Gadgetwise Blog: Q&A: Recommending Web Pages With the Google +1 Button

What happens if I click that +1 button on a Web site?

The +1 button on some Web pages is Google’s version of a personal-approval stamp or recommendation, similar to Facebook’s “Like” button for publicly declaring favorite things on a social network; you probably get the most out of the feature if you are a member of the Google Plus social network. The +1 button often appears on news and entertainment sites around the Web, usually next to Facebook’s “Like” button, and buttons to click for sharing the page by Twitter or e-mail. Other Google properties, like Google Maps, also host a +1 button.

When you click the +1 button on a Web page, your recommendation is noted on your own Google profile page. Google’s guide to the +1 button says you need to have a public Google Profile set up to use the +1 button.

If you happen to use Google Plus, the +1 button is more useful. You can see a list of all the Web sites and pages you have marked. These are listed under the “+1s” tab in the Profile area of your Google Plus page — which is helpful for collecting or just finding those pages again for reference.

The pages you have recommended can also turn up in the search results received by people who happen to be in your Google Plus “circles” of online friends and acquaintances. In those search results, your name appears next to links for pages you have favored, like those for restaurants or products, so your friends can take your opinion into account.

Gadgetwise Blog: Q&A: Combining Two Facebook Pages

I accidentally created two personal Facebook pages. Is there any way to combine the two accounts so the Friends list in each one gets added together into one big list?

According to Facebook’s Help guide, the site “does not currently offer a way to merge two separate accounts.” If you want to do your own sort of manual merge to get photos and other info from one account to the other, Facebook recommends that you download a copy of the information from the account you want to close first. The site has instructions for doing this here.

Downloading your information from Facebook gives you an archive file with your photos, videos and other content you posted to the site with that account, along with your Friends list. Once you get the download data from the account you want to close, and upload it to the one you want to keep, you can delete the unwanted Facebook page (as explained here).

As you resettle onto the single Facebook profile page, you can use the Friends list you downloaded from the deleted account as a guide for sending out new Friend requests to the people you want to keep in your online life. Unlike personal accounts, duplicate Facebook “Pages” representing businesses, brands or organizations can be merged.