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Ask Slashdot: What's Your Take On Stand-Up Desks?
An anonymous reader writes "I work at a non-profit that doesn't have the resources to automatically bend to each and every whim. However, I've been told that I can't use a cardboard box to put my computer on, for OSHA and fire prevention reasons. So the choice is, sit down for nine hours each day or else get a standup desk to the tune of 500 bucks or more. Is this worth it? Can I make one myself? Anything to know before I get in deep?" There are lots of home-grown stand-up desks out there (search IKEA Hackers for "stand-up desk" if that's your aesthetic leaning), and some ready-made ones from plainish to very expensive. If you've used a stand-up desk, what are your thoughts?
Have you looked in the trash? People throw out perfectly fine furniture all the time. I picked up an extremely sturdy carpenter-built bookcase in the trash. It didn't have shelves but I found enough particle board to make shelves.
That I get tired of standing and want to sit down... That's my take.
They are nice for a workbench but not a computer desk unless you're always moving between several different stations. Stock Market stuff comes to mind.
In the end, sitting for 9 hours is bad but also standing for 9 hours is bad. Need to find that middle road and balance it out.
...like anything else. People with certain back conditions find sitting for any length of time would probably relish the idea of being able to stand at work for the entire period - while others would find it akin to torture to stand for nine hours straight. Sitting puts pressure on the base of your spine, but standing on hard floors is pressure on your feet and knees. Six of one, half dozen of the other.
As long as your aren't FORCED to use a stand-up desk because someone figures they take up less space or that it prevents you from falling asleep at work; then they can be a good thing. If it's a half-baked idea at further cost effective micro-management bullshit - then count me out. And set that manager on fire. Now.
You said:
Sorry, but what about just standing up to stretch and walk around every few minutes? I hack code at a traditional desk, but I'm certainly not chained to my chair. Walk around, go to the water cooler, talk to your peers, go outside for lunch. Even if you had a stand-up desk you should still move around a little.
Koans and fables for the software engineer
The desks at my work are on hydraulics, so they can be raised or lowered at will. It's great to be able to raise your desk and stand for a while after sitting for a couple hours, but I wouldn't want to have to be forced to stand all the time.
The desks get high enough that I can push my high-backed office chair underneath it, and low enough to get probably two feet or so off the ground. It's a great compromise between having to sit or stand the entire day.
>> Can I make one myself?
If you have to ask, the answer is probably no.
What you need is a bar stool. When you want to stand, your desk will be at the right height. When you want to sit, pull up your stool!
Mon chien, il n'a pas du nez. Comment scent-il? TrÃs mauvais!
I wanted a standing desk for a cheap PC in my workshop, for looking up parts and reference, etc. I wound up going to Kmart, purchasing a cheap narrow PC desk with a roll-out keyboard rest, and a TV stand, and screwed one on top of the other. The result worked out well, with plenty of storage below the PC, and can roll around well.
"in fact, I used to often work from a kneeling position"
BOOM!
My response to that company:
"I quit, because you're a fucking moron. Have a nice life....chump."
+1 anthropomorphic
0 = 1 + e^(Alt something)
Bonus points if you work at a USPS facility and use old mail crates...
He said he worked at a non-profit... oh wait...
The classic quick, cheap, solid desk is an old door across two dirt-common two-drawer file cabinets.
I've two of those. the main one actually uses a pair of old AT tower cases. Two dollar-store clamps hold a smaller piece of scrap for my keyboard tray. A single cheap particle-board rear shelf for the displays sits on various blocks. Power bars are just screwed into the back edge of the door. You don't need to be a carpenter, you just need to think (less) and make a solid block structure. Trim with toy blocks for cool points.
It's not rocket science to figure a taller system for standing if you want to try that. (Some love it, some loathe it - it's kinda like kneeling chairs and ball chairs -- people rave about them briefly, then everyone moves back to traditional options.)
Meh, fuck non-profit; unless it's all volunteers I'm not interested in funding it.
e.g. Brian Gallagher is still President and CEO of United Way, and currently earns $1,037,140 a year, according to a December 2010 report from the American Institute of Philanthropy.
Just because it doesn't pay a dividend doesn't mean someone isn't making phat stax, and it doesn't mean that they aren't asking employees to use shitty furniture to cover their CEO's salary/travel/hooker expenses.
Same with religious exemptions, that shit needs to go.