Mike Manuel (Media Guerrilla) was kind enough to invite me to try out Yahoo! 360 (thanks Mike). There are already lots of detailed reviews available (here and here via Dave Winer) and I’ve only had a brief spin round. Here’s my humble attempt.

First impressions are that it’s a collision of Typepad, LinkedIn, AIM and Flickr. So it’s a social networking, photo sharing, instant messaging, blogorama. None of the functions are as sophisticated as the more dedicated sites. For instance, the blogging is basic (no control over image uploads, comments limited to 360 members, no RSS yet etc), the IM offers no voice or video, the photo sharing has no tags, and the networking allows no endorsements from others. But that’s also its strength – all of those dedicated sites require separate log in, unique interfaces to master, repetition of basic personal information etc. If you want an introduction to these technologies, this is a great place to start, and I’d imagine for many it will fulfill most of their needs. It can only accelerate adoption of social networking and blogging in particular.

It also has some fun features like a Blog blast, which looks like a way to spark conversations with site visitors by providing an interactive panel at the top of the blog. If that encourages participation, then it’s a great idea. And let’s not forget it’s beta. If you want an invite, let me know.