Google Faked Some Of Its Data Center Images?

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Remember the story we posted about Google's datacenters? It would seem at least some of the images they used on the website have been manipulated. Look at the image below, taken straight from the website, it has been mirrored using photo editing software. If you cut this image in half, flip it and lay it on the other half, it is identical. While we have no idea why Google would bother doing something like that (hiding UFOs), this is definitely interesting. Thanks to forum member MindBuster for being the first to catch this one.
 
For whatever reason, it's common to fake these aisle shots. This isn't the first, nor will it be the last, that people noticed has been mirrored.

If you look for "data center wallpaper" on Google, most of them used to be fakes.
 
Well, it is Google. Maybe they've perfected a method of actually mirroring physical objects. Would surely make setting up a datacenter a lot easier.
 
They do it because it looks cool and it makes the server farms look larger and more "wow".

Oh well, doesn't matter.
 
Google makes some of the most efficient servers in the business and a lot of the things that people do now like using waste water and economizers for free cooling and hot isles they thought of first. Even though the one they showed was one of their older centers there's probably a lot of trade secrets they don't want to show
 
It's a good thing that Google has a reputation as being not evil at all so that when they do stuff like this, everyone is okay with it. I bet the mirroring in the image was done to overlay their pixie dust extraction and unicorn juices harvesting machines which create the compounds they use to power their Creepy Uncle Google Chrome browser that observes everything you do.
 
It's possible that the photographer hired to take these photos performed the manipulation and Google never noticed.
 
I don't see why that has any bearing on this.

They messed around with pictures, big deal? You think they're hiding monkey whipping employees on the other side?
 
Fuck CrapOogle$.





What? I'm trying to start a trend here. :D
 
SkribbelKat said:
It's a good thing that Google has a reputation as being not evil at all so that when they do stuff like this, everyone is okay with it. I bet the mirroring in the image was done to overlay their pixie dust extraction and unicorn juices harvesting machines which create the compounds they use to power their Creepy Uncle Google Chrome browser that observes everything you do.
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LOL
 
Serpent said:
You think they're hiding monkey whipping employees on the other side?
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Maybe! We'll never know. Just kind of shady when you're trying to pass heavily manipulated images off as "photographs".

Now had they not manipulated the pictures, there wouldn't be this issue with speculation.
 
SkribbelKat said:
It's a good thing that Google has a reputation as being not evil at all so that when they do stuff like this, everyone is okay with it. I bet the mirroring in the image was done to overlay their pixie dust extraction and unicorn juices harvesting machines which create the compounds they use to power their Creepy Uncle Google Chrome browser that observes everything you do.
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It's a PR shot, who really cares! *ON NOES! THEY PHOTOSHOPPED A PR SHOT!*

Now if had been a technical document on their computing platforms (like Facebook did with OpenCompute) that was presented as a purely factual, technical document, it would be one thing. But these are marketing shots. I can guarantee you they don't normally light the data centers that way, too..... And I'll bet a few of the 'people' pictures were staged, rather than candid. (Although I know at least one is candid.)

You know what else they photoshopped? Logos from computers.
 
thedge said:
Probably dont want to reveal too many secrets.
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Ryokurin said:
Google makes some of the most efficient servers in the business and a lot of the things that people do now like using waste water and economizers for free cooling and hot isles they thought of first. Even though the one they showed was one of their older centers there's probably a lot of trade secrets they don't want to show
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I wonder why a lot of people don't get this. Some of that stuff is secret and who wants to give potential intruders a perfect floor plan of your stuff?
 
If this were Microsoft or Apple then I believe these comments would not be in defense of the pictures.
 
CharonPDX said:
It's a PR shot, who really cares! *ON NOES! THEY PHOTOSHOPPED A PR SHOT!*

Now if had been a technical document on their computing platforms (like Facebook did with OpenCompute) that was presented as a purely factual, technical document, it would be one thing. But these are marketing shots. I can guarantee you they don't normally light the data centers that way, too..... And I'll bet a few of the 'people' pictures were staged, rather than candid. (Although I know at least one is candid.)

You know what else they photoshopped? Logos from computers.
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It's okay to be upset. I admit I'm sort of surprised that people who would totally freak out over some other company posting fake pics would be okay with Google doing it though. They're really good at marketing if they can stick a GPS monitoring device like an Android phone in your pocket, associate that with your mail account and real identity, and then totally get supported blindly by people just because they're not Apple and they said they're not being evil. Have you see what they do to lost puppies? It's scary. :(
 
To me, it wouldn't matter if this were Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Oracle/Sun, or even SCO.

They're PR shots. Again, if they had been presented in the context of a detailed technical presentation, it would be one thing. But they're not. I don't harp on Microsoft for the obvious "set-up" of this set: http://news.cnet.com/2300-10805_3-10001679-1.html Why should I care if Google does the same?
 
In the colo facilities I've seen, the aisles of servers are all oriented in one direction. If the image wasn't mirrored, one half of the picture would be showing the ass-end of the servers.
 
