Yes, this has been maddening for me as well. For all of the people on this site claiming the market is "red hot", job hunting in the bay area has been slow. I have dealt with a couple of really well run companies that made it through the process quickly, but others have all kinds of HR filters and take weeks to even get a phone screen.

In contrast, I was able to join a start-up within three weeks of beginning my search in 2010 in Beijing... and that was before I had any professional experience. They made the decision on the basis of a couple of interviews and a couple of retro flash games I'd done as a hobby project.

Incidentally, if anyone in SF is looking for someone who can code and a proven record of hustle, my contact info is on my profile page.