America's No. 1 financial conglomerate

Chapter 315 Application Frenzy

At 2 a.m., Silicon Valley should be completely silent, with only streetlights and starlight for company. However, Google's headquarters office building is like a switch that has been flipped to keep it on forever. The office building is brightly lit, making it a veritable city that never sleeps in the dark.

From a high altitude, the entire complex stands out starkly against the dark surroundings. An unsuspecting person might mistake it for a grand party, except that the party's protagonists all look haggard, their eyes filled with exhaustion, yet they continue typing away on keyboards and answering phone calls.

The release of the Google Play Store was first met with reactions from software companies.

In just six hours since the press conference ended, Google's backend has received a whopping 471 applications for software to join the platform, and this number is still rising at a visible rate.

Google's customer service hotline has been ringing off the hook, and the busy tone coming from the receiver has become the most addictive background music in the tech world right now.

The people on the other end of the phone were a mixed bag. Some were developers, frantic and talking at breakneck speed, bombarding the platform with questions about the onboarding process: "Our software is exceptionally high-quality, can it be prioritized for review? What materials are needed for onboarding? How long will it take to get a result?"

Some eager users commented, "The Google Play Store is so convenient! When will it support more software?"

Even savvy telecom operators are asking, "We'd like to partner with the Google Play Store. Could we discuss traffic support and joint promotions?"

Taylor leaned on her desk, trying to make her voice sound calm and gentle.

On the table in front of her, there was a stack of empty coffee cups, piled together like a small coffee cup pyramid.

Taylor herself couldn't remember exactly how many cups of coffee she drank. She only knew that the excitement brought by caffeine had long since disappeared, and a wave of drowsiness kept washing over her, making her almost bury her face in the keyboard several times.

The only sounds in the office area, besides the constant ringing of telephones, were the hushed whispers of colleagues.

Everyone was working tirelessly to answer customer inquiries. The sounds of keyboard typing, mouse clicks, and occasional conversations mingled together, creating a unique symphony of overtime work.

Compared to the customer service department, the review department is relatively more relaxed, at least they are not bothered by endless, chaotic phone calls.

Even so, the staff in the review department were not idle. They kept their eyes glued to the computer screen and kept moving the mouse around, carefully examining each application.

Suddenly, a young employee in his twenties slammed his hand on the table and muttered, "Oh, shit!"

The voice was filled with despair, sounding particularly jarring in the quiet office area.

His colleagues around him were startled and all looked over.

Pointing at the computer screen with a look of utter despair, he said, "Another 19 apps have applied for registration! Don't these people sleep at night? Can't they apply during the day? Don't they know that staying up late is bad for their health?"

Hearing this, the team leader, who was not far away, put down his coffee cup, slowly walked over, glanced at him, and said with a hint of teasing, "Isaiah, stop complaining. You volunteered for the night shift, and now you regret it?"

As he spoke, he picked up his coffee cup, gestured to Isaiah, and asked, "Would you like a cup? This is my prized black coffee; it's incredibly effective at energizing you."

Isaiah rolled his eyes and said irritably, "Thanks, but no thanks. I've already had three cups, and my heart is pounding like crazy."

The team leader smiled, didn't press the matter, and raised his wrist to look at his watch.

When he saw that the time on the watch face had passed 2:30 a.m., he paused for a moment, then clapped his hands, the crisp sound of which instantly attracted everyone's attention.

"Everyone, take a break." The team leader's voice was loud and strong. "You've all been busy until now, you must be starving, right? I'll have the cafeteria prepare some late-night snacks. Tell me what you want to eat right away."

This instantly energized many of the previously exhausted employees, who started shouting all at once.

"I want my steak medium-rare, with a side of black pepper sauce."

"A sandwich, with bacon and cheese, plus a fried egg, and a glass of freshly squeezed juice."

"I want Chinese food, dumplings or noodles are fine, as long as it's hot, anything is fine." She added, "And an ice cream too, I need some sweets to keep me going all night."

Not only did the customer service and review departments have employees working overtime, but the technical and after-sales support departments at Google headquarters also had people sticking to their posts.

The engineers in the technical department were staring at their computer screens, constantly debugging the Google Play Store's backend system, afraid that even the slightest vulnerability would affect the user experience.

Meanwhile, staff from the post-construction support department patrolled the building, checking water, electricity, network, and other facilities to ensure that all equipment was functioning properly.

Even the company's massage rooms and physiotherapy rooms are still open as usual. Originally, they were meant to allow employees to relax and relieve fatigue after work, but now everyone is so busy that they don't have time to enjoy these benefits.

The launch of the Google Play Store not only kept software companies and Google employees extremely busy, but also had a huge impact on another group of people.

However, this impact is not positive, but extremely negative.

In San Francisco, north of Silicon Valley, Hansen, the owner of a software retail store, also watched the live stream of Google's press conference. But while others watched the live stream with excitement and anticipation, he felt increasingly disheartened as he watched, and finally collapsed onto the sofa, feeling as if the sky was about to fall.

As soon as the press conference ended, Hansen went crazy and drove to his store at top speed.

He rushed into the warehouse, and when he saw the mountain of CDs and disks in front of him, cold sweat poured down his forehead like beads from a broken string, and his clothes were instantly soaked with sweat.

He stood there blankly, staring at the CDs and disks, feeling a sharp pain in his heart.

Just last week, Hansen confidently ordered 10,000 office software CDs, thinking they would sell quickly and he would make a fortune. But to his surprise, the Google Play Store was launched, and the CDs instantly became a hot potato.

If not handled properly, these discs worth millions of dollars could easily become a pile of useless junk, and he might even face bankruptcy instead of making money.