CharonPDX said:
To me, it wouldn't matter if this were Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Oracle/Sun, or even SCO.

They're PR shots. Again, if they had been presented in the context of a detailed technical presentation, it would be one thing. But they're not. I don't harp on Microsoft for the obvious "set-up" of this set: http://news.cnet.com/2300-10805_3-10001679-1.html Why should I care if Google does the same?
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Hey SCO! They used to sell a really stable System V-based Unix. Are they still around?

Anyhow, if it doesn't bother you if a company fakes it then it also should be too worriesome if someone makes fun of them for it. ;)
 
CzarKasm said:
In the colo facilities I've seen, the aisles of servers are all oriented in one direction. If the image wasn't mirrored, one half of the picture would be showing the ass-end of the servers.
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While the picture is fake. This isnt a colo facility and with that density they would definitely be orientated the way in the picture for hot isle containment. If they were in a row with the backs facing the front of the next row you would have a lot of hot air blowing in the fronts of the row behind.
 
Rusty4560 said:
If this were Microsoft or Apple then I believe these comments would not be in defense of the pictures.
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If it were Apple, people would be clamoring for an FTC investigation. If it were Microsoft, heatless would be expounding on the virtues of the touch experience in Windows 8.
 
wonderfield said:
If it were Apple, people would be clamoring for an FTC investigation. If it were Microsoft, heatless would be expounding on the virtues of the touch experience in Windows 8.
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SHHHH!!! You'll summon him if you say stuff like that!
 
I have to disagree that the photo is chopped, or at least not just cut in half and flipped. Look at the shadows on the ground, they are not identical if you look at the base of the equipment. However it seems that the shadows on the roof are identical.

But this can happen if they built both sides to be identical. I have seen some people's OCD so bad that everything has to look the same down to lighting and shadows.. and it is entirely possible that is what google did.

yet it may be that they just photo chopped the shadows on the ground..
 
CzarKasm said:
In the colo facilities I've seen, the aisles of servers are all oriented in one direction. If the image wasn't mirrored, one half of the picture would be showing the ass-end of the servers.
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I don't know... There are a lot of guys out there that love hot asses.
 
SkribbelKat said:
Hey SCO! They used to sell a really stable System V-based Unix. Are they still around?

Anyhow, if it doesn't bother you if a company fakes it then it also should be too worriesome if someone makes fun of them for it. ;)
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The "making fun" doesn't bother me, it's the righteous indignation that annoys me. "How dare they!!!" And the like. The pure lighthearted making fun ones are generally funny.
 
CharonPDX said:
The "making fun" doesn't bother me, it's the righteous indignation that annoys me. "How dare they!!!" And the like. The pure lighthearted making fun ones are generally funny.
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Isn't that righteous stuff part of what makes it worth being a forum member? Interacting with angry forum people is sometimes the best fun you can have while still wearing clothes.
 
DeathPrincess said:
You missed out. I took 4 paid weeks off work for emotional distress...
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It's also possible to get time off for giving birth. I'm pretty sure that's partly for emotional distress. Anyhow, I'm going to spend the entire weekend blogging about how awful it is that SCO is gone and that Google is faking data center photos to hide their Turkish prisons from view.
 
SkribbelKat said:
It's also possible to get time off for giving birth. I'm pretty sure that's partly for emotional distress. Anyhow, I'm going to spend the entire weekend blogging about how awful it is that SCO is gone and that Google is faking data center photos to hide their Turkish prisons from view.
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Sometimes thats just the way things SCO.
 
It's kinda interesting that SCO stands for Santa Cruz Operation too. I thought Santa's last name was Claus, not Cruz and I never knew that SCO was so festive and holiday-ish.
 
How funny would it be if their environment was running Apple servers and they didn't want to let anyone know.
 
SkribbelKat said:
It's kinda interesting that SCO stands for Santa Cruz Operation too. I thought Santa's last name was Claus, not Cruz and I never knew that SCO was so festive and holiday-ish.
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Hmm...sounds like it was a CIA front... which Santa might be part of... How else does he know if people have been bad or good, and why else does he have a list, and how does he know about the secret backdoors? :eek:
 
SkribbelKat said:
Thanks...poor SCO...it died quietly in a corner and no one lamented.
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I was digging around in storage boxes in my garage last week and ran across my old SCO software packages. Openserver 5, Unixware 7, Skunkworks discs, Xenix 386 and a bunch of other stuff. I really enjoyed working with their software and it's too bad that they croaked.

Oh well, more museum pieces. :D
 
faugusztin said:
Software is still alive, just the company is gone :
http://www.sco.com/products/openserver6/
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I was digging around a while ago and saw that it was picked up and that it's still in use. I wonder if the updates will allow it to run on current hardware, may have to download the updates and see. I have a couple of licenses on hand so if I ever get bored I may see if it's any good on current hardware.

Thanks!
 
....what if they designed the whole thing to look identical on both sides? Is it that farfetched that a company include symmetry in its design? lol
 
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