When the Google +1 button first appeared, it really had only one purpose and that had to do with search. As you +1’d stuff around the Web, all it would really do is highlight pages you recommend to your circle of friends on Google’s search results.

That was before Google+. Now, the +1 button can do much more, and the company realizes this. The feature will act a lot more like Facebook’s “Like” button: when you +1 something, it will now appear in your stream to be viewable to allow your followers.

I should mention that on your Google +profile, there has always been a +1 tab where your +1’s (as long as you were logged in to the account you have a Google+ profile with) were stored. It’s buried, though, and I’m willing to bet many didn’t even realize it was there.

Just like the “Like” button, the new +1 button will allow you to comment on what you’re +1’ing. It will also allow you to select who you want to share it with, a feature Facebook recently added to its own offering.

It’s good to see that Google is making these changes . I guess you could call it the natural progression for the +1 button as social sharing becomes more important to Google in light of Google+’s dramatic gains in popularity.

 
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