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The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

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Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#131

Post by rock_hard »

RandallBrown wrote: post #117

To throw some more anecdotes in with the rest of the comments, I love open offices. I've had my own office and found it lonely and boring. I never got less work done than at that job. Everything took longer because I had to stand up and walk to talk to my team. Instant messaging sort of worked, but if they didn't respond immediately, you didn't know if it was because they missed the message or they weren't actually i…

Thanks for sharing this!

I am a IC and I love open offices.

Also agree that privat offices feel lonely and are a hassle.

I think like with many things there is just a vocal minority that bitching about open offices...we need more people speak up about all the benefits of open offices (besides the economic ones for the company that get cynically cited every time).

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#132

Post by nojvek »

RandallBrown wrote: post #117

To throw some more anecdotes in with the rest of the comments, I love open offices. I've had my own office and found it lonely and boring. I never got less work done than at that job. Everything took longer because I had to stand up and walk to talk to my team. Instant messaging sort of worked, but if they didn't respond immediately, you didn't know if it was because they missed the message or they weren't actually i…

I thrive in hybrid environment. I go to office for half the day, while other half the day I either work from home, or in a coffee place or somewhere else where I can be in the zone for hours.

But the downside is I’m a workaholic. I spend too many hours working.

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#133

Post by tluyben2 »

RandallBrown wrote: post #117

To throw some more anecdotes in with the rest of the comments, I love open offices. I've had my own office and found it lonely and boring. I never got less work done than at that job. Everything took longer because I had to stand up and walk to talk to my team. Instant messaging sort of worked, but if they didn't respond immediately, you didn't know if it was because they missed the message or they weren't actually i…

That is why it should be a mix. I get zero coding done in an open office. Networking, sales etc yes, but programming nope. None. So a courtyard office works best for me.

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#135

Post by tomjen3 »

rayiner wrote: post #98
zeveb wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The argument of "increased collaboration" that I keep hearing is kind of negated when people have the soccer game on and you're bombarded with constant cheering Is there anything less professional than watching a game at work? I really don't get why people do this, and why they think it's okay. Granted, I don't like sports — but I like TV, and I wouldn't watch TV at work. I like computer games, but I wouldn't play…

That and dogs in the office. Jesus what’s wrong with people. (The fact you’re being downvoted is proof we are living in the end times.)

I really cannot see the comparison, unless the dogs are barking. I find sportsball* at work extremely annoying, but dogs are relaxing to have around.

*Yeah, I know, live and let live, but that is basically impossible with the current sport fanatics around here.

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#136

Post by magduf »

dreamcompiler wrote: post #102

I wonder how much of this is introvert vs extrovert? All sales people are extroverts and most managers are. Most programmers are introverts. Guess which group likes open offices?

>All sales people are extroverts and most managers are. Most programmers are introverts. Guess which group likes open offices?

This is not my experience at all. From what I see, most programmers these days are definitely extroverts, if they're under the age of ~35.

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#137

Post by seanmcdirmid »

rayiner wrote: post #98
zeveb wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The argument of "increased collaboration" that I keep hearing is kind of negated when people have the soccer game on and you're bombarded with constant cheering Is there anything less professional than watching a game at work? I really don't get why people do this, and why they think it's okay. Granted, I don't like sports — but I like TV, and I wouldn't watch TV at work. I like computer games, but I wouldn't play…

That and dogs in the office. Jesus what’s wrong with people. (The fact you’re being downvoted is proof we are living in the end times.)

One dog usually isn’t a problem, but it might not scale up from there depending on the dogs.

When will they allow us to take our toddlers to work? Could really save on daycare costs :)

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#138

Post by watwut »

tombert wrote: post #80
watwut wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is "grab-ass all over the office"? I tried to google it to find whether it is expression, but got tons of porn as result.

Ah, sorry, it's a bit of local expression from where I grew up. People would say "grab-ass" when people are running/playing around and yelling like children at the office. It's not too uncommon for startups to have Nerf guns or something.

Gotcha, thanks.

> people are running/playing around and yelling like children at the office. It's not too uncommon for startups to have Nerf guns or something.

I hate this sort of environment combined with expectation to stay late. It always seems to me that if people would work instead of playing, we might not have to stay late. And that we are not working as much as we brag about, because people play a lot.

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#139

Post by RandallBrown »

collinf wrote: post #19

My biggest issue with my open floor office is that it seems like everyone just takes calls at their seats. We have private spaces and enclaves for that, but I am just bombarded with 4 people within 10 feet of my workspace on their phone. To counteract I throw on some Ambient music on my headphones, which sort of works but I still find I prefer to work in silence. Does it not seem like open-office etiquette to take a…

I've never worked in an office where people regularly talked on their phones in the open. The people at the company who talked on the phone for their job (sales, customer service etc.) had their desks in a different area and had a different setup with high cubicle walls or offices.

Re: The open-plan office is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea

#140

Post by jonbarker »

antfarm wrote: post #17

> Few managers have a schedule that allows, or even requires, long hours of uninterrupted time dedicated to a single creative pursuit. More on that in Paul Graham's Essay: http://paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html

Knowledge workers, aka the creative class, are required to be on both schedules. They are both makers and managers. So if they are doing it 'right' they basically have two jobs.
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