Sergey Burkov: How popular is pizza fuagra?
Sergey Burkov, head of the Google Development Center in Moscow, talks about the Google Developer Day that took place today, the areas of work of the Russian representative office of the company and much more.
Google Developer Day is held globally - in several offices, including the main office in California. It is held in order to tell independent developers about the possibilities of collaborating with Google - using various APIs.
The current Developer Day is already the second in a row, nevertheless for Russia this is a new event: the last “Developer Day” was held in California and was devoted exclusively to the company's cartographic services. This event is dedicated to other APIs. With the help of “Developer's Day”, we want to tell independent developers as much as possible about what can be done on our platform. We want to make the Internet more convenient for end users and we are well aware that we cannot do everything on our own. Many new ideas come to mind of developers who are not working for us yet, so we provide them with a platform - and then they will come up with new applications.
')
What are the main areas of work of the Moscow Development Center? I understand that you often answer this question, but still ...
Our goal, above all, is to make all those products that are available in the US available to Russian users. Another important part is the development of new technologies for the entire company.
Regarding the localization of products: we opened the Russian edition of Google News, added an error correction system to the search engine, released the Google Toolbar with a Russian dictionary and several gadgets for iGoogle. And now - maps of Russia, including search and mapplets, i.e. programmers can start work on the creation of Russian-language "meplet".
During the presentation of the Russian office of Google, you talked in detail about the working conditions and employment issues at the company. What is the situation with vacancies now?
Since that time, nothing has changed: Google is still gaining employees, and only the best of the best. The bar is quite high: a lot of questions are asked in an interview that takes place in several stages. The interview process is rather democratic: the applicant is interviewed by several engineers, each of whom subsequently writes a report; Based on the averaged data for these reports, a decision is made on employment.
Do you have enough of the number of specialists who have been interviewed, or is there still a “personnel shortage”?
There are enough talented developers in Russia, just not everyone is working for Google yet.
On the one hand, we have enough specialists who can master complex tasks - which, in general, should be noticeable on Google Maps. But if there is more - we will take them to work. We will take all who pass the interview, there are no restrictions.
How many students are being trained at the company now? What universities do they come from, what are they working on, what secrets do they have access to?
We have internships with several students from leading universities. For example, from MSU. For example, with the mekhmat. They work on the same things that staff members work on. To get an internship, you need to undergo almost the same complex “filter” as when applying for a job.
You’ve been at Google for a little over a year. What do you consider your highest achievement during this time?
Likely, cards.
And personally?
In the personal ... Most likely - the fact that the office is growing, you manage to create a very good team with talented programmers. It is possible to organize the work correctly, as is customary in Google.
Do you now have your own projects or do you give all your time to the company? After all, there is a rule "80/20".
Yes, an employee can devote 20% of his time to his projects, but these projects are still created for Google. Google News appeared precisely because of this rule. The basic idea is that the engineer should not ask permission for new projects from the manager.
As for me, then 150% of my working time is spent on management.
That is, the luxury of 80/20 is available only to developers, but not managers?
(laughs) In general, it is available to me, but just ... it does not add up.
Those startups that you had before joining Google - can you tell us a little about them?
First there was the company Bilbo Innovations , in it my partner was Alex Fried - also a native of Russia, a graduate of the Physics and Technology Institute. The company was engaged in the manufacture of pedals for computers. The pedal is needed by people with disabilities, people suffering from arthritis, in general - those who find it difficult to click the mouse or press some keys on the keyboard: the device can be programmed to click the mouse, to press any key.
Together with Fried, Invincible Data Systems, a company engaged in cryptography, was also created. This company created an analogue of Microsoft Encrypted File System, and it was created earlier than the Microsoft product. Subsequently, Invincible Data Systems was sold to a larger “player” - VASCO Data Security (last year VASCO hit the top ten fastest growing companies in the world).
The third company was Dulance, which created a search engine for products. Google bought it - and we all made up the backbone of the Moscow office.
And before the creation of all these companies, you taught the physics of quasicrystals. Quasicrystals and Google? ..
