On the road again: San Francisco, day 3Sasquan, Spokane, day 0

I spent most of the day at the Intel Developer Conference, which provided a lot of intriguing glimpses at computing tech still to come.  Intel CEO Brian Krzanich's keynote address covered a lot of ground and included multiple demos, among them a set of dancing mechanical spiders.  Some folks are definitely going to have nightmares about those.

In the late afternoon, I flew to Spokane for Sasquan, this year's World Science Fiction Convention, or WorldCon.  My flight from Seattle to Spokane was an uneventful ride on a prop plane, but my flight from San Francisco to Seattle was easily one of the least pleasant airplane trips I've recently taken.  The issues began with the smell, which was like distilled ass that was then infused with the stench of a thousand sweaty jock straps.  The plane was very crowded, and I didn't have an exit-row seat, so I had to sit with my shoulders curled for two hours in this miasma of ass.  A little girl, no more than five, in the seat across the aisle from me kept poking me in the arm and asking what I was doing.  Her mother found this behavior cute.  I did not.

After checking into my hotel in Spokane, I grabbed dinner at a funky little place, the Satellite Diner.

Click an image to see a larger version.

A pair of short-order cooks

prepared for me a delicious patty melt

(yeah, I know it looks burned, but it wasn't) and a tasty simple salad.  The atmosphere was fun, the soundtrack playing was awesome (and featured lots of Motown), and I was quite happy to be there.

Tomorrow, I register for the con, and it officially begins.

On the road again: San Francisco, day 2

I spent almost the entire day in the hotel in meetings, registering at the conference, or working in my room.  I could afford only one break, and my favorite restaurant here (Benu) was closed, so I traded eating and working in my room for the time to go see a movie.

I chose Southpaw, which was playing nearby and had decent reviews. Though it was in many ways a conventional boxing movie, it differed enough from the norm--for example, it started with the protagonist on top--and the performances, notably Jake Gyllenaal's, were so good that I quite enjoyed it.

Tomorrow, the conference kicks off, I attend part of it, and then I'm off to WorldCon.

On the road again: San Francisco, day 1

After five hours of sleep and a very long travel day, I am in San Francisco, where I'll be attending the Intel Developer Forum and having some meetings.

I was lucky enough to get an upgrade on the day's shorter flight, the one to Chicago, but I declined the lunch because it featured a return appearance of The Chicken of Sadness.  Not for me, this depressed bit of fowl carcass.

Instead, I enjoyed a tasty turkey sandwich from Wolfgang Puck in O'Hare.

I worked through almost all of the four hours and forty-three minutes of flying time that it took us to reach San Francisco.  No upgrade for this one, alas, but at least I had an exit row seat.

After some more work, I took a break and, despite Scott's warnings and incredibly funny summary, went to see the Fantastic Four at a nearby cinema.  I may write later about the movie, but only after I recover.  I don't quite understand why no one's been able to make a good movie out of this bedrock superhero comic, but this year's version continues the tradition of weak FF offerings.

So I could avoid falling behind on any work front, I broke with my usual dining practices and for dinner had a completely serviceable room service meal.

I hope to get out tomorrow for a good dinner, but work will decide what's possible.

On the road again: IDF, day 4

I'm home.  A day that starts after less than three hours of sleep with a 5:15 a.m. wake-up call is never going to be my favorite, but everything from when I woke up until when I reached home went according to plan.  Both flights were on time.  I was able to work for almost all of both flights.  I had time in DFW to grab a lunch of a Red Mango parfait.  I even got an upgrade on the second flight.

For a business trip, that's a pretty strong day. 

Still, I am very glad to be home.  I get to stay here for almost three weeks, and I'm quite looking forward to being in one place for a while.

While in Atlanta, I forget exactly where, I heard this song, and it's music-virused me since then.  So, have a go at it.  Maybe if it gets into your heads, it will leave mine.



Okay, I'll admit it:  As a teenager, when I first heard this song, I had a big-time crush on Petula Clark, and I still like a few of her hits.  So sue me.

