It's the same in Google+, but you still have to consciously check. My point being that it's not really the functionality that matters per se, it's the metaphor. Having the explicit metaphor gives you an immediate understanding of how the information flows. Having an optional setting checked does not.
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In Appleseed, you can set a Circle to be viewable by it's members, so it's similar in function to how you describe "Places".
It's the same in Google+, but you still have to consciously check. My point being that it's not really the functionality that matters per se, it's the metaphor. Having the explicit metaphor gives you an immediate understanding of how the information flows. Having an optional setting checked does not.