16 Bizarre Scenes From CeBIT 2008

The CeBIT trade show in Hanover, Germany is a vast expanse of conference halls, booths, meeting rooms, and chattering throngs of IT aficionados. Within all that, there are scenes so strange that one often finds oneself doing a double-take. Everything Channel wandered the CeBIT fairgrounds with the goal of capturing as many of these sights as possible, so that future generations may benefit from the edification they provide. And also because many of them are just so gosh- darned funny.

AMD has had a rough ride of late, what with all the fuss around its delayed Barcelona and its lackluster financial performance. But at CeBIT, AMD experienced a different type of rough ride, joining up with Fujitsu and Siemens to sponsor a noisy, perplexing contest/promotion featuring 4-wheel all terrain vehicles, an event that grabbed the attention of many conference attendees as they passed from hall to hall. Many of whom wondered how the heck the event fit into the Green IT theme of this year's CeBIT conference.

German solution provider Media Welt used these goofy looking cartoon characters with oversized potato heads to raise awareness among conference attendees of the low, low prices they offer on a wide variety of technology products. All they need is one more guy and they could be The Three Stooges of the consumer electronics world.

Security vendor Eset hired this strange fellow to act like a robot and totter around the show floor shaking hands with passersby -- even if they didn't want to shake hands. The significance of such a tactic, and its relevance to security, remained unclear at press time. However, the faces of people nearby show a mix of fear and abject disdain. Two words: Restraining order.

No, this isn't a shot of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer rocking out to the latest Red Hot Chili Peppers album on his Zune. At a CeBIT press conference this week, Ballmer donned the headphones in order to listen to the piped-in English translation of Microsoft Germany executives' presentations.

It's not a flying car, it's the Aerorider: Sun Microsystems got on board with the green IT theme of CeBIT by showing off this ultralight, hybrid tricycle that combines good old fashioned muscle power with an electric motor, and is designed for zipping around urban areas.

Wait a minute, is that Robocop's cousin? German tech training firm PFL used this funky looking robot to get people excited about upgrading their technical skills. However, several small children were seen cowering in the corner from the metallic monstrosity, and even some parents gave the thing a wide berth.

This advertisement for a group of German system builders indicates that someone may have missed the memo -- hey guys, CeBIT is supposed to be about GREEN IT this year, what's with the blue? Whoa, wait a minute, is that Gwen Stefani?

The technical university at Chemnitz showed off their own tricked out Aerorider at CeBIT. Word has it that they challenged the Sun Microsystems Aerorider to a race outside the hall, but Sun's lawyers, after a brief show floor huddle, nixed the idea.

These reps from Intel also seem to have missed the Green IT memo. They patrolled the show floor handing out fliers for Intel's 'IT Starts With the Chip' contest, which encouraged attendees to visit the booths of as many Intel partners as possible. Rumor has it that attendees who visit the Microsoft booth are eligible for the first prize, a copy of Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate. Second prize is two copies.

There's really nothing that makes a more poignant fashion statement than a PC festooned with colorful designs, and these come from Chinese firm Xin Dong Lin. In a time when computing power is being pushed to smaller and smaller devices, it's kind of a head scratcher as to why someone would want to decorate a bulky metal box in such a way. Surely there must be better ways to express one's belief that they are unique little snowflake, and different from all the rest?

German consumer storage vendor TrekStor really ramped up their advertising budget for CeBIT, even finding a way to get their messaging on the back of this truck. But if you're going to choose this route to building buzz for your products, it might be better to be a bit more clear about what you're selling. The 'Enjoy Now' tagline just doesn't resonate that much. Enjoy WHAT, the exhaust fumes of this truck as I'm driving behind it?

Chinese firm Xin Dong Lin also grabbed the unofficial second prize in the 'Products Of Dubious Practical Value' category. While the neon glow actually looks pretty cool, let's just keep in mind, it's just a cooling fan guys, there's no need to get all flashy on us.

German security vendor Tuvit really 'splashed out' at CeBIT, attracting the attention of attendees with a unique jumping water fountain display. OK, that was pretty corny.

Many of the conference halls at CeBIT are very similar architecturally to spaceships, but Hall 25, home of the Planet Reseller pavilion, is apparently a time machine that's dialed back in time. How else to explain the sight of a Packard Bell booth?

Although it didn't appear to be connected with any particular vendor, this was a peculiar sight in that it seemed to contradict the Green IT theme of CeBIT 2008. Because there's nothing that says 'green' like a Formula One racecar, right?

BFG Technologies, a U.S. based supplier of premium 3D video cards based on NVIDIA graphics technology, took the prize for scariest advertisement at CeBIT. This guy looks like he's been chugging Red Bulls while playing Halo for 72 hours straight.