On the road again: IDF, day 3

The crowds were dramatically smaller today as the show wound to its end.  I made it to only one public session, an interesting presentation on Intel's new RealSense technology.  This technology uses a 3D camera and a lot of software to enable features such as accurate measurements, gestures in the air, and so on.  Think the xBox 360's Kinect capabilities and possibly more, all in your tablet or PC.  Neat stuff, though so new it's just starting to appear.

All of the non-show time today and tonight went to work, with the exception of a lovely dinner at the restaurant I consider to be the very best in San Francisco, Benu.  I hope to write a full review later, but I have to get up in a very few hours, so I'm going to cut this short, pack, and then grab a few hours of sleep.

Tomorrow, I must get up insanely early to begin the long day of travel home.  I am hoping for uneventful flights with upgrades and work and maybe even a little napping.

All I can be sure of, though, is the work.  I always find a way to do that.

On the road again: IDF, day 2

Today's keynote, which for some reason the organizers instead called a "Mega-session," from Intel Senior VP Diane Bryant covered her turf:  the data center.  She discussed both the two key trends--big data and the ever-increasing number of connected devices--that are driving a huge increase in data center requirements, and Intel's approach to meeting those requirements.  Though she didn't have much new to show, the presentation was still interesting and encouraging; a lot of new data center tech is heading our way in the years to come. 

I ended up in meetings the rest of the day and so was unable to attend any other sessions.

Dinner was with a friend at Chef Corey Lee's new (to me) French bistro, Monsieur Benjamin.  The food was good, though not up to that of his flagship restaurant, Benu (where I'll be eating tomorrow night).  If you're looking for a good meal, though, I'd certainly recommend Monsieur Benjamin. 

Now, to crash.

On the road again: IDF, day 1

The conference kicked off today with an opening keynote from Intel CEO Brian Krzanich.  "BK," as many of the folks here call him, did a good job of laying out Intel's vision of the future and the company's plans for the next few years.  Intel, like most tech companies today, is a firm believer in the coming Internet of Things (IoT), a concept that basically means more and more things will be connected in some way to the Internet.  BK cited estimates of 50 billion connected devices by the year 2020--only six years away.  The IoT is important for the tech industry because each of those 50 billion things will need processors, storage, and other hardware, plus software to drive it all.  They will also need back-end data center/cloud support.  I don't have enough data to support or argue with the 50 billion figure, but it feels in the right ballpark to me, and I do believe the IoT is at this point inevitable. 

Closer to the present, BK brought out colleagues who demonstrated Intel's work to remove all wires from PCs, tablets, and smartphones.  Wireless connections to monitors will remove that plug from your PC to a big screen, and inductive chargers will remove the need for power cords.  This particular set of products can't come too soon for me, because like so many who work in tech, I have a huge collection of cables of all sorts. 

Michael Dell joined BK on stage late in the presentation to show off a lovely, super-thin new tablet, a member of the upcoming (in November) Dell Venue 8 7000 family of tablets.  This one features Intel's RealSense technology, which supports 3D imaging and which software can use to do things like taking a picture of a sofa and immediately and accurately showing the sofa's width on screen--an application they demonstrated on a live unit. 

All in all, the mood of BK's address and the audience reactions were both upbeat, and the tech year ahead from Intel promises to be an exciting one.

I should have mentioned that before the address, Kawehi, a young musician, performed live for us.  I quite liked her music, and though I didn't know it before today, I'm now going to look for more.

I met with a lot of folks and so had time to attend only one other session, a technical presentation on All-in-One systems.  I'm a fan of these for certain uses, and so, apparently, is a big chunk of the buying market.

After touring the industry showcase and talking with folks here, I remain optimistic about the tech industry.  More great products and technologies will definitely be hitting the market over the next year.

On the road again: IDF, day 0

Click the image to see a larger version.

Some planned meetings fell through, so I ended up spending most of the day working in my hotel room.  As work days go, it wasn't a bad one, but it leaves me with little to report.  I did catch a movie late in the afternoon in a work break, but I'm going to save the review for later, when I can do it justice. 

Dinner was with a friend and colleague at a nearby Mel's Drive-In.  The food was good but not great, but the conversation was excellent. 

