Google's latest social networking experience is called Shoelace and it's great. Node

GOOGLE IS HIDDEN his injured hand in the fire again with another social network attempt.

Shoelace, as we call it, is currently in closed beta for New York users. It comes from area 120, the part of Google that deals with experimental products or, less charitably, where Friday afternoon is spent hunting.

It works slightly differently than other social networks because it is designed to help you find souls similar to those around you, depending on your interests. You can set up an event on a map and then announce it in the app to other fans – be it a walker group or a Roland Moore-Colyer appreciation company.

Group discussions and other features then allow you to break the ice and plan your meeting. It looks like it will be great for the mastiff community.

It is widely believed that Einstein said: "The definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over, but to expect different results."

It's a relief to report, therefore, that this is not Google's new attempt to reinvent the wheel, after throwing the sponge on Google+ just a few months ago. It's also not the redemption of an existing social network like Orkut, nor paradise banning a strange intangible figure like Google Buzz or Google Wave.

This time, Google seeks to facilitate the establishment of social networks in the real world. After all, we all have enough outlets to find digital friends and applause.

There is a version for iOS and for Android, which is a relief at this early stage, as it is by invitation only at the moment and the number of snorkeling fans in the swamp is so restricted to downtown from New York.

Zone 120 projects are not official Google products, but many have been officially launched or integrated into existing products over time.

As such, do not hold your breath for Shoelace as soon as possible. An option on the site allows you to designate your community as your next deployment location if you are in the United States. Beyond that, it will be necessary to see if it meets a need of enough people, and it will take time. μ

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