(laughs) No, no. This is pure science, not necessary to Google.
Although in general about pure science there is a good story. In the 40-50s of the last century, there was such a mathematician by the name of Hardy, who was engaged in number theory. He boasted that the theory of numbers is pure science, pure mathematics, not needed by anyone and having no practical application. He was very proud of it - but cryptography appeared, entirely based on the theory of numbers.
Today it became aware of the purchase of Panoramio . Do you think there are any startups in Russia that might be of interest to large companies?
Yes, they are few - but they appear, and it is very nice.
4-5 years ago it was believed that there are many talented programmers in Russia, China and India, but there are no ideas; people executed "offshore" orders, but did not create their projects. Now the situation in Russia has changed: there are interesting companies.
Why is all this happening?
Honestly, I do not know.
In America, after all, startups are also a relatively new phenomenon: Silicon Valley appeared in the 60s. All innovations took place inside General Electric, Xerox, AT & T, etc. Then society somehow evolves, business models appear, but I don’t know how it all happens.
How do you feel about Google’s global conspiracy theories? There are a considerable number of publications in which a concern is expressed that the company collects an increasing amount of information that will later be used "inappropriately."
There are a lot of theories in the world that have no real basis. People like to invent something about flying saucers, so this is from the same opera.
Yes, Google deals with a lot of information about the user, but it is not “sewn” to specific people. The information we keep is generalized. When a person makes a request for “pizza in Paris”, we are absolutely not interested in who he is: we are more interested in how much the request for pizza is more popular than the request for fuagra. Information that is tied to the user is kept as small as possible - and there is a strict company policy regarding access to it. This access is securely protected, not all employees can receive it.
We are not going to spy on people, but undoubtedly, the generalized information interests us, because it helps to customize the search engine, to produce more targeted advertising - and this makes everyone better.
What did the company do best? Search, contextual advertising?
Undoubtedly, the search engine - and the most effort is spent on it. The simplicity of the white page with an input field is apparent: very clever algorithms are hidden behind it, the work of thousands of engineers is behind it.
That is not Google Adwords and Adsense? After all, they make a profit.
They are also excellent, but still their basis is search.
Google Developer Day is held globally - in several offices, including the main office in California. It is held in order to tell independent developers about the possibilities of collaborating with Google - using various APIs.The current Developer Day is already the second in a row, nevertheless for Russia this is a new event: the last “Developer Day” was held in California and was devoted exclusively to the company's cartographic services. This event is dedicated to other APIs. With the help of “Developer's Day”, we want to tell independent developers as much as possible about what can be done on our platform. We want to make the Internet more convenient for end users and we are well aware that we cannot do everything on our own. Many new ideas come to mind of developers who are not working for us yet, so we provide them with a platform - and then they will come up with new applications.
')
What are the main areas of work of the Moscow Development Center? I understand that you often answer this question, but still ...
Our goal, above all, is to make all those products that are available in the US available to Russian users. Another important part is the development of new technologies for the entire company.
Regarding the localization of products: we opened the Russian edition of Google News, added an error correction system to the search engine, released the Google Toolbar with a Russian dictionary and several gadgets for iGoogle. And now - maps of Russia, including search and mapplets, i.e. programmers can start work on the creation of Russian-language "meplet".
During the presentation of the Russian office of Google, you talked in detail about the working conditions and employment issues at the company. What is the situation with vacancies now?
Since that time, nothing has changed: Google is still gaining employees, and only the best of the best. The bar is quite high: a lot of questions are asked in an interview that takes place in several stages. The interview process is rather democratic: the applicant is interviewed by several engineers, each of whom subsequently writes a report; Based on the averaged data for these reports, a decision is made on employment.
Do you have enough of the number of specialists who have been interviewed, or is there still a “personnel shortage”?
There are enough talented developers in Russia, just not everyone is working for Google yet.
On the one hand, we have enough specialists who can master complex tasks - which, in general, should be noticeable on Google Maps. But if there is more - we will take them to work. We will take all who pass the interview, there are no restrictions.