Tomorrow morning, earlier than I prefer, thousands of tech folks will descend on the Moscone Center West for IDF, which Intel's CEO will open with a keynote that will, I assume, discuss at least some of Intel's vision for the future.  Technical sessions and meetings with colleagues in other companies will fill the rest of the three days of the conference.  Though I realize it may all sound boring to many, I'm quite looking forward to it.

On the road again: IDF, day -1

San Francisco, I am in you.

I left the house this morning entirely too early on a Sunday after my normal very late Saturday night bedtime, so I made my way through the airport wishing I was still in bed.  Fortunately, I was lucky enough to receive an upgrade on the first flight, so I passed those hours in relative comfort. 

The second flight was much more of a mixed bag.  On the one hand, my seat was on the aisle in an exit row, which is about as good as a non-first-class seat can be.  On the other hand, the guy next to me was enormously wide; I could have easily hidden behind him.  We did our best to stay out of each other's space, even though neither of our shoulders came close to fitting into our seat areas. 

I hit the hotel in time to check in, set up my laptop, do a little email, and register for the conference.  I grabbed some supplies for the room--Coke Zero being the key one--and worked some more.

My big treat of the day was walking to one of the two nearby movie theaters and catching a film on which I'll post a review later.

So, Sunday became travel and work day. 

I'm hoping to enjoy a decent dinner tomorrow (Monday) night, so if anyone in the SF area is interested in joining me, email me. 

Now, more work!

On the road again: IDF, San Francisco, day 4

The conference ended yesterday, as I noted in last night's post, but I still attribute today to it because much of today went to making my way home.  I awoke at oh-dark-thirty, showered, rode with a somewhat crazier than usual cabbie to the airport, and then went to work in the Admirals' Club. 

I didn't consider those early hours to be very good, but they were charming next to the over three hours I spent on the plane.

My seat appeared promising:  exit-row aisle.  As I approached it, though, I saw a fairly large, white-haired businessman sitting in the middle seat, his elbows protruding into the seats on either side of him.  Not a good sign.  As I was preparing to sit, I pointed to his elbow in my space and said, "I need to sit."  He nodded but did not move his elbow.  So, I sat slowly, my ass starting to push his elbow down.  He glanced up, grunted, and pulled it enough out of the way that I could sit.  As soon as I was seated, he pushed his elbow into my side.  I tried pushing back with my body, but he held firm.  So, I reached down and pushed his elbow to the edge of the armrest; I was willing to let him have all of it given that I had the aisle.  He grunted but let it sit there.

For about ten minutes.  He then pushed it back into me.

I pushed it away again.  This time, I said, "Please stop pushing into my body with your elbow." 

He said nothing.

We continued this pattern for the rest of the time we were on the plane. 

I am once again proud that I did not hit him. 

When he got up to use the restroom, he pointedly stepped on my toes as I was trying to get out of his way. 

I said, "That was unnecessary." 

He grunted.

I spotted him coming back and was out of the way this time, so he could not step on my toes again. 

I put my laptop in my backpack and went to the restroom. 

When I returned, I pulled it hard and fast from the backpack into his shin. 

He said the only words he spoke to me the entire time.  "What the--?"

I grunted.  I didn't even try to hide my smile.

Yes, it was entirely petty, but I still felt better for doing it. 

The next leg was bliss by comparison:  an upgrade and non-stop work, with no one bothering me.

Now, I'm home, and that is a very good thing indeed.

On the road again: IDF, San Francisco, day 3

The conference wrapped up this afternoon.  After some time on work email, we headed down the 101 to a work dinner at a good Mediterranean place, Dishdash, in Sunnyvale.  We mostly missed rush hour on both ends, though the traffic on 101 is worse at almost any hour than traffic back home.  The food was good, as was the conversation.

I have to get up before six a.m., which is really not me, so I'm going to cut this short. 

Tomorrow, I fly home, which is a good thing. 

On the road again: IDF, San Francisco, day 2

After an eighteen-hour workday, I'm afraid I don't have the energy or desire to write much here.  The show is full of great devices, from phones to tablets to two-in-one laptops to servers, so it's a great place to be if you're a tech geek--which I am.  Almost all of what I did today, though, I can't, as usual, discuss.

Dinner was a meeting with friends who are also clients and colleagues, a tasty steak and Caesar salad at a San Francisco landmark steak house, Harris'.  The conversation and the food were good, though also about work and so nothing I can discuss here. 

