Microsoft launches social search network So.cl

Microsoft launched a “social search network” on Sunday – So.cl.

Here’s how Microsoft describes it:

So.cl (pronounced “social”) is an experimental research project, developed by Microsoft’s FUSE Labs, focused on exploring the possibilities of social search for the purpose of learning.

  • So.cl combines social networking and search, to help people find and share interesting web pages in the way students do when they work together.
  • So.cl helps you create rich posts, by assembling montages of visual web content.
  • To encourage interaction and collaboration, So.cl provides rich media sharing, and real time sharing of videos via “video parties.”

We expect students to continue using products such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other existing social networks, as well as Bing, Google and other search tools. We hope to encourage students to reimagine how our everyday communication and learning tools can be improved, by researching, learning and sharing in their everyday lives.

It sounds like a mashup of features from Facebook, Google+, Pinterest and other popular networking places, combined with search (especially Google’s new Knowledge Graph).

The description says it’s focused on students. Indeed, the FAQ says:

We are formally partnering with selected schools (including University of Washington, Syracuse University, and New York University).

It does add that anyone can join.

There’s a very good in-depth first-look walk-through of So.cl by Marketing Land: http://marketingland.com/microsoft-launches-so-cl-social-network-a-quick-look-12499

Interesting, Microsoft. I’ve signed up to kick the tyres, etc.

Have you signed up? Let me know what you think of it.

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Microsoft’s So.cl Goes Live
Microsoft’s social networking site, so.cl which gone live accidentally few months back is in fact launched by Microsoft and available to all at present, you can sign into this service with your Facebo…

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Neville Hobson

Social Strategist, Communicator, Writer, and Podcaster with a curiosity for tech and how people use it. Believer in an Internet for everyone. Early adopter (and leaver) and experimenter with social media. Occasional test pilot of shiny new objects. Avid tea drinker.

  8. Steven Streight

    Right now, nothing is working on So.cl and I've clicked every single link. Something seems to be very messed up over there.

    I have never seen anything so unready for public release in my entire time as a web usability analyst (since 2000).

  9. twitter_maqavana

    Horrible piece of social media – what was I thinking? it’s MICROSOFT! these folks know little about “experiential” have you ever heard of Microsoft going viral????

  10. twitter_maqavana

    Horrible piece of social media – what was I thinking? it’s MICROSOFT! these folks know little about “experiential” have you ever heard of Microsoft going viral???? FREE advice: stop this nonsense and bring it back when it’s at least functional – you lose trust and reputation. Right now I’d brag to my mates about any Apple product – never microSoft.

  20. Armin Grewe

    +Neville Hobson managed to find the id again and logged in. Not a lot seemed to work although for some reason I had a feed full of people I'd never heard of posting things I hadn't the slightest interest in. Weird.

  22. Armin Grewe

    This thing needs a health warning, don't log in when in the office. As pretty much any searches from others just pop up as do the video chats some rather dodgy things might appear on your screen. Certainly as long as you don't have any "friends" (which don't seem easy to add?) just about everything seems to just pop up.

    General impression? Nice try MS, try again. G+ I figured out the basics in about 30 seconds. Socl (why that is pronounced social is beyond me) I didn't get even the very basics after 5 minutes.

  24. Tim

    I just went to the URL and got an error message.
    Error binding ‘function(){}’ view
    [object Error]

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