In the next two months, Google will be holding several events at the Googleplex that Google wants local Geo/Javascript developers to attend. First in line is the Google Geo Developer Series which starts on Wednesday, Feb. 20th with a hands-on workshop on "Quick & Dirty KML Creation" led by Mano and Pamela Fox. The series will continue on each Wednesday through early April, and will feature a few speakers from the community as well (like John Coryat's Feb. 27th talk on "Creating Custom Maps"). For those not in the area, each event in the series will be videotaped and available on Youtube after. Visit http://google-geo-developer-series.googlemashups.com/ for more information and registration.

Then, on February 29th, Google will be hosting a Developer Hackathon focusing on Google's Javascript API offerings: Google Gears, Google AJAX Search/Feeds, Google Gadgets, and of course, the Google Maps API. The hackathon will start with brief intros of the APIs, then after a brainstorming session, the developers will break up into groups to code some mini-apps. It's a great opportunity for people who want an excuse to write some fun code and ask Googlers questions at the same time. Check out the calendar invite for more details and the registration link.

Finally from May 17th to 18th, Google will host this year's WhereCamp, the unconference for geohackers. It was hosted at Yahoo! last year and attracted more than 200 programmers, opinion leaders and geo community people. Get more information at the WhereCamp wiki.