

New Facebook Headquarters - winanga
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/06/15/behold-the-new-facebook-headquaters/

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spitfire
I honestly cannot imagine a worse place to work. Open space equals no privacy
and no place to sit and consider difficult problems. I get a very childish,
highschoolish sense from that video.

Also, where are the old people? I can assure you people over 30 have a good
amount of experience and knowledge they can contribute to a business like
that. It's through old people who say "Oh yes, this problem is exactly the
same as they used to have in shipping goods on old trains, look in this book
for the optimal answer, Brunel figured it out in 1840" that you can short
circuit the learning process and gain an edge.

Or in simpler words, you gain perspective. The very thing that all the dotcoms
are shouting about.

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pie
Indeed. My current place of employ has a similar open work space (granted, it
looks less like an airport) and it's notably uncomfortable.

The idea that such a layout encourages "openness" and "communication" often
doesn't work out, and instead promotes unsolicited shoulder-staring, frequent
casual interruptions, and a generally distracting ambiance of sales calls,
verbal outbursts, and coworkers' annoying habits. Headphones are my best
friend here.

It's odd that you should mention the highschoolish sense of the space, because
I notice the same in my own work environment, not only in aesthetic but in the
way people conduct themselves and how the business itself has slowly come to
be run. (This part is most likely coincidence, but your comment certainly
struck a chord.)

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brooksbp
The only thing I object to is the lack of privacy. In a cube, I am not
distracted by outside motion. At those desks, it would be near impossible to
get in the zone in a room that huge.

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rw
Creepy:

> "Notice: work areas subject to search"

[http://www.techcrunch.com/wp-
content/uploads/2009/06/img_408...](http://www.techcrunch.com/wp-
content/uploads/2009/06/img_4089.jpg)

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enomar
Someone in the TC comments suggests that it's a joke. Perhaps it's to remind
people of a search initiative?

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rw
I hope so! I thought that at first, but figured since the desks were so
pristine -- it may be for serious.

Are the letters on the columns in that photograph used to navigate the office
like a parking lot?

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die_sekte
Harsh fluorescent lighting, open plan office, every desk looks the same. Who
wouldn't want to work there?

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vaksel
that office space has zero personality

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hunterjrj
Modern take on the time tested productivity-maximizer: The sweat shop.