Tomorrow, more conference, more meetings, and a trip down the 101 for, yes, a dinner meeting, one that promises to be both interesting and tasty.

On the road again: IDF, San Francisco, day 1

Though I can't talk about most of what I do in my job at PT, I can say that one of the joys of being in the tech industry is that it's always changing.  New technologies and new products lead to new ways to use them, and for the most part we consumers benefit from the improvements.  Seeing the hot new stuff is always big fun. 

Lunch was at IDF, the usual trade-show fare, decent but no more. 

Dinner, though, was a top-drawer meal at Coi, one of the more adventurous restaurants in the area.  The course with beets was fine, though nothing special.  The shiso sauce on the final dessert was perhaps the meal's only misstep.  The rest of the dinner was delicious and perfectly executed.  To my amazement, I even loved the chilled eggplant soup and would have liked more than they served.  I highly recommend Coi if you're out here or live here. 

On the road again: IDF, San Francisco, day 0

All of today went to work, which I can't discuss.  I can say that after spending much of the day in my hotel room working, though no hotel room is as good a workspace as my office, this one wasn't half bad. 

Dinner tonight was a fun meal with a colleague at Le Colonial.  We shared two appetizers, the pot stickers and the pork belly.  The pot stickers were good, but the twice-cooked pork belly, each chunk topped with a quail egg and all the pieces in a delightful oil-and-citrus-and-other-stuff sauce, was exceptional.  We also shared a main course of lobster over noodles, along with some fried rice and, believe it or not, a side of Brussels sprouts.  I normally hate the nasty Brussels sprouts, but these were good enough that I ate multiple pieces and enjoyed each one.  I'd definitely return to Le Colonial.

Tomorrow morning, the conference sessions start in earnest.

On the road again: IDF, San Francisco, day -1

Meetings associated with the conference don't get rolling until tomorrow, but I needed to get out here today so I would have the option of attending some of them.  Thus, I found myself on a Sunday morning getting out of bed in the single digits to begin the long travel day. 

The first bits went well:  easy check-in, work in the Admirals' Club, an upgrade, and a very productive flight to Chicago. 

The second leg was also productive but not at all fun, because I spent it sitting next to a Dubliner who would not stop poking me in the side with his elbow and putting his right foot on top of my left.  After a few minutes of this unwanted contact, I asked him directly and nicely not to keep making it.  He complained of how small his space was, and I agreed it was small--and pointed out that mine was equally small.  I also noted that we were lucky to have the extra leg room of exit-row seats.  He shook his head.  We sat silently for a while, and then he began the contact again.  I pushed back.  He stopped.  For a while.  We repeated this for the entire rest of the flight. 

I'm proud of myself for not hitting him even once. 

By the time I landed, I needed the walk to baggage claim and the taxi ride to the hotel just to calm down. 

After checking in and registering for the conference, I did some more work and then walked to a nearby movie theater.  There I treated myself to a truly terrible yet occasionally entertaining film:  The Bounty Killer.  I can't recommend it to any who wouldn't enjoy the late show at the beach, but the all-male audience hooted and hollered quite often during it.

That said, watch it at your own risk.

On the road again: San Francisco, day 6

These early-morning wake-up travel days continue to plague me.  You might think I'd be used to them by now, but I'm not.  Still, once I was up and moving after very little sleep, the day went well.  Checkout was painless, the cab ride was quick (and cheaper than the one from the airport to the hotel), and though a couple hundred flights out of SFO were delayed, mine was on time.  I grabbed a sandwich for lunch on the plane, worked in the Admirals Club, and boarded and took my exit-row aisle seat.

Normally, that location would be pretty much a guarantee of a good ride, but not today.  Today, I was seated next to a six-foot-three, two-seventy-five ex-football player.  He was as nice as he could be, and I stayed nice, but we both spent over three hours sitting with our shoulders curled.  It's hard to work in that situation, but I managed, and the distraction helped.  He put himself to sleep.  I think we'll both be happy if we never see each other again.

