So, I’m back in Switzerland. The day before our departure, we hit up Steakhouse Oscars at Fremont with a larger group. Let me tell you, this year’s jet lag was a beast. I only managed to get it under control a day before flying back.

The return flight was pleasant enough, though we flew in Economy Max instead of Business. Sometimes, you just have to roll with it. The plane was packed, a solid 11-hour journey, and we even started with a delay. But hey, at least I wasn’t my colleague who had to deplane after four hours and try again the next day.

So, what do you do on the last day of a trip? Normally, you’d cram in as many sightseeing spots as possible. But this time, everyone was just wiped out. Conferences can be exhausting, despite all the fun. Some people lounged by the pool, others went shopping one last time. I hit the casino for a bit of slot machine action. I was too lazy to focus on anything more intense, and predictably, I lost $150. Easy come, easy go.

Later, we had a few drinks before heading to Fremont as mentioned above. The evening was fun but short. Age is catching up, no more partying until 4 AM.

Before the flight, of course, I watched Switzerland beat Hungary 3-1. Baby!

Next day, at 11 AM, it was airport time. A very funny taxi driver made the ride enjoyable.

Once at the airport, I made a rookie mistake – bought some almonds without checking the price. $16 for a small pack! I think I need to ask for a raise.

Zurich airport was a mess at customs. Long lines everywhere. Swiss and EU citizens got to skip the line, but everyone else was stuck for hours. I can only imagine how chaotic it will be when holiday season kicks in.

Then it was the train ride home. After a quick check-in with colleagues and family, I tackled the usual post-trip routine: unpacking, laundry, catching some Euro 2024 action, and squeezing in a two-hour nap. Before I knew it, Sunday was over.

So, this wraps up my adventure. Now, it’s back to reality, but with some great memories and a slightly lighter wallet. Until the next trip!

Ah, the final day of Splunk .conf24 – the grand finale of a whirlwind of sessions, customer showcases, and more tech buzzwords than you can shake a stick at! Day 3 was no different, packed to the brim with talks on security, observability, and AI. Because, of course, no tech conference is complete without reminding you that AI is taking over the world (but in a good way, we hope).

I took some time to explore the Innovation Labs, where the future is made of shiny things and clever ideas. What’s shown here often ends up in future software releases, so it’s like getting a sneak peek into tomorrow. Spoiler alert: it’s usually pretty cool.

The evening brought the infamous Search Party. This year’s star guest was TLC, and no, not the home improvement channel, but the legendary music group. Talk about a blast from the past! There was finger food, free alcohol, and enough long foosball tables and arcade games to keep our inner child delighted. The music was loud – very loud. But that’s America for you. Who needs conversation when you’ve got decibels, right?

After the official festivities, a few of us took the party elsewhere. Let’s just say, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, and leave it at that.

All in all, Splunk .conf24 delivered in spades. The quality of the talks was as high as ever, though it seems the peak attendance we saw pre-COVID might never be topped. There’s also a looming question: will the Splunk conference remain a standalone event, or will it be absorbed into Cisco Live? Only time will tell.

In any case, I highly recommend attending, especially for newcomers. The university sessions are incredibly valuable, and there’s no substitute for the learning and networking that happens here.

The second day of Splunk conf has wrapped up. This time, we kicked things off with a technical keynote that had everyone buzzing.

Keynotes are here to set the vibe/mode of a conference, with the technical details coming later in the tech sessions or hallway conversations. Last year’s keynote received mixed reviews-maybe it was a bit too negative and certainly not a highlight. From what I’ve heard, this year’s keynote was significantly better.

So far, the general mood among customers and partners is pretty positive, though they have completely different perspectives. Customers want solutions for their challenges, features they can ride on, and roadmaps, which usually goes quite well. On the other hand, the technical sessions spark a lot of cool ideas for techies to implement back at their companies.

For partners, it’s more about what’s next now that Cisco has bought Splunk and how the integration of 75’000 Cisco partners with the significantly fewer Splunk partners will play out. But even here, the message delivered was cautiously optimistic.

As a highlight from the keynote, there was the unveiling of Splunk Security Enterprise 8.0, the Splunk AI Assistant for SPL, ITSI 4.19 with AI features, the Splunk Edge Processor now in GA, Splunk SOAR 6.3, and general news about Splunk Observability.

But hey, I think I’ll save the deep dive for a separate blog post someday. This micro blog is just to keep things light and breezy.

After the keynote, the technical sessions began. I focused on ITSI and Security, although I did miss a few planned sessions due to catching up with various people. For clients who couldn’t attend, I submitted several questions to different Splunk teams, hoping to get answers post-conference.

On the downside, I missed the User Group Leader meeting and the Advisory Board session.

