good:

An estimated 18 million people are now using Google+, Google’s answer to social-networking behemoth Facebook. The quick growth Google+ has had is remarkable, but its “circle system” to distinguish between people has left many asking the same thing: Who’s a “friend,” who’s an “acquaintance,” and who’s a stranger in the age of web-based relationships?

“I’ve found it pretty much impossible,” says Nancy Baym, professor of communication studies at the University of Kansas and author ofPersonal Connections in the Digital Age. “I have two circles named ‘Nearest and Dearest’ and ‘Everyone.’ That’s the best I can do, but even who goes in Nearest and Dearest is a little ambiguous.” Baym says assigning titles to relationships has always been difficult, but adds that the uncertainty contributes to relationship fluidity, and thus usefulness. Online social networking is forcing us to confront the strangeness that’s always been there, and the results can be sticky. “In everyday practice, relationships tend to be fairly ambiguous,” she says. “When our computer systems force us to categorize these people, it forces us to butt up against that ambiguity, and it isn’t easy. It’s easier to never have to categorize.”

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Hearing a lot of this…wondering how much automation Google may need to bring into this process to make it go.