Google's Barge Is a Marketing Showroom 59
Dave Knott writes "The mysterious barge docked in San Francisco Bay that has been fueling intense speculation the past week will serve as a luxury showroom for Google products and a floating, modular venue for the company's private events. The large structure built out of shipping containers that sits on top of the barge will be used to market Google Glass, the much-hyped augmented reality headgear Google unveiled this year, and other products and to host invitation-only events and parties for clients. The structure is constructed of interchangeable 12-metre high shipping containers that can be assembled and disassembled and transported by road, rail or ship anywhere in the world."
Correction (Score:4, Informative)
12 metre long shipping containers.
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Everything's relative, man.
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How many cubits is that?
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20 x 40 ft. 13.33 x 20.67 cubits. 6.10 x 12.19 meters.
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How many cubits is that?
Mycenaean? Or Old Kingdom?
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Feet and inches were Borged by the metric system a long time ago. Look up the US definition of an inch.
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Way to go, eh, CBC?
To be fair, although there aren't really good reference objects for size in the pictures, it does look like the whole thing is indeed four stories tall. But the individual containers sure aren't 12 meters high, or there would be trouble trying to transport it "by road".
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" But the individual containers sure aren't 12 meters high, or there would be trouble trying to transport it "by road"."....
Simple... lay them on their side.... ;-)
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Well, technically they're 40' long.
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I'd like to see them demonstrate the Glasses' ability to interact with the Internet from inside a structure made of metal shipping containers.
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Never mind that, what about the human's ability to breathe inside shipping containers?
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Maybe you're on to something. Since this is invitation-only, presumably VIP guests, maybe the real purpose is to build a "tin foil barge" to prevent snooping from the NSA and even Google itself. (nah)
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that's surprisingly not a problem.
but what they need is rooms that have been crafted to show ar possibilities...
The limit of any company far enough up its own ass (Score:2)
...is probably Apple. But Google are getting there.
12-metre high shipping containers (Score:2)
My God, It's Full of Stars! (Score:1)
Obelisks. Google fucked with Europa while making EuropaMaps.Google.com
That's the cover story (Score:2)
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Oh, come on. Glomar Explorer aside, It would be cheaper to just buy one from Russia.
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Google wouldn't use sharks. They always use Betas.
Cool idea, too bad it's so ugly (Score:2)
I love the idea of modular, transportable structures, but do they have to look like a pile of garbage bins with pins sticking out of the top? That's not industrial-cool, or retro-cool, that's just plain ugly. Makeover!
It will be great for the California traffic cops! (Score:3)
They can just hang out around the barge, and pass out tickets in the barge parking lot!
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/10/30/tech/mobile/google-glass-driving-ticket/ [cnn.com]
Google's Barge = Traveling Salesman (Score:1)
So they're trying to recreate one of the classic problems in computer science...lol...
My bet is on a telco competitor. (Score:1)
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Rich dude party barge (Score:2)
these are probably Brin's old models...he upgraded to a bigger party barge & decided to sell his old one to his company
The Spy Boat (Score:2)
Contractors Aboard. We're rewarding you.
Data, life's sweetest via a telephone cord.
Let it split, it tunnels back to you.
The Spy Boat soon will be making another splice
The Spy Boat promises to link every optical telco device
Set a course for legality,
Your mind on a new locality.
Domestic spying won't be illegal anymore
It's on open source offshore.
Yes Surveillance! It's Surveillance!
I've got an idea (Score:3)
Not intense speculation (Score:1)
Outside of the small circle of bloggers and 'journalists' who were hoping it was an antigravity battle station. Because they're morons.
Maybe... (Score:2)
Virtual Light again? (Score:2)
Makes no sense (Score:2)
Why build a demo space out of shipping containers? The dimensions are awful.
The floating data center isn't a great idea, either. You have all the headaches of salt water corrosion. It's hard to get bulk power and data offshore. It's not cheaper than building on low-value land. The only justifications would be political. It might be useful if you had to bring up a big data center in a primitive area with little infrastructure.
Glass isn't augmented reality (Score:2)
Oh that can't be right!! (Score:1)