iWorkstations?

YoDave writes "Have a slick new iMac and a boring old desk? This BBC report may be music to your eyes. John Treby from the University of Hertfordshire has designed the iDesk. It has space age styling with space for all your Apple goodies and not much else. Rain Design of San Francisco is shipping a similar stand called the iGo. PC users can prepare to drool with envy, again."

Comments

useless

[Gherald]

Just look at all the air around that desk. Complete waste of space!

Instead, get something like this.

That's all the desk you should ever need.

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[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:It just looks better.

[AllenChristopher]

Problem 1 with that idea is that if Apple put down money for the placement the Apple logo wouldn't be taped over. It almost always is. Problem 2 with that idea is that the place one can most easily find Macs used for style is in commercials for other companies' products, products like shirts and real estate brokerage.

Looks beautiful but

[Anonymous Coward]

I recently ended a long and agonizing affair with "computer furniture." Over the years I've spent fairly large sums of money swapping out one arrangement for another with the belief that each new purchase was necessary -- to "finally" get comfortable, be more productive, make more efficient use of space, etc.

What did I do? I started by refinishing an old pine dining room table. Instead of a "ledge," I have a "real" desk with plenty of space on which to read and write, pile books, and rest my elbows. My two 21" monitors are off to the side (an L-shaped arrangement) on a second table I built with a retractable keyboard tray. Underneath that table, the computers are kept in a sealed but vented cabinet. The rack equipment (including hissing modems, routers, etc.) I moved into a closet (also sealed and vented).

Workstations may be fine for working if one defines working as doing nothing but staring at your monitor with your hands typing away at the keyboard. Past that, however, I find the entire concept as flawed and unworkable.

Mind you, I do think the desks shown look nice, but I'd never trade horizontal space with the gimmicky extras and pseudo ergonomics that are part of all modern computer furniture design. Put another way, if I hand nothing else, I'd use a 6' utility table instead. Or hell, maybe even a door on supports -- at least you can decorate it with a plant or two.

A good/cheap desk.

[Jhan]

Welcome to the wonderful world of IKEA. I have their Galant desk here at home.

This desk is immense. The shorter limb is about two meters, the longer 3. Extremely sturdy. You can literally jump up and down on it. It laughs at my 43 Kg 22" monitor. Note how the legs are placed way back or to the sides, more leg space for you. I have four computers on it, two rolling sets of drawers and the trusty old HPLJIII below. That still leaves plenty of desk space for the phone, ADSL modem, various piles of paper and assorted knick-knack.

Prize: $329. I couldn't buy the planks to build a desk this size for $329 (slight exageration).

To much or not enough? It's all modular. Buy new segments. The desk in the picture is made from a narrow segment, a wide segment, a narrow-to-wide bend and a semi-circular wide end-cap.They fit together in a wide variety of configurations. By some strange voodoo the pictured desk is exactly the same as mine.

NB: I'm not in any way affiliated with IKEA, I just like this desk. Best I ever had.

Re:sure they look good

[thatguywhoiam]

It is so many errors with the workspace that I don't even what to go into it.

Please, go into it. Because I can't see WTF you are talking about.

Crucial ergonomics issues with computer workstations: height, position and adjustment of chair; height and position of keyboard/mouse area; appropriate swivel and tilt controls for those surfaces; having the top-edge of the display adjustable to neutral eye-level resting naturally straight ahead.

This desk, while definitely short on 'extra' space, seems to fit the bill on all of these (I mean, it's designed around a stem; thats a cool idea). So I'm curious as to what you mean.

Re:Looks great

[Spyffe]

Apple products (and I admit this isn't one) tend to look nice but not be as generally versatile and adaptable to peoples' needs.

What!? I dispute that statement. Consider the PowerBook for instance. (I know the PB because I just bought one.)

• To transfer files to/from any other box: plug an ethernet cable into the (built-in) e-net plug (it doesn't have to be a crossover cable). Open System Preferences from the Apple menu; click Sharing; then check FTP access.
• To use an external monitor: plug it in.
• To make a disc image from a CD, open Disk Copy and select "New -> Image from Device" from the File menu.

Simplicity. Point 1 in favor of the Mac.

• To use virtually any Free app, install Fink, Fink Commander and X11. Click on the name of the app in Fink Commander, then the Install button, and it's installed, with all dependencies.
• To add storage devices, plug them in to the USB or FireWire (IEEE-1394) port. They're automatically detected.

Versatility. Point 2 in favor of the Mac.

Style over substance, n'est[-ce] pas?

No. Style with substance.