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A Look At Google's Newest Data Center
miller60 writes "Google doesn't allow the public inside its secret data centers. But a recent groundbreaking event at the company's new South Carolina data center provided glimpses of the exterior of the facility, which shows a design that has evolved since Google's Oregon data center made front page news. A new feature: an open, lighted area resembling a parking deck (containers?). Still missing: moats filled with sharks with friggin' laser beams on their head."
Surely he's suffered enough already
Question1: Do laser beams work underwater?
Question2: Assuming the affirmative to question one, how good is your average shark at aiming them?
If I had an Ass, I'd call it Fanny Bottom, then I could slap my Ass; Fanny Bottom, on the Arse.
Am I the only one that finds it depressing that it is an anonymous grey building. Something like a bond-villain's hideout in a volcano would be more appropriate for one of the world's information super hubs.
I gave up watching pop idol years ago
Pictures of a big warehouse-like building! Amazing! Why, I've never seen one! Looks like a giant ... uhhhhhh.... box! w00t! Those pics are just sooo 1337!
My blog
How long do you suppose you have to build data centers before Google hires you and tells you to go nuts? That's amazing, and I'd love to just walk around in it asking the guy questions who designed it.
I can't imagine how much electrical engineering, physics, and IT years of experience were required to put that thing together.
Anyone get to work in something approaching this level?
Check out my sysadmin blog!
Some of my best friends are sharks with friggin' laser beams attached to their friggin' heads, you insensitive clod!
Attention all planets of the Solar Federation! We have assumed control! - Neil Peart
aslong as you can put the main unit in a waterproof container, i dont see why not, but the water will diffuse the light more rapidly than air, especially if the sharks kick up a load of silt in their frenzy, so the range may be limited if the sharks are bad at aiming, they will just burn the skin, rather than focusing on one spot to burn a hole, but it may infact be preferable for the sharks to have their dinner 'fried off' rather than vapourised
"...an open, lighted area resembling a parking deck..."
The open, lighted area, could also just be a loading dock, a covered storage area, a parking garage, building utilities area (above-ground 'basement') or any number of 'non-sinister' things. Remember, Google is a 'do no evil' company.
Sig this!
Here: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=1669+Garrott+Avenue,Goose+Creek,+South+Carolina&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=43.713406,92.8125&ie=UTF8&ll=33.078849,-80.039606&spn=0.022691,0.045319&t=h&z=15&g=1669+Garrott+Avenue,Goose+Creek,+South+Carolina&iwloc=cent
Answer1: I would assume so, as long as the contraption itself was waterproof. And since lasers are just focused beams of light, they are subject to the laws of refraction, meaning that the laser would hit whatever the shark was looking at - below or above the water. (Note: this assumes the Scott Evil method of attaching lasers to sharks, whereby lasers are positioned above the shark's head, directly in front of the dorsal fin)
Answer2: I'm not sure about lasers, but most sharks are quite good at aiming their mouths.
And how much foil do you have to wear on your head to kiss these friends?
I only look human.
My mother is a halfling and my dad is an ogre, so that makes me an Ogreling
Obviously datacenterknowledge.com isn't hosted in a very robust data center...
Yes laser works underwater, Otters have better aim though, they also easily dodge lasers so expect no Otter battles..
free rats and free water for every citizen!
I suspect that will be a good campaign promise for the 2010 and 2012 election cycles.
If you have something that you dont want anyone to know, maybe you shouldnt be doing it in the first place -Eric Schmidt
Yep, me. I actually work in the SC location. I was hired after submitting my resume to www.google.com/jobs. Cheers. :)
I work in the data center design industry, and if you have a 4-year EE or ME degree and the interest you can get into the design engineering end fairly easily. I have been on the design and build teams of 3 centers now (non-GOOG) and am currently working on additional 2. Great growth industry and yes, there is quite a bit (years) of design work that goes into a well designed DC.
