Google I/O can be seen metaphorically as a part of Google’s ongoing attempt to “feed” the Web and its developers. But sometimes developers need more than mental nourishment. Google has taken care of that too.
As with any such conference, there is the usual breakfast and lunch buffet, though with careful emphasis on access to vegetarian fare, recycling of waste, and biodegradable or even compostable plates and utensils. Like a good tech pit, there are coolers full of soda and other drinks, and goodies for snacks (yesterday, it was soft pretzels). But the afterhours party is where the cuisine really shone, with a wide variety of ethnic fare, about fifteen makeshift bars, and chocolate fondue fountains.
The party is where Google ready showed its understanding of its audience, and its commitment to making this an experience attendees would talk about afterwards. Recognizing that geeks don’t dance, Google deemphasized the DJ in favor of a nerdcore act that I didn’t recognize, but was clearly well-known to much of the crowd. Recognizing that geeks prefer emergent conversation coming out of activites instead of cocktail banter, Google filled the hall with pool tables, air hockey, and foosball. And knowing that geeks love video games, they set up multiple Wiis and banks of car and motorcycle racing arcade machines.
It worked.
