
Stop Working at that Coffee Shop! Alternative Places to do Work - martinshen
http://martinizer.com/alternative-places-to-get-work-done/
======
zalew
> Art galleries are beautiful quiet places to work

Art galleries are beautiful quiet places to enjoy art.

Until people with laptops start occupying it.

~~~
calibraxis
Maybe you're right, but I've personally always found galleries sterile, and
perhaps would be humanized by some normal human activity. Better than the
usual gawking parade. That dead artificial vibe tends to overwhelm my
appreciation for the art it purports to showcase.

~~~
zalew
As someone who often frequents galleries and enjoys the common experience - we
are just fine with the current normal human activity in there, no need to fix
it, thank you.

~~~
corin_
Why does the fact that you like the current situation and he doesn't make you
more right than he is?

~~~
zalew
it sounded like he doesn't like them. if I don't like the place and people in
it, I just don't go there. I don't try to change it against everybody else who
is fine how things work.

on a side note, I really don't think that every piece of public space needs to
be occupied by people on computers. I wouldn't like if galleries were the
victim of what happened to cafes, where I need to look if there is actually an
atmosphere of a cafe, not an office/chatroom with coffee tables instead of
desks (sometimes it reaches a ridiculous degree). it's not like I'm offended,
it just spoils the mood.

my kind of 'get off my lawn'.

------
math
I'm currently traveling around SE Asia working on stuff. Just had a very
productive week on Don Det, one of the "4000 islands" in Laos. Quiet,
beautiful, not much else to do there. Not stressed about money as perfectly
acceptable bungalow on the river was less than $5 a day. Annoying place to get
to however. General comments on doing this: I like to stay in the one spot for
a while as travelling is tiring and distracting, and when you are somewhere
new it takes a day or so to suss it out to get into a routine.

<http://backrecord.com/4000islands.jpg>

~~~
dualogy
Is Phnom Penh on your itinerary? Then holler.

~~~
cageface
I'm living in Vietnam but will probably visit Cambodia again before too long.
Contact info is in my profile if you want to meet for a drink or something.

~~~
math
If you're coming to phnom penh, feel free to contact me also (email in my
profile). Based here. Great to meet for a drink or something.

------
meerita
I stopped doing this many years ago. And this is product of having an office
badly designed or, your own home. When I did my home properly I just can't go
outside to work. I cannot work better than the confort of my flat. I just go
outside to enjoy, not to work.

My recomendations for a proper place to live, work and rest:

1\. Decorate minimally your home. Use the furniture that you will use. Free
all the space you can. 2\. Choose a proper selection of colors and combine
them well so you can achieve some sense of 'balance'. 3\. It is important
lighting: light it up all and well. Have choices like table lamps too for
those moments you want dark mood. 4\. User proper bedclothes, some people just
use white beddings and the same ones at least for 3 months. Don't do this
isn't confortable and nicer. Change it every week and it will help to improve
the quality of the space. 5\. Be clean. The more cleaner, the better you enjoy
your place.

Following this you will never need to go outside for working. You will go
outside just to enjoy a rest and fresh air not to bothering you with work
again. Real disconnection.

~~~
sc0rb
You're telling me that some people don't change their bed sheets for three
months!!!!!!

~~~
heidar
Apparently in the UK 1 in 3 people change their bed sheets every 3 months. I
can't find the source but I read this somewhere a couple of years back or
so...

~~~
sc0rb
I'm in the UK. I change my sheets every week. I did this even when I didn't
live with my girlfriend.

------
kumarharsh
The problem is actually about "working alone". When you work alone, the
loneliness creeps upon you and takes away the focus from work, and then you're
left with the unenviable choice of trying to regain focus (hard) or staring at
walls or spiders building cobwebs.

So, ANY place with some people and a decent, undisturbed atmosphere would do.
Although, if you already have a coding buddy or someone in the house, then
there is no problem working from a house, be it a $2700 mansion in the heart
of the prairies or a cramped house in Mumbai.

