In an era where the saying that “time is money” has never been more true, especially since time is a finite resource that we cannot make more of it just manage it better, along comes Google (News - Alert) with a devious way to spend even more time on non-work related activity. Developed by the Google with the help of LEGO Australia, Google has created Build. 

What is Build you ask? Here is how Google describes it:

“What would happen if we brought bricks to the browser…Build is our latest Chrome Experiment which lets you explore and build a new world of LEGO creations together online. With 8 trillion bricks, think of Build as the largest LEGO set you’ve ever seen.

”Build is a collaborative 3D building experience enabled by WebGL, which allows for the creation of powerful 3D graphics right in the browser. Google is obviously using this to show the differentiated prowess of its Chrome browser, and not coincidently the folks down under like to point out that they threw in Google Maps (another Aussie invention) which lets the user put their creation in a LEGO world alongside everyone else’s. The video below of the construction of the famous Sydney Harbor Bridge highlights the additive power at work here.



While this is an experiment that is being launched in Australia and New Zealand, the developers expect to take it global. The reason for it being launched now in the aforementioned countries is that the inspiration for this came from the fact that this year is the 50th anniversary of the LEGO in Australia and Build joins the celebration of the LEGO Festival of Play online.

While I hate to recommend distractions, if you are a Chrome user like myself, you can start building at buildwithchrome.com. The good folks at Google, not only know how to leverage their browser by creating something that is fun and takes more than a bit of time (that is the point after all), but wisely are aksing visitors to share their creations on +Google. You might wish to give it a try since they will be re-posting the most inventive contributions for everyone to see. 

If LEGOs have been an integral childhood memory or a current infatuation of your children’s, this is “child’s play,” and I mean that in a good way. In addition, if you have even a little more time you might wish to check out another new item from Google from as far down under as you can get. The Panoramic imagery of the Antarctic is eye-catching and worth an exploration.  

I like the Aussie crew of Google and LEGO look forward to your creativity. I’d like to thank Google for bringing back my love of LEGO. However, fair warning to LEGO enthusiasts, be careful what you wish for. 

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