i think it works better with people you know than looking at strangers working ...
Ah, but what if instead strangers are looking at YOU?
Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
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Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#12i think it works better with people you know than looking at strangers working ...
Strangers has worked in some of the earlier rooms I've worked with... I think the issue here is that it's basically all strangers to start.
It's easy to add a few new people to some who already know each other, but harder to just throw a bunch of strangers (some of whom are more in troll-mode) into a room together.
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#13I tried some experiments like this between hackerspaces in Austin and Houston. What I found is that there is little engagement, unless images are "eye level" and at the apparent size of a present person. I'm not sure how well this would work with video chat on the desktop.
When actually interacting directly is not the point, it's pretty effective.
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#14Cool idea, hope it gets traction. Somewhat related: I think VR is going to be huge for coworking. If you've used BigScreen ( http://store.steampowered.com/app/457550/ ) you'll know what I'm talking about. While you can't see peoples faces yet, and resolution in VR is still low, it really does feel like you're working right next to somebody, and I could see it be a thing.
Totally agreed. I think I have a few years at least before I need to worry about VR market saturation crowding me out though :P
It's an interesting question of whether it might make sense for me to get into that space with Complice (which is mostly a productivity app—the rooms are just one feature). I can see reasons why that might make sense but I think it's ultimately pretty far from my central value proposition and it would make more sense to partner with BigScreen or something instead.
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#15This is a fun app! I love the restrictions of no audio and disabling chat during work periods. Good work!
A nice excuse to try out pomodoros again, too.
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#16What exactly is a "pomo"?
Term taken from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pomodoro_Technique meaning a short period where you're working hard. The basic idea of the technique is that you dedicate 25 minutes to strictly working, and then explicitly give yourself a 5 minute break to do whatever. The idea is if you carve out frequent break time you'll be more efficient and focused than if you're trying to sustain 8 hours of solid focus.
We've found these to be extremely effective. We don't do them all the time but if we feel like we're losing productivity we'll do a few days of them and we're back on track.
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#17I tried some experiments like this between hackerspaces in Austin and Houston. What I found is that there is little engagement, unless images are "eye level" and at the apparent size of a present person. I'm not sure how well this would work with video chat on the desktop.
When actually interacting directly is not the point, it's pretty effective.
In that case, let's save some bandwidth and just synthesize the facial expressions. Mostly, it would be work/concentration, with occasional glances of affection towards the "viewer." Of course, we'd probably get this slightly wrong, fall into the uncanny valley, and everyone would be left with the subconscious impression that everyone else hates them, and furthermore is actually an alien doppelganger posing as a an actual human. (Or that everyone else is a grievously defective human who needs to be shunned/euthanized for the good of the species.)
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#18Earlier quoted context omitted.
When actually interacting directly is not the point, it's pretty effective.
In that case, let's save some bandwidth and just synthesize the facial expressions. Mostly, it would be work/concentration, with occasional glances of affection towards the "viewer." Of course, we'd probably get this slightly wrong, fall into the uncanny valley, and everyone would be left with the subconscious impression that everyone else hates them, and furthermore is actually an alien doppelganger posing as a an a…
Sounds like an accurate description of a few places I've worked.
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#19I first read it as "Don’t talk during pornos."
Re: Show HN: Hacker Hall - Virtual Coworking
#20I got a ton of signups to Complice yesterday via the IndieHackers HN launch ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12269425 ) so I thought it would be cool to see if we could coalesce a new little community of people doing pomodoros (25/5 work/break periods) together online. One of my favorite features of HN is that it lets you limit how much time you spend on it per day. I love systems that work with the users' inte…
I've found a security bug and mailed malcolm $at@ malcolmocean and you know the rest of the email. Make sure to check it and fix, because it's severe. That aside, cool idea. I really enjoyed.