Just make sure to take regular breaks and go outside to remind yourself that
you are alive.

------
Tyrannosaurs
As working environments go coffee shops (and indeed most public spaces) are
generally pretty dire. They can be noisy with interruptions and the physical
set up isn't well suited to work (bad chairs, tables not at a great height,
limited space) - in short most of the things programmers will (rightly)
complain about in a bad open plan office environment.

It's nice to get out and go somewhere different once in a while but to me
unless you're going to spend money on getting a private room somewhere (be in
a hotel, a rented house or whatever), they're not places to get anything
serious done, they're more about having a break and a change of scenery.

------
iagomr
Stop annoying people in art galleries or squatting coffee shops, and just get
a co-working space. Or just rent a incredibly overpriced office space in
airbnb, that will do as well

~~~
nicholassmith
For some people it's the specific vibe from a coffee shop that makes them
productive. For a while after Uni I'd be more productive in pubs than anywhere
else from spending time working in them during Uni, it took a long while to
get out of it.

------
jwmoz
When I was in Thailand I was coding in a wicked high speed internet coffee
shop in Samui, on terraces looking out to the beach, on a bed next to a pool
by the beach and in bars with live music at the nights.

If you're into what you're working on you can work anywhere, the more dynamic
the better.

~~~
seanmcdirmid
Every time I go to Thailand or Bali, I want to do this, but my wife has
instituted a no laptop rule for our vacations :( Honest, I found Tokyo and
Osaka to also be quite nice for coding, but I would usually wind up in one
cafe or another.

~~~
jwmoz
Ah man! Buy her a book or something, take her to a day spa! Tell her you're
reading an ebook on the laptop.

~~~
seanmcdirmid
I'm allowed to bring a tablet, but you can't code on that :)

------
jorgenev
The best place to work is an office.

------
kayoone
Id argue that a consistent place to work (Office and home) is alot less
overhead and alot cheaper to get most of your work done. The ergonomics of
working on laptops fulltime are also horrible.

When i am out and about i enjoy the places for the reason they should be
enjoyed, not because i can get more work done there.

------
harryf
The library

~~~
jay_kyburz
The libraries around here tend to be packed full of students.

~~~
elaineo
Go to public libraries before 3pm. Students will be in school, and college-age
students have their university libraries.

------
vegasbrianc
I find that having a 4G wireless hotspot is the hot setup. If the weather is
nice you can be outside while not being tied down to a specific location. Only
restriction is coverage & power.

------
gurkendoktor
I've chased that dream, in libraries and all over Asia. It always falls apart
because an external 24" screen is such a big boost in productivity and
ergonomics.

------
Nux
If you feel like you can no longer work in the comfort of your own home, then
you need a vacation. Or a workplace (go Marissa!). :D

------
adrianwinn
This is perfect. Always looking for new inspiring places to work!

------
2321sdadas
I always assumed those who work at coffee shops are homeless people (living
with mom at their 30ties) or idiots.

What is behind working in coffee shops anyway? What's the point, what's the
advantage of working in quite room all by yourself?

~~~
elaineo
People work in coffee shops to be noticed.

~~~
2321sdadas
What for? Networking in coffee shop?

------
zobzu
Dude pays a $2700 mansion to work [<https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/668090>], but
the others days, can only afford the coffee shop. Something's wrong.

~~~
techsupporter
I'm not sure how the monthly rate is relevant. It costs over $6,000 to buy a
month's worth of days at high-quality hotel chains but no one seems to object
when they stay in one in Las Vegas. How does taking a "working vacation" for
$109/night (the nightly cost of what you derided) count as being overly
extravagant?

------
Aardwolf
> The real challenge here is finding somewhere shaded so I’m not blinded by
> the glare of my MacBook.

You could have said "Laptop", but said "MacBook" instead. Why?

~~~
dsego
MacBooks are known for their screen glare, because of the glass cover.

~~~
Aardwolf
Ah, that must have been the reason why he mentioned it.