"A rat in every pot, and a POW in every cage".
look at all the tubes coming out of it
search queries going through all those series of tubes
...this wasn't an anonymous whistleblower article! Here's a URL in the document: file:///C:/Documents and Settings/Rich Miller/My Documents/New Folder/data/20081021212457/index.html
Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.
Commodity hardware is one thing but absoultely brain dead configurations which all but ensure quick death of components due to overheating is not something to be proud of.
I hope google has learned that the rack of exposed motherboards is actually as bad an idea as it looks.
I think in actual operation the sharks would poke their
head out of the water (like Flipper the dolphin) to fire
the laser. I'm pretty sure the sharks would require special
goggles to aim accurately in the air.
We've got plenty of alligators for our moats here in SC and they don't need pathetic little lasers.
I bet the 2 level structure is a large parking garage so every employee can drive their Hummer H2 and fit it in the garage.
The open air design will allow them to leave the H2s idling all day so the A/C can run and keep the interior at the perfect temp.
Ah - Green datacenter.
Shameless plug alert: Game server control panel
A first guess is that InterNet commerce eventually will decrease the number physical stores that need be constructed. However, there are some interesting anomalies along the way. During Web 1.0 some merchants like Amazon and Webvan invested heavily in new warehouses. One succeeded and the other went bankrupt.
Now we see the search engines and cloud computers are building massive data centers around the world. In the long run they may reduce or replace corporate data centers.
Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos.
Youd'd thing with the InterNet rising to the top of the world economy, you might see some some class in its limited physcial constructions. However these data centers are as dull and drab as any industrial construction.
And has a retard to back him up :-)
well, call me a tard if you like, but she can come look after me any time she likes.
Having worked in a few data centers over the course of my life... They are continuing the long-standing tradition of nondescript concrete/cinder block buildings that have hosted data centers for decades.
Nobody, including Google, wants to advertise their data centers- they want them to look like ordinary warehouses or industrial buildings.
It's pretty much required from a security standpoint, and is why Google is very secretive of its data center locations. You might even have a Google data center in the airport industrial park right down the street.
Would you really expect a big steel and glass architectural wonder with "Google" emblazoned all over it? I would expect nothing more or less from a Google data center than a big ugly concrete box in an industrial park. They (big ugly concrete boxes) are easy to guard and air condition, and don't require a receptionist or PR staff.
Everyone keeps assuming the sharks will control the laser beams. Why not a laser-emitting weapon that instead uses the shark as a biological guidance and propulsion system?
Actually I think the REAL question should be: Do you honestly think Sarah Palin is qualified to be President of the USA? Because lets face it,we are talking about a 72 year old cancer survivor. I don't know about you but I wouldn't want to bet on him surviving for eight more,or even four more years. While I think Biden sucks ass IMHO he is 1000% more qualified to be president than Mrs "Real America" hockey mom.
Don't forget this is a woman who said,quote "Ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health care reform that is needed to help shore up the economy." WTF does the bailout of wall street have to do with health care? Here is the clip. I think anyone who watches it will agree with John Cleese who said she is like a parrot spitting out her speeches and talking points without really knowing what she is talking about.
ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
yes, i think you get a jr govt position if you poke out one eye...
but, if you poke both eyes out, you get a lifetime judicial appointment (that or a job as a major league umpire)...
so, try poking both out and post back here how it worked out for you.
j c ant reasllky tytpoe nmow :(
I have five people (Bob, John, John, Imrain, Travis) assigned in some way nearby Goose Creek, SC who initially applied through /jobs. Not so anonymous now. ;)
haha Busted!
So seriously, can I come play?
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If McCain campaign needs votes from /. it is over...
As somebody who's work in and around huge datacenter facilities for years, I'm not impressed at all. It looks like any other well organized purpose built large scale datacenter I've ever been to.
A slip of the foot you may soon recover, but a slip of the tongue you may never get over. -Benjamin Franklin