I rushed like mad to make my gate in DFW, only to find my flight had slipped an hour.  That was okay, though, because it gave me time to grab my now traditional and always delicious Red Mango parfait and to do some more work in another Admirals Club.

I was lucky enough to get a first-class upgrade, which was great, but the woman in the seat next to me was a nervous passenger who hated flying and so who really wanted to talk.  I preferred to work.  We compromised on a fair amount of talking.  So it goes.

I'm home safely, so I can't complain but so much.

Tomorrow, an Escapist Expo panel!

On the road again: San Francisco, day 5

Today was the last day of the conference.  Per IDF tradition, Justin Rattner, Intel's CTO, gave the morning keynote.  His talk focused on multiple future technology projects that Intel has under development.  I enjoyed it and recommend it for those who are really interested in tech. 

Technical sessions and work filled the rest of the day until dinner. 

That meal was something special, a wonderful 18-course tasting menu at Benu.  Chef Corey Lee, who worked previously at French Laundry and other leading restaurants, started this restaurant a bit over two years ago.  His food reflects an emphasis on local ingredients, an Asian focus, and an extensive use of modernist cooking techniques.  The dishes are also inventive and playful. 

What matters more than any of that, of course, is how the food tastes.

It was simply delicious, easily the best high-end meal I've ever eaten in San Francisco and a truly top-drawer dinner.  I mentioned in Sunday night's blog entry that I'd eaten dinner at Boulevard, the restaurant that won this year's Beard Outstanding Restaurant award.  My meal tonight absolutely blew away that earlier dinner.

If you live here, you owe it to yourself to save up the cost of the tasting menu and go.  If you visit this area, make a Benu reservation a top priority. 

For my taste, Benu is simply the best restaurant in San Francisco.

On the road again: San Francisco, day 4

I found today's keynote address and the technical sessions I attended quite interesting and informative.  Yeah, I know:  what a geek I must be to really enjoy sitting in technical presentations about computer stuff.  Well, yes, I am a geek.  Being a geek has been good to me. 

For dinner tonight, a small group of us went to the nearest Max's, where I stuck to tradition and ordered their absolutely delicious patty melt.  The sandwich did not let me down.  As soon as it arrived, as always I took this picture (click on it to see a larger image) and emailed it to my friend and colleague, Elizabeth, to torture her. 

I know it's cruel, but it's also fun--for me, at least, and I think for her. 

Now, back to work for me, and then some sleep, because the conference resumes early (for me) in the morning. 

On the road again: San Francisco, day 3

Today's opening keynote at IDF began, appropriately enough, with a short reflection on the tragic events of 9/11.  I was down the road from here, in the Westin Burlingame, when the news broke and the first plane hit one of the Twin Towers.  It was a somber beginning to a talk that then turned optimistic, as it should, when the topic turned to the future of computing.

I enjoyed the show and went to several different interesting technical session.  Between it and keeping up with my regular work, however, work was almost all I did today.

The non-work part was a good dinner at Burma Superstar.  I'd never tasted Burmese food before, but I liked every dish I sampled.  I learned two important lesson:  a lot of the dishes contain mint, so I have to ask about each one before ordering it, and many are quite spicy.  I'm fine with spicy, but it's good to know in advance. 

And now, a bit more work, and then some sleep. 

On the road again: San Francisco, day 2

San Francisco is lovely right now, the air brisk, the sky clear, the usual collection of interesting people roaming the streets.  I wouldn't want to endure the high costs of living here, but I certainly like visiting it. 

I spent most of the day working, but I took a short walk and so was able to enjoy the daylight hours a bit.  That was a treat. 

Dinner was at Mel's Drive-In, a little diner near the hotel.  The food isn't particularly great, but it's reasonably tasty, and the wait staff are always funky and nice.  I also am always going to have a weakness for a place that emulates diners of the 50s and plays oldies non-stop.  Of course, what passes for oldies nowadays is anything not in the 2000s or later, so there's a bit of a disconnect between the setting and the sounds, but I'm okay with that. 

Tomorrow, the conference kicks off at what is, to me, an unreasonably early hour:  9:00 a.m.  I should be thankful, though, because in past years it started even earlier.  I'll have to get up much earlier, though, to catch up on email, so I'm heading offline now.  Tomorrow, tech talks!