Thursday, November 27, 2014

Changing things up, because that's just how I roll

Yesterday marked my last day on the Android Email/Gmail team at Google, now that Email is fully folded into Gmail. I think I'm leaving the project in really good shape, and certainly in a fantastically better spot than just a year and a half ago when I first joined the team and Google as a whole. It's been a hell of a ride, but it's time for something new.

Next up on my plate is AndroidTV, where I'll be working with my old buddy Chris McKillop again. I'll be brining my familiarity with Android development along with me, but other than that I know basically nothing about the project, which is exactly how I like it. Life is boring if you're too well prepared.

That said, bringing my Android experience with me is perhaps more than I'd like for taking on a new adventure, so it remains to be seen how long this team will hold my interest. I think a lot of it will depend on what sort of projects I get to work on and what direction the platform develops in.

I had initially set my sights more broadly throughout Google, but since Android is the new hotness it's a lot easier to find a seat in an Android team rather than somewhere else, and I ended up getting declined by teams who wanted me to join but didn't have an open space for me to fill.

I suppose I can at least look forward to a relatively easy transition.