Hansen paced back and forth in the warehouse, muttering to himself, "A company as big as Microsoft will probably do the same thing as Google, right? Yes, definitely."

At the press conference, Larry Page announced that Google would buy back any unopened installation floppy disks sold by its various companies at the original price.

Of the 10,000 office software CDs he received, half were Google products, which gave him a slight sense of relief.

But the thought of the remaining non-Google product discs made Hansen's heart leap into his throat again.

Whether Microsoft will recall its software remains an open question; there is no concrete information available at this time.

What made him even more desperate was that when he saw the various software products produced by small companies on the shelves, he felt that the hope of returning them was almost nil.

Those small companies are inherently small in scale and lack substantial funds, so they may not be able to recover their losses at all.

Thinking of this, Hansen felt dizzy and almost fell to the ground. He quickly grabbed the shelf next to him and barely managed to stand up.

Time passed slowly, and finally, dawn arrived. The eastern sky was just beginning to lighten, and while the city was still asleep, the editors of major newspapers were already busy.

Soon, the day's newspapers were published, and unsurprisingly, the headlines were filled with reports about the Google Store, as if the whole world was cheering for it.

The Los Angeles Times used the headline "Disruptors," which alone conveys the newspaper's high regard for the Google Store.

The article states, "In the past, we marveled at the power of Google's search engine, the convenience of Gmail, and the innovation of Google Tunes. Some of these Google products pioneered entirely new fields, while others were products that Google gave new life to based on existing ones."

"But in any case, no one can deny that all of Google's products are subverting our past understanding and imagination, bringing us surprises time and time again. And this time, the emergence of the Google Play Store has once again subverted our inherent thinking about the purchase and installation of software."

"It acts as a direct bridge between developers and users, connecting the two closely and making the purchase and use of software simpler and more efficient than ever before."

"Previously, if users wanted to use new software, they had to go to a store to buy a CD, and then go through a complicated installation process at home, which could easily fail if they weren't careful. Now, with the Google Play Store, users can simply click on their computer to purchase and install software, which is undoubtedly a huge revolution."

Besides praising Google relentlessly, the Los Angeles Times also took a jab at Microsoft, with its articles filled with mockery of the company.

"Comparing Google and Microsoft, two representative companies in the American tech industry, Google undoubtedly better represents the American spirit of innovation; it is the true synonym for the American Dream. Google consistently leverages its imagination and creativity to launch innovative products that are sure to impress, leading the development of the technology industry."

"Compared to Google's innovation, Microsoft is more like a copycat, always making secondary developments on the basis of others' creations, lacking truly original core innovations."

"Google's innovative spirit truly reflects the greatness of America and allows the world to see the vitality of the American technology industry."

"Justice may be delayed, but it will never be absent. Google has proven with its own strength that any company that relies on underhanded methods and lacks innovation will ultimately fail to thrive in the long run. Microsoft is like a clown now, not only disgusting others with its uninnovative products, but also making its reputation in the industry worse and worse. It's like shooting itself in the foot."

Compared to the Los Angeles Times' comprehensive coverage, PCWorld, which focuses on technology news, is more direct, with headlines that get straight to the point.

The End of the 11 Disk Drives: The Copernican Revolution in Software Distribution

The title is concise and clear, yet highly impactful, immediately grabbing the reader's attention.

"Google Play Store has sparked a new era of revolution in the software download industry, which was previously largely ignored."

"In the past, to install software, users had to drive to a software store and queue up to buy a CD or disk. If they were unlucky, they might have to queue for one or two hours. After returning home, they still had to follow the instructions in a tedious way to install it. Sometimes, an error would occur halfway through the installation, and they would have to start all over again, which was simply infuriating."

"But the emergence of the Google Play Store has made all of that a thing of the past. It has provided us with the best way to distribute apps. With just a few clicks of the mouse, you can have the app you want. The whole process takes less than a minute, which was unthinkable before."

"We can now shout out loud, say goodbye to those mountains of disks, because the Internet Store is here. It will completely change the way we use software and drive the entire technology industry toward greater convenience and efficiency."

Before the Google Play Store, installing software wasn't something that could be done with just a floppy disk or a CD.

Due to storage space limitations, most memory-intensive software typically requires several disks to install.

For example, Microsoft's Windows system once required seven CDs to install, and the highest record was 11 CDs to install a single software program.

When installing software, users have to constantly change disks, and errors can easily occur if they are not careful. Anyone who has experienced this will find it annoying.

Of course, not all media outlets hold a positive view of the Google Play Store. Some have seen the hidden crisis behind it and expressed deep concern.

For example, the San Jose Mercury News, a local Silicon Valley newspaper, focused on the issue of people's livelihood and wrote a report full of concern.

"The emergence of the Internet has indeed greatly facilitated our lives. It has made information spread faster, made communication more convenient, and brought about tremendous changes in our lifestyles."

"I do not deny the enormous contributions Google has made to the internet industry. Its products have brought convenience to people around the world and promoted the rapid development of the internet industry."

"But after watching Google's presentation today, I didn't feel excited; instead, I felt a vague sense of unease. This unease made me restless. I believe that what we witnessed today was not just the launch of a new product, but the beginning of the internet's engulfment of traditional industries."

"While the emergence of the Google Play Store has brought convenience to users and developers, it has undoubtedly been a devastating blow to traditional software retailers. When users are accustomed to buying software from the Google Play Store, who will still go to physical software retailers to buy CDs?"

"What kind of impact will this have on traditional software stores across the United States? How many stores will go out of business due to a lack of customers? How many people will lose their jobs as a result? These are all questions we have to face."

"The government cannot only see the benefits brought by the development of the Internet, but ignore its impact on traditional industries and the job market."

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