First time experiences at Google IO Extended 2017 (Bangalore) + Highlights
How I got the invitation?
So when I found out that I will be staying in Bangalore for the entire summer for my internship, the first thing I did, was to look up tech events and conferences in Bangalore.
And there it popped up.
GDG Bangalore
Google IO Extended 2017
So there were several attractions to this event that led me to fill the form :
- Its GDG, duh!
I have been regularly attending GDG events in Bhubaneshwar since the past 5 months and I know for a fact, that their events are well organized and disappointment is not something you feel at a GDG event! Plus, this was GDG Bangalore, so I had high expectations from them anyway. - Meeting new developers
How could I miss the chance to interact with some of the greatest developers of the city? To be in an environment, where everyone speaks your language is fascinating, and I couldnt miss this opportunity for the world. - Google India Office?!?
Now I won’t lie but I was thrilled to find out that this event is being at Google India, Bangalore office. - Google swags, maybe?
Just a cherry on top! :P
So I filled out the form, answered a few questions about my experiences and expectations from this year’s event and aloha everybody! I got the invitation to be part of 2017 Google IO Extended event at Google India office!
I believe there were 500 applicants (Meetup page says so) and around 200 got selected! (Well, I guestimated!)
Event Day
I was supposed to arrive at the venue at 8pm, and I left my office at 8pm.
Hello everyone! Watches were not made for me!
So somehow reached the location by 8:28pm, only to be welcomed with a long queue at the security desk.
In the 4th floor, we got our security badges that we were asked to return at the end of the day. (Night?) And I was like ‘there goes my momento!’
NETWORKING DINNER
Now we arrive at the 5th floor, where the main event is to be held.
THE CAFETARIAA!
Now it was more like a cafetaria cum AV room. (Or maybe they transformed the cafetaria into an AV room for the event. I will never know! :P)
We begin with the networking dinner. Now I have heard a lot about the Google office cafeterias and that they serve some delicious food everyday from a range of options to choose from. Everyday.
Now in this respect, I was a tad bit disappointed.
There were a range of options but not many people want to have tinday or gobi in an event dinner! There were some pretty good options in the desserts menu though. Mango tart, pastry and red velvet cupcake specially prepared for the event.
Normally when I start talking about food, I get a bit distracted and forget about the important things. Like I forgot that I am talking about a Networking Dinner and I haven’t talked about the networking part yet.
I met a couple of developers of my age who are working on either VR or Android. Some of them, just like me, came to the event absolutely alone, in hopes of leaving the event with new bonds.
FUN RUNWAY TO KEYNOTE
Now this was a little event we had while we were waiting for the live stream of the main event to start. Our host, and one of the organizers of GDG Bangalore, Anvith KS, (also popularly known as Webmaster Motu, as claimed by him :P ) started with a fun little quiz on Google products! And if you are smart and fast enough, you could Google!
So there were several questions that I could easily Google and answer but meeeh, I’m a lazy ass! Until one question came up!
What is the sequence of colors in the Google logo?
I dont know why my hands involuntarily raised up. My brain was quicker to understand that “Hey, you are in the Google office, silly! Look around!” And there it was, my security badge. xD
Long story short, I own a Chromecast now.
We also played the g.co/bubbles game and got our city featured in the main screening at San Francisco! (So if you saw Bengaluru’s name on the bubble challenge, you could thank us {more thanks to the guy beside me who blew 200 bubbles himself!! })
KEYNOTE
We hooted as Sundar Pichai took the stage and I knew right then, I am going to have an amazing hour sharing the keynote with these fellow enthusiastic developers.
Highlights
- 2 billion active users on Android.
2. Kotlin is now the official programming language of Android. It is a modern, nullsafe language for Android that is an amalgamation of the best features of other languages. It is easy to learn and can be introduced to your recent projects without much trouble.
Now I am embarrassed to say that I had no idea about it in the first place, but then this is the reason why I attend more such events because I get to know about the most recent technology either from the event or from other developers in the event. Now that I have read about Kotlin and what it offers, I am truly excited to try it out.
3. Their main focus this year was
From mobile first to AI first
And boy, did they deliver.
Its incredible to see what Google is doing with the AI technologies.
- Smart replies roll out for Gmail
- Google Home turns into a phone
Google introduces hands free calling where you just gotta say, Ok Google, call Maa and it will know by voice recognition whose mother to call! Smart! - Google Lens
This was another hightlight for me. Google Lens is a new initiative of Google where it will understand what you are looking at and will help you take actions on it. Several examples were shown to explain the tech, but I was blown away by two of these :
Signing into WIFI
Google Lens will read the name and password of a WiFi network and automatically sign you in. Like whaaaaaat.
Obstruction removal in photographs
So what Google claims is that next time you have a blurred image of a beautiful view or a photograph of your son playing the winning shot with unwanted objects on his face, Google Lens can remove and improve all of that.
There were several other revelations like Daydream, Android O features, etc but we can always discuss all of them at length in another post.
Lastly
This was my first time at Google IO Extended and I am very thrilled to share it with like minded people. #io17extended is an exciting platform to meet other Android developers and share experiences and knowledge with them. (Shoutout to all Android developers here! )
The hooting when your favourite product has an update, sharing the awe moments when there is an out of the box revelation, laughing together at the tech jokes, these are all the experiences I came here for.
Looking forward to more GDG events and meeting new developers.
Also I got a few swags! :D
PS. This is my first Medium post. Please be nice to your fellow dev friend. :)
