met here on Gather, and probably won't make any of my own groups for them.
Altho I do have a few family members who are a part of Gather.