Post by David Pierce. Find me on Twitter.
Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and other social networks all have similar problems. Their practicality is hard to see (So I write about what I’m doing. Then magic happens, and I’m breaking news.), you need lots of people to use it, it feels like a huge time-suck, and they have some tough barriers to entry.
Here’s something that’s not hard to see the practicality of: social networking for things you’re doing. By “doing,” in this case, I mean what you’re watching, reading, listening to or playing. You tell the network what you’re doing, and it recommends more things for you to do, tells your friends what you’re into, and lets everyone curate their own list of favorite entertainment.
That’s exactly what GetGlue, an app that’s been around for a while but that it took me a while to figure out, does. It’s a fairly robust social network, with tons of content that you use in a couple of ways. You can rate things (movies, books, and the like), Like things (movie stars, more movies, books), and check-in to something. You work mostly through a toolbar, and it can automatically figure out what you’re into as you browse, and gets better the more you give it help.
The first two things (rating and Liking) are designed to help GetGlue figure out what you’re into. The more you rate, the better GetGlue gets to know your taste, and then presumably based on other people’s recommendations GetGlue tells you what you might like to read or watch next.
The “checking in” part is my favorite, though. The idea is that when you pop in the Dexter DVD, you check in saying you’re watching Dexter. It’s a simple thing to do, but has some cool possibilities. It’s a great way to start an impromptu book club, just by looking around to see who else picked up what you’re reading. It’s also an awesome way to find out what your friends are watching and reading – I have a bunch of friends who always read and recommend great books, and I’d love to have a list of what they’ve been reading.
There’s a gaming aspect to it all as well, as you can get badges and stickers for doing particular things – you might get a Weeds sticker for watching every season. The gaming part isn’t my cup of tea, but the potential for cool and free stuff (a la Foursquare’s Mayor Deals) is pretty compelling.
There’s much more to GetGlue than just the checking in, but it’s the reason I love the application: it’s a perfect way to get un-stumped at the movie store (or, more likely, my Netflix queue, but that’s neither here nor there) or to find out what your buddies are digging. It’s also a great way to find new people who like what I’m into, and maybe even make some new friends.
Plus, let’s be honest: anytime there’s no potential for people to say things like “I just had a sandwich lol @McDonalds http://this.is.terrible/69afkl” is a great thing in my book.
