The Bionic Office

hondo77 writes "Joel Spolsky has finally moved Fog Creek Software into their new digs. Read about what went into the design of "the ultimate software development environment" from your (my) cube and drool."

Comments

Optimal office

[Dancin_Santa]

1) Big window overlooking moutain range or lake

2) Ethernet jack built into wall

3) Large, multipart desk

4) Large, swiveling, high-backed chair

5) Carpet

6) Door that can be shut

7) Glass window to see who is knocking at the door

Re:Optimal office

[seanmeister]

Holy shit.

Ethernet jacks built right into the wall, AND chairs that swivel?

History may remember you as a madman, but in my eyes, you sir, are a visionary.

Summary of insights

[Bikku]

- Programmers work best without interruption

- Office doors are helpful

- It's easier to read someone's screen when sitting beside them, than when shoulder-surfing

- Natural light is good

- Window view is nice

- Programmers like foosball and other dot-com era goodies

I must have missed the "bionic" part.

Super ultra elite developers

[bartlog]

One thing I've noticed, of which this article is a very good example, is how most everyone who hires software developers claims to be hiring (or at least looking for) the very best of the best.
'We have an elite team'.
'On a scale of one to ten, all our developers are at least a nine.'
'We hire only the top two percent.'

And of course in this article Joel kicks it up a notch by claiming to be after the 99.9th percentile. Makes you whether the industry is vastly deluded as to the actual abilities of those they hire...

Re:biggest pet peeve

[Schwartzboy]

Amen. I can't even count the number of workspaces I've had, either at my own workplace or at client sites, that have the plugs at ground level & right up against, say, the 76-ton (empty weight) steel file cabinet full of small rocks. While I don't see a great deal of use for the HDTV in an environment where people are supposed to be working, I'm a huge fan of this line-of-sight stuff, and other than the "dear God I'm blind" shade of green, it really does look like a nifty place to work.
Big straight tables for collaborative sitting/hanging out/pair work and doors that close, plus millions of LAN ports (no mention of any wireless stuff that I could find, though) and color-coded sockets to easily figure out what goes where based on which electronics need UPS goodness, and did I mention the doors? This article should be from the "Geek Eye for the Clueless PHB Guy Who Likes to Pack Coders in Like Sad Little Cube-Dwelling Sardines" department. Heck, I can see all kinds of potential for enhanced productivity (or at least more /. reading and LAN gaming) in this setup just for me and a bunch of my best geek buddies.

It's a pitiful wasted dream to imagine that programming-types working for non-software companies will ever see this sort of environment, if the idea takes off anywhere else at all. Pity the child who reads this article and will never live to touch the promised land...