How many students are being trained at the company now? What universities do they come from, what are they working on, what secrets do they have access to?
We have internships with several students from leading universities. For example, from MSU. For example, with the mekhmat. They work on the same things that staff members work on. To get an internship, you need to undergo almost the same complex “filter” as when applying for a job.
You’ve been at Google for a little over a year. What do you consider your highest achievement during this time?
Likely, cards.
And personally?
In the personal ... Most likely - the fact that the office is growing, you manage to create a very good team with talented programmers. It is possible to organize the work correctly, as is customary in Google.
Do you now have your own projects or do you give all your time to the company? After all, there is a rule "80/20".
Yes, an employee can devote 20% of his time to his projects, but these projects are still created for Google. Google News appeared precisely because of this rule. The basic idea is that the engineer should not ask permission for new projects from the manager.
As for me, then 150% of my working time is spent on management.
That is, the luxury of 80/20 is available only to developers, but not managers?
(laughs) In general, it is available to me, but just ... it does not add up.
Those startups that you had before joining Google - can you tell us a little about them?
First there was the company Bilbo Innovations , in it my partner was Alex Fried - also a native of Russia, a graduate of the Physics and Technology Institute. The company was engaged in the manufacture of pedals for computers. The pedal is needed by people with disabilities, people suffering from arthritis, in general - those who find it difficult to click the mouse or press some keys on the keyboard: the device can be programmed to click the mouse, to press any key.
Together with Fried, Invincible Data Systems, a company engaged in cryptography, was also created. This company created an analogue of Microsoft Encrypted File System, and it was created earlier than the Microsoft product. Subsequently, Invincible Data Systems was sold to a larger “player” - VASCO Data Security (last year VASCO hit the top ten fastest growing companies in the world).
The third company was Dulance, which created a search engine for products. Google bought it - and we all made up the backbone of the Moscow office.
And before the creation of all these companies, you taught the physics of quasicrystals. Quasicrystals and Google? ..
(laughs) No, no. This is pure science, not necessary to Google.
Although in general about pure science there is a good story. In the 40-50s of the last century, there was such a mathematician by the name of Hardy, who was engaged in number theory. He boasted that the theory of numbers is pure science, pure mathematics, not needed by anyone and having no practical application. He was very proud of it - but cryptography appeared, entirely based on the theory of numbers.
Today it became aware of the purchase of Panoramio . Do you think there are any startups in Russia that might be of interest to large companies?
Yes, they are few - but they appear, and it is very nice.
4-5 years ago it was believed that there are many talented programmers in Russia, China and India, but there are no ideas; people executed "offshore" orders, but did not create their projects. Now the situation in Russia has changed: there are interesting companies.
Why is all this happening?
Honestly, I do not know.
In America, after all, startups are also a relatively new phenomenon: Silicon Valley appeared in the 60s. All innovations took place inside General Electric, Xerox, AT & T, etc. Then society somehow evolves, business models appear, but I don’t know how it all happens.
How do you feel about Google’s global conspiracy theories? There are a considerable number of publications in which a concern is expressed that the company collects an increasing amount of information that will later be used "inappropriately."
There are a lot of theories in the world that have no real basis. People like to invent something about flying saucers, so this is from the same opera.
Yes, Google deals with a lot of information about the user, but it is not “sewn” to specific people. The information we keep is generalized. When a person makes a request for “pizza in Paris”, we are absolutely not interested in who he is: we are more interested in how much the request for pizza is more popular than the request for fuagra. Information that is tied to the user is kept as small as possible - and there is a strict company policy regarding access to it. This access is securely protected, not all employees can receive it.
We are not going to spy on people, but undoubtedly, the generalized information interests us, because it helps to customize the search engine, to produce more targeted advertising - and this makes everyone better.
What did the company do best? Search, contextual advertising?
Undoubtedly, the search engine - and the most effort is spent on it. The simplicity of the white page with an input field is apparent: very clever algorithms are hidden behind it, the work of thousands of engineers is behind it.
That is not Google Adwords and Adsense? After all, they make a profit.
They are also excellent, but still their basis is search.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/9239/
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