1. About Google Friend Connect

Google Friend Connect is a service that helps websites easily provide social features for its visitors. As a user, you can become member of a site and connect with other members who share your interests. You can also invite your friends from Facebook, orkut, and Google Talk to join the community. And there's no need to create a new account for the site, simply use your Google, Yahoo!, AOL, or other OpenID account.

For more information, check out our post on http://www.google.com/friendconnect

2. Joining sites that use Google Friend Connect

All Google Friend Connect sites have a sign-in gadget or a members gadget. Some sites may have more gadgets, since site owners choose from a catalog of social gadgets provided by Google and the OpenSocial developer community. Before you join a site, the sign-in gadget will display a Sign in link.

Here's how to join a Google Friend Connect site for the first time:

1. Click Sign in in the sign-in gadget to pull up the sign-in window. You may need to disable your pop-up blocker to view the window.
2. If you've never joined a Friend Connect site before, you'll be asked to sign in with an account. You can sign in with a Google Account, a Yahoo!, an AOL, or any OpenID account. Choose the type of account you'd like to use by clicking the link, and then sign in to your account. The settings window appears.
3. In the box on the left side of the window, you can adjust the settings that affect only the Friend Connect site you're on; in the box on the right side, you can link your Friend Connect account to your favorite social networking sites -- these settings will affect all Friend Connect sites you join. During the linking process, you may be asked to provide credentials for your social networking account.
4. Once you've adjusted your settings, click the Save button.

It's easy to join a new Google Friend Connect site if you've already joined one.

1. Click Sign in in the sign-in gadget.
2. Click the Accept button in the sign-in window. (Note: if you're not using a Google Account to join your favorite Friend Connect sites, you'll need to provide your sign-in information for each site you join.)
3. Adjust your settings as desired, and click Save.

3. Accounts to access Google Friend Connect

Google Friend Connect aims to make it easy for you to use social features on any site, without having to create several new accounts. You can sign in to any Google Friend Connect site using an account from Google, Yahoo!, AOL, or OpenID.

If you don't have a Google Account, you can create one. For help accessing your Google Account, visit the Google Accounts Help Center.

Get help with a Yahoo! ID, an OpenID, or an AOL account.

4. Making friends on a site that uses Google Friend Connect

Once you join a site that uses Google Friend Connect, friends you already have on that site will appear at the top of the members gadget; it doesn't matter whether you met those friends through Google Friend Connect or through one of your linked social networks. But you can also ask other members of the site to be your friends by following these steps:

1. Click a member's picture or name in the members gadget.
2. Click Ask [member name] to be your friend.
3. Click Yes to confirm.

5. Inviting friends to join a site you belong to

You can invite your friends from all over the Web and a number of different social networks (we're working hard to expand this list) to join a Friend Connect site you belong to. Currently, you can invite friends from Facebook and orkut, your contacts from Google Talk, or anyone by sending an email. Here's how you can invite your friends:

1. At the bottom of the members gadget, click Invite your friends!. The invite window appears (you may need to disable your pop-up blocker to view the window).
2. Friends from any linked networks -- including Google Talk -- will appear in the top box. Click a picture or name to add your friend to the list of people you'd like to invite (click again to deselect a friend).
3. To invite friends via email, type their addresses into the second box labeled 'You can also invite contacts via email.'
4. Once you've selected all the people you want to invite, click Send invitations.

When friends you already have on social networks join the same Friend Connect site as you, you'll automatically be friends on those Friend Connect sites too.

6. Expanding your list of friends

Google Friend Connect is more fun when you have more friends. Here's how you can expand your list of friends:

Friends you have on social networks:

Your friends on your social networking sites don't necessarily belong to the same Friend Connect sites that you do. That's why the size of 'Your friends' section of the members gadget is different on every site you visit.

If a friend of yours from a linked social network joins a Friend Connect site that you belong to, you'll automatically be friends. You can easily invite more friends to join the site.

Friends you make on a Friend Connect site:

You can become friends with any member of a Friend Connect site. Visitors might belong to Facebook, Google Talk, or no social network at all; as long as they're members of the individual site (using an account from Google, Yahoo!, AOL, or OpenID), you can ask them to be friends with you. If you befriend someone on a Friend Connect site and then both visit and join another Friend Connect site, you'll automatically be friends on that site as well.

7. How we store information and protect your privacy

Google stores as little information as possible to be able to provide the best possible experience. For instance, if you make friends with someone on a Friend Connect site, we store that information so you don't have to make friends with that person again and again each time you visit a Friend Connect site. But if you and an existing friend from a linked social network join the same Friend Connect site, Friend Connect automatically detects that you're friends and provides the proper experience without storing any information.

What social networks see:

You determine whether you want to publish your activities on a particular site to your activity streams in your social networks. If you choose to publish them, your activities (posts, reviews, etc.) will be sent to your social networks. In addition, if you use Friend Connect to invite friends from your existing social networks, those social networks will receive information needed to pass along this invitation to your friends.

What site owners see:

Google Friend Connect never provides site owners with your private sign-in information. Google Friend Connect and the service you use to sign in -- not site owners -- validate your sign-in credentials. Once you've joined a Friend Connect site, the site owner can then see your nickname and the date you became a member. As a member of the site, the owner will also be able to see your image and the content you choose to publish on the site, such as a wall comment or a review.

Read Google's privacy policy

8. Choosing your privacy settings

Google Friend Connect has a number of options built in to allow you to customize the amount of information you share on each site you join.

Other members of sites you belong to will always be able to see your nickname and your image, but you can control whether other users see your friends on the site. You can also remove yourself from the list of members altogether at any time. Click Settings in the sign-in gadget to adjust your options or to remove yourself as a member of a site.

Here's how you can control who can see your list of friends:

1. In the section 'Options for this site,' click the drop-down menu.
2. Select either 'Picture, nickname and friends' or 'Picture and nickname.'
3. Click Save.

By default, your activity on a site isn't published to your social networking sites. To turn the publishing option on, please follow these steps:

1. In the section 'Options for this site,' select the option labeled 'Publish activities to my linked social networks.'
2. Click Save.

If you'd like to remove yourself as a member of a site, just click Unjoin to the right of the Save button, and click Yes to confirm.

9. Reporting inappropriate content on a Friend Connect site

Site owners are responsible for all visible information, such as wall comments, information displayed by various gadgets, and profile pictures, on Friend Connect sites. If you encounter inappropriate content on a Friend Connect site and wish to report it, we recommend you contact the site owner. Learn more

You can also remove yourself as a member of any Friend Connect site you belong to at any time by following these steps:

1. Click Settings from the sign-in gadget.
2. Click Unjoin to the right of the Save button.
3. Click Yes to confirm.

10. Information for webmasters

Information for webmasters about Google Friend Connect is available at the Friend Connect homepage. This is a preview release of Google Friend Connect and will be available only to a limited number of site owners.

11. Submitting feature requests and suggestions

Friend Connect is a work in progress, and learning what our users want from the product is tremendously important to us. To share your thoughts, please visit the Google Friend Connect Discussion Group. We won't post in the group often, but we'll use your feedback to improve the product.

12. Reporting problems and getting more help

This is a preview release of Google Friend Connect, so we're unable to provide personalized support. But if you've found something that may not be working right, or that you're just having a little trouble using, we want to hear about it.

To share your thoughts with our team and to discuss Friend Connect with other users, please visit the Google Friend Connect Discussion Group. We don't post in the group often, but we'll use your feedback to improve the product.