Google+ has been around for roughly two months now, and one of the social network's popular features out of the gate has been Hangouts, the group video conferencing application that lets users host video chats with up to 10 users at the same time. Some of the roughly 30 million Google+ users have treated Hangouts as more than just a group meeting application for friends, enabled by Google's voice and video plug-in and the Webcam on their laptops. Some users have chosen to use Hangouts as a more significant broadcast medium. These users have performed songs they wrote, hosted cooking shows, all in front of small, live Web audiences. This is more than just a showcase for Google+ and how its users are leveraging the social network that seeks to challenge Facebook's throne. This is a lesson in how group Web meetings are becoming more of a rule than an exception online, creating a boon for messaging and collaboration. Moreover, this service could get more interesting now that Google has linked Hangouts to YouTube, enabling users to click to initiate Hangouts right from the video-sharing Website. Here is a list of some of the ways Google+ users are using Hangouts to reach users.
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Daria Musk
Singer/songwriter Daria Musk uses Hangouts to host mini concerts to showcase her work.
Newt Gingrich used Hangouts to discuss NASA, the economy and the budget deal in July.
Cooking School
Lee Allison hosts a Google+ cooking school using Google+. According to the New York Times, classes are broadcast on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and cover everything from gnocchi to crab dumplings and fried rice. Allison posts a list of ingredients so viewers at home can follow along. How cool is that?
Collaborative Coding
A programmer built this Google Chrome extension to enable collaborative software coding via Hangouts. The geek shall inherit the earth!
Dell Hangouts
We'll file this one under Google+ Hangouts potential, but Dell CEO Michael Dell is mulling making Hangouts an integral part of his customer service operations.
Data Liberation Front
Last month, Google's Data Liberation Front team drummed up support for its data migration service by meeting with journalists via Google+ Hangouts. One of the sessions involved eWEEK meeting with Google Data Liberation Front Leader Brian Fitzpatrick (pictured center screen).
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Google+ has been around for roughly two months now, and one of the social network's popular features out of the gate has been Hangouts, the group video conferencing application that lets users host video chats with up to 10 users at the same time. Some of the roughly 30 million Google+ users have treated Hangouts as more than just a group meeting application for friends, enabled by Google's voice and video plug-in and the Webcam on their laptops. Some users have chosen to use Hangouts as a more significant broadcast medium. These users have performed songs they wrote, hosted cooking shows, all in front of small, live Web audiences. This is more than just a showcase for Google+ and how its users are leveraging the social network that seeks to challenge Facebook's throne. This is a lesson in how group Web meetings are becoming more of a rule than an exception online, creating a boon for messaging and collaboration. Moreover, this service could get more interesting now that Google has linked Hangouts to YouTube, enabling users to click to initiate Hangouts right from the video-sharing Website. Here is a list of some of the ways Google+ users are using Hangouts to reach users.