SearchDataCenter.com has a post about Where are Google’s data centers and why do we care? And, the author asks.
So the question that’s nagging me is, what can everyone else learn from Google’s experience? Secrecy is good for business, but up until what point? I come to TechTarget with a background in journalism and public affairs, so this question is not unfamiliar to me. Many companies rely on keeping their activities and intellectual property secured, it’s common in business. But, is Google being too extreme? Do their data center facility locations really need to be kept on the “down-low”? And why do datacenter insiders care?
I've seen the posts as most of you have on the Google Data Center FAQ and the map created from the data.
Does anyone say hey look where Google went, let's follow them?
Why is Google secretive? Maybe they are just paranoid.
Have others noticed how quiet Google has been lately in regards to their data centers? Maybe Google doesn't like the negative PR?
Google’s data centers have had a lot of attention around the country. In Oregon, initial secrecy surrounding the company’s development of The Dalles facility was an object of a lot of public discussion, which resulted in the facility earning the moniker of “Voldemort” (a reference to the fact that the Harry Potter series character is most commonly referred to as “He Who Must Not Be Named,” and that local officials couldn’t say the “G” word while the facility was under construction). But Google let up a bit and put on a more public face in 2007, including a site tour by local reporters from The Dalles Chronicle. Google had changed its tune on keeping the activities on site “super secret” after a public backlash concerning the 15-year tax break the company received from the State of Oregon, and power consumption concerns. Indeed, the energy consumption of the company’s data centers has attracted national media attention, beyond IT-focused outlets. As the company has grown in power over the past ten years, it has increasingly attracted attention, first with its quirky dot-com work environments and employees (including Google bean-bag chairs that grace the Googleplex), to controversy over acceptance of Chinese government restrictions over search-engine deployment.
I don't care. Do you care? Maybe nobody really does care other than the curiosity. As the author from SearchDataCenter.com says.
So the question that’s nagging me is, what can everyone else learn from Google’s experience?
For now, the only good reason I can see to write about Google's data centers is to drive traffic. :-)
