Google surprised most of us this week with their announcement of Buzz, their attempt to get into the social networking space. There's a lot of overlap in functionality and purpose between Buzz and Wave and I can't help but wonder if Google has a long-term strategy that includes both of these products or if they've reached a size where their departments can no longer coordinate effectively. When Microsoft started releasing a lot of overlapping products and platforms a few years ago I knew they had reached that point of stagnation.

However, the stunning speed at which Google implemented changes in response to users' security concerns proves they are still quite nimble at least at the product level. Contrast their turnaround within hours to the days and weeks it took Facebook to even respond to their security issues. 

Perhaps Google has planned different paths for Buzz and Wave, but it seems the ideal solution would be one that combined both into a single product. Buzz would be a real standout if it included Wave's plug-in framework, real-time IM-like updating, and history playback. We don't need one more tool; we need a single platform that does it all. One of the problems with Wave is that it's an island unto itself rather than being part of the email inbox--it's one more place to check. Google noticed that problem and made Buzz a part of the email framework. I'd like to think that Google knows what it's doing. My guess is that it's been thinking along these lines but knew Wave is still not ready for prime time and just couldn't wait any longer to enter the social networking space. I expect to see a combining of Buzz and Wave before long.  

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