My excuse? A brief (but evidently necessary) nap. I planned for a quick 15-minute rest but ended up taking an unplanned trip to Dreamland. With only about 3 hours of sleep per night since last Friday, my body decided it was time for a longer pit stop.

Thankfully, I woke up before dinner thanks to a timely WhatsApp from Oli. After dinner, we headed to Fremont for some evening activities.

All in all, a packed and productive day with a bit of unintended comedy. Looking forward to what tomorrow brings.

Today kicked off with CriblCon 2024. The scalability of the fleet (agents) was a hot topic – imagine up to 250k agents! They showcased a live demo of AI support for searches and dashboards. We saw Fast Search, reduced resource consumption of Stream under Windows, new data source integrations, SaaS on Azure (not just AWS anymore), and data lake advancements. And that was just a snippet of what was shown. This startup is developing quickly and expanding. For an outsider, it’s not always 100% clear where Cribl is headed. They’re dancing at many weddings. Too many? Or maybe world domination is just around the corner?

After the keynote, there were more sessions. They were quite interesting.

Later in the afternoon, Lukas arrived. We then headed to the Sphere with Splunk Switzerland and a few Splunk customers. That’s the big dome thing in Vegas. We were in section 208. The seats were great, and the video experience was phenomenal. Definitely worth it if you’re in Vegas.

We wrapped up with a visit to the Delmonico Steakhouse. It was delicious but also sinfully expensive.

Sunday in Vegas wrapped up with the Cribl EMEA event at Ole Red. The rooftop party was a blast, featuring a live DJ, drinks, finger food, and a crowd full of interesting people.

The view of the Bellagio fountain show was amazing. By 7:30 PM local time, the heat had finally let up. The cooling mist machines certainly helped too.

I received a printed book from Cribl. Really cool. To be honest, I didn’t do much to earn it, but thanks to Oli for that! (selfie photo).

I’m still battling jet lag. So, I went to bed early—before midnight. But of course, I was up again by 3 AM. Not ideal.

Today, Monday, continues with CriblCon, starting at 9 AM local time. Then, I’ve got a few meetings with clients and a visit to The Sphere planned.

One shouldn’t complain when hotel and flight is covered by the company and a lot of entertainment is covered by vendors. But wow, the prices in Vegas are sky-high. There are quite a few personal expenses too.

No sooner is the Area41 security conference over, it’s already off to Las Vegas for the next conference.

I’m all set for the Splunk conf in Las Vegas, June 11-14. Slippers? Check. Courtesy of my Splunk User Group leader in Zurich.

Can’t wait to reunite with old pals – ex-colleagues, fellow Splunk disciples. Let’s turn data into laughs and memories!

And I still have a lot to sort out. Unfortunately, the seat reservation didn’t work out with Swiss. When I checked in online, there was no sign of my Eco Max (10cm extra legroom) seat. The hotline couldn’t help. My last chance is tomorrow at the check-in counter.

I had hoped to chat with my colleague Mika next to me. The fact that this probably won’t happen bothers me the most. He is coming directly from Finland and is also flying via Zurich to Vegas.

Alright, gather ’round! Here’s the scoop on the new Sonos app and its missing alarm clock feature. Picture this: you’re ready to rely on your Sonos alarm to start your day, but it’s gone. Officially, the latest update promised its return. But no luck.

The forums? A wild jungle of theories. Some say it only works during a full moon, others suggest rituals involving sage. For me, despite the latest firmware and app update, the alarm option is still MIA.

Seriously, Sonos? Do I need to align my chakras or consult an astrologer? Until then, I’m stuck with my phone’s alarm. Here’s hoping Sonos solves this mystery soon, or I’ll be setting up a rooster training camp.

Master of my own data and ruler of my services. And I still believe it’s the way to go.

But lately, I’ve found myself outsourcing more and more of my services. It started with emails, then DNS, and now even blogs. Why? I couldn’t tell you exactly. I had no issues running things myself. Low maintenance, you know. But somehow, the thought crept in that maybe it’s becoming more of a hassle. Things get trickier on the web when you’re not playing in the big leagues. Although, finding a real person to talk to at those big companies is like trying to summon the IT administrator when Windows throws a tantrum. Except, well, you’re the IT guy.

Maybe it’s just the feeling that my time is more valuable now that I’m getting older. Perhaps shelling out $10 here and $5 there for a service isn’t such a bad idea after all. Plus, there’s the convenience factor. Photos magically syncing to iCloud, emails handled by ProtonMail, web security via Cloudflare. And let’s not forget about staying incognito with ProtonVPN, TailScale, or Netbird.

In the old days, it was all about running your own servers. But times are changing, my friends. Yet, it’s merely a snapshot of the current zeitgeist. Who knows what the future holds?