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.

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.

After 11 hours and 30 minutes of flying and stepping into the 40°C Las Vegas heat, I finally arrived. The flight was great, courtesy of Edelweiss’s stellar service. The only hiccup? The landing was a bit like hitting a speed bump at full throttle.

First Stop: The Venetian Hotel

Upon arrival, I beelined to the Venetian Hotel, with my room in the Palazzo. Check-in was smooth, except they promised to text me when the room was ready. Spoiler alert: that text never came. After two hours of twiddling my thumbs, I went back to the reception, and voilà, room keys in hand.

Thankfully, Markus got his room in the Venetian immediately, so I could stash my luggage in his room while I sorted things out.

The First Day’s Dilemma: To Sleep or Not to Sleep

The real challenge on the first day is figuring out when to sleep. I left at 10 AM Swiss time and landed at 1 PM Vegas time (a 9-hour difference). Jet lag is real, folks.

First Meal: In-N-Out Burger

To kick things off, I headed straight to In-N-Out Burger for a Double Cheese. Always a winner. Though I have a soft spot for Shake Shack in Vegas too, it’s a bit of a trek from the hotel. Still, I’ll make the pilgrimage.

Evening at The Linq

In the evening, I hit the bar at The Linq and met up with Oli from Cribl and Mika. As always, it was an absolute hoot. We then moved on for some finger food with Florian (Flo), and Jaco.

Nightcap: Gilley’s Saloon, Dance Hall & Bar-B-Que

We capped off the night with a visit to Gilley’s Saloon, Dance Hall & Bar-B-Que for a well-deserved “after-work” beer. By 11 PM, it was time to hit the sack.