Does anyone know if they are still working on the barge in San Francisco?<p>Apparently they bought 4 barges, so they had big plans for this project (which doesn't seem smart without at least testing it out once first, also doesn't allow them to use lessons learned from the first build on the second barge).<p>Here is a good video of the one in SF: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLueLIcUrwc" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLueLIcUrwc</a><p>Here is a closeup of one side: <a href="http://www.vosizneias.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Google-Barge_sham.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://www.vosizneias.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Google-...</a><p>What a crazy project, kudos to Google for thinking outside the box. Even if it doesn't work out I'm sure they've learned a lot from this build. Hopefully they'll share some construction video, designs, and lessons learned someday.
I don't know if the whole idea is dead yet, but it did seem pretty tone-deaf to do luxury party barges as a way to showcase an already hated exclusive product.
I'm missing something here. Why would barges be a good place to host events? Why not one of the many traditional land based locations that are always used? Is there something particular about being on the water? Or is it just being funky? Are we to believe that they were in areas that available space is so scarce that going to the water was truly sensible. If so, why weren't others doing it already?
I remember seeing a google talk on data center innovations; efficiency and environmental impact. Specifically mentioned was the purchase of barges for a prototype datacenter. The advantages were free cooling from the ocean which would be maximized by submerging all the servers in oil to conduct heat. Sorry to lazy to pull up the source, but I thought that was what all these barges were for.
I wonder who's pet project this was and if there were any consequences inside the company for its failure.<p>It really did seem like a dumb idea from the beginning. I had a hard time seeing myself take the time to go to a pier to get on a floating flagship store. Even in SF where the port is integrated with the city I couldn't see myself doing it.