On being the FriendFeed intern

I'm not one to be very star-struck by celebrities, but when I first started interning at FriendFeed I definitely felt in awe of the people I was around. For a bit of context, back when Google Search first came out, I was certainly impressed—search that really works! But it wasn't until I started using Gmail in 2004 that I really became a fan of Google. It was the most innovative piece of consumer software that I had ever encountered. The release of Google Maps in '05 reinforced my love for Google products.

And there I was, as a FriendFeed intern, sitting amongst the people that made these products happen:

• Paul Buchheit created Gmail, Sanjeev Singh joined him in developing it, and Kevin Fox designed the UI. Ana Yang did marketing for Gmail (which I later realized was the reason speaking with her seemed so familiar, as I had read all the Gmail marketing material thoroughly...).


• Bret Taylor and Jim Norris launched Google Maps, where Bret was the product manager (and also did development work), and Jim a software engineer.

Needless to say, it was very inspiring to work with such a high-caliber team. I learned so much simply from observing and discussing approaches to product improvements and features with the team. With my interests in product management and user experience, I was particularly thankful to have a chance to learn from Bret and Kevin.

I naturally expected the team to be comprised of very smart individuals, but was pleasantly surprised to find that they were also incredibly well-rounded and fun individuals. On top of it all, they were very down-to-earth and friendly. It felt like being a part of a second family.

I missed them so much that a week after returning to school I flew back to California and joined them in Lake Tahoe for the first annual FriendFeed ski trip.

As impressive as what they've done in a few short months may be, I'm sure the best is yet to come. And, they're officially launching! So go check out FriendFeed before all the good user nicknames are taken. ;)