Earlier quoted context omitted.
I lived in Mountain View down the street from Google the last few years but here's where people will/should be going: Hotels: If you want something nice, you're going to go to Palo Alto or Downtown San Jose. If you're fine with budget basics, hit all the hotels along El Camino between Sunnyvale and Palo Alto. Personally, I would choose the Hampton Inn on Moffett Blvd. between the 101 and Central. It's clean, pretty c…
> Touristy Things: The museums and cultural options are more limited … CHM is ten minutes walk down Shoreline. If you don't think that's worth the trip to the otherwise insipid sf bay area, then I don't want to be your friend.
Google I/O 2016
61–70 of 76 posts
Re: Google I/O 2016
#62Earlier quoted context omitted.
The opinions stated here are my own, not necessarily those of Google. I attended I/O a few years ago (prior to joining Google) and really enjoyed the Moscone Center. Mainly because there was lots of hotels and restaurants in the area. Lodgings around the Google campus are pretty sparse, this feels like a mistake to me. Being able to walk to your hotel after a long day of focusing/listening was definitely nice. That s…
Hosting this in MV is just... weird. All the hotels suck, there's no food, nothing touristy to do, etc etc. I don't understand your note about costs. Google has infinite money. Even mid-tier meetings are held at Moscone, so I don't think it's that expensive. Are the I/O hordes really going to be visiting the Google Campus? For what reason? It's pretty weird.
If you are going to be tourist, there are plenty of ways to get around. Monterey Bay is also another really nice spot and MV gets you an hour closer.
Re: Google I/O 2016
#63Lots of Project Tango + AR/VR presentations. I'm willing to bet the next Google/Nexus phones will have tech from Project Tango built in and become standard on future Android phones. Lots of apps/games could be built for it (and some that have been already built will debut during I/O). It could be one of those things that differentiates Androids from iPhones. Take a look at the 'Introducing Project Tango Area Learning…
SVO: Fast Semi-Direct Monocular Visual Odometry 25 Feb 2014:
Re: Google I/O 2016
#64Lots of Project Tango + AR/VR presentations. I'm willing to bet the next Google/Nexus phones will have tech from Project Tango built in and become standard on future Android phones. Lots of apps/games could be built for it (and some that have been already built will debut during I/O). It could be one of those things that differentiates Androids from iPhones. Take a look at the 'Introducing Project Tango Area Learning…
tango is not the only game in town SVO: Fast Semi-Direct Monocular Visual Odometry 25 Feb 2014: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YnIMfw6bJY
As a side-note, the guys at ETH Zurich are friggin' amazing and they do so much cool research. A big fan here!
Re: Google I/O 2016
#65Re: Google I/O 2016
#66Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm guessing he is running a non-nexus device.
I have it on an HTC One M8 on T-Mobile. Maybe he has a manufacturer that doesn't like to update ( cough Samsung cough ) or a lazy carrier. But non-Nexus devices definitely get updates somewhat regularly now. Most manufacturer/carrier combos definitely got their act together compared to a few years ago.
Re: Google I/O 2016
#67Umm .. how do you get a ticket?
One of the reasons for this is that they used to hand out swag worth more than the ticket price (latest Nexus phones, etc).
This makes sense for Google - increasing developer mindshare and experience on their platforms is worth more than the device cost. But this also had the effect of "everyone" applying for Google I/O to get the swag, even if you are not too excited about attending the talks.
Re: Google I/O 2016
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
Last time I was in the area, I stayed at the Domain Hotel in Sunnyvale. About a 15 minute drive to Google and nice enough. And for touristy things: the Computer History Museum just down the road from the Google campus is definitely worth a visit.
In that same plaza is Laser Tag and not to mention that the Sports Page bar has outdoor sand volleyball courts and beer pong tables.
Re: Google I/O 2016
#69Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have it on an HTC One M8 on T-Mobile. Maybe he has a manufacturer that doesn't like to update ( cough Samsung cough ) or a lazy carrier. But non-Nexus devices definitely get updates somewhat regularly now. Most manufacturer/carrier combos definitely got their act together compared to a few years ago.
I'm on the Sony Z3. Apparently some varities of the Z3 in some countries on some networks are getting marshmallow at the moment. But not mine, yet at least. It's not just Samsung who take ages updating, or who ignore the deal they're supposed to have with Google to provide major updates released within 18 months of the release of a device.
[1] https://developer.sony.com/develop/smartphones-and-tablets/a...
Re: Google I/O 2016
#70Earlier quoted context omitted.
Hosting this in MV is just... weird. All the hotels suck, there's no food, nothing touristy to do, etc etc. I don't understand your note about costs. Google has infinite money. Even mid-tier meetings are held at Moscone, so I don't think it's that expensive. Are the I/O hordes really going to be visiting the Google Campus? For what reason? It's pretty weird.
I lived in Mountain View down the street from Google the last few years but here's where people will/should be going: Hotels: If you want something nice, you're going to go to Palo Alto or Downtown San Jose. If you're fine with budget basics, hit all the hotels along El Camino between Sunnyvale and Palo Alto. Personally, I would choose the Hampton Inn on Moffett Blvd. between the 101 and Central. It's clean, pretty c…
Unfortunately the budget basics are not so budget during Google IO. Prepare to spend big bucks if you want to stay close to Mountain View: I booked Best Western Inn in Mountain View (El Camino) for 300$ (!) per night (taxes included). Not to say that all hotels suggested by the Google IO page were quickly full booked.
For the week-end I'm moving to SF where there was much better hotels deals.