
Ask HN: What are you NOT enjoying about now working from home? - JoeCortopassi
For those of you NOT enjoying the transition to remote&#x2F;work from home, what about it frustrates you most? What do you miss most about the office?
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impendia
I'm a college professor. Overall, working from home is alright, but --

I wish I could see my students' faces as I teach. I'm used to looking, and
being able to get some sense of when my students are confused or annoyed. Now,
the only feedback I get is that which my students explicitly choose to
provide.

~~~
evangelosdotnl
are your students paying attention? How is the overall experience of elearning
apart from the fact that you miss the physical interaction that you mentioned?

~~~
impendia
> are your students paying attention?

Good question. _I have no idea_. I no longer have any way to tell. (My
software tells me if they're logged on, but not if they're actually paying
attention.) Students have been asking questions, so at least some students are
paying attention.

> How is the overall experience of elearning

Another good question, and again one I don't have an answer to.

In response to campus closures, many instructors have decided to radically
change what they're doing. If they're teaching a foreign language or a
laboratory science, or if their class relies on a huge amount of student-to-
student interaction, then they have no choice.

I'm teaching a math lecture course and I've chosen to stick, more or less, to
my original plans. And although I've repeatedly encouraged students to be in
communication with me, for the most part I still don't have a good sense of
how things are going from their angle.

My guess is that some students will finish strong, and that some will fall
apart -- especially if the virus reaches their friends or relatives. The
challenge for me will be to help out students who are going through an
incredibly diverse set of challenges.

~~~
evangelosdotnl
thank you for your answer! You have shared some really interesting thoughts!
Although I am not involved with e-learning, I find it really interesting
though and it's amazing to hear your opinions!

> Good question. I have no idea. I no longer have any way to tell.

Have you tried to make the courses a bit more interactive? Maybe with some
questionnaires or story telling?

Have you reached their parents? Would be interesting to see how they handle
the situation. I've read that some parents try to mimic schools at home, and
they have created lockers, desks, and etc.. for their children so they can
have the feeling of being at school!

How is the software performing? do you face any major issues?

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rkx1
I miss having clear separation between the time/space for work and time/space
for leisure. I do keep the same hours but even my commute (provided that it
isn't horrible) has the value of telling my brain "work starts now" in the
morning and then "work ends now" at the end of the day.

~~~
mindcrime
This is where bike riding and running come in for me. Those are my standard
"after work" activities anyway, so when quitting time comes around, I put on
my shorts, grab my bike (or running shoes) and head to the trails. That, to
me, demarcates that it is now "after work".

But, as noted in my other reply, weather doesn't always cooperate. But on a
day like today, I may pick "going grocery shopping" as my line of demarcation.
Worst case, I could get in my truck and just go drive around a little bit to
achieve the same purpose.

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mindcrime
There's not much I miss about the office per-se. Maybe a few small things,
like having a Keurig style coffee machine at work, where at home I still use
an old fashioned drip coffee maker, and setting that up and brewing a whole
pot is more effort, when I just want my first morning cup of joe. First world
problems though, right?

More meaningful, is that I don't necessarily like being stuck in my apartment
_all the time_. I like being home, but I need to get out... so in the past,
when working from home a lot, I would frequently go sit at Starbucks or the
cafe at Barnes & Noble, etc., and work there some portion of the day, just to
get out, be around other people, etc. Now, that's not even an option.

I do try to make up for it by doing more bike riding and running, which is an
opportunity to get out. But the weather doesn't always cooperate. Take today,
where it's gray, raining, and kinda chilly here in Chapel Hill. I probably
won't go running or riding today.

Otherwise, it's nice to get back the hour and a half or so I'd otherwise
spending commuting to the office each day, and not having to spend as much
money on gas. I can also dress more casually when working at home.

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antoineMoPa
As others said, clear separation of home|work. Also, food is too close and
remote desktop lags. But overall, working from home is much better than
working in a cubicle with 500 people.

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beckingz
I miss casual interactions while getting coffee.

Also exercise. All the gyms are closed and I haven't settled into a good
routine yet.

~~~
ksaj
I have dumb bells, a floor mat, and a fancy chin-ups bar, and plan on getting
back to my workouts starting tomorrow morning. AthleanX has enough to keep me
going until the gym opens again. But I do fear it'll be difficult to put in as
much effort as I normally would at the irl gym.

I am hoping to learn a few new workout techniques to see what a difference
they can make - basically turning the experimentation aspect into a motivator.
ymmv.

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dbartholomae
For me it is a lot harder to hold presentations for groups remote than in
person as almost all feedback is gone. Due to muting I don't even hear whether
people are laughing at my bad jokes.

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nehagup
Recently, I switched from iOS to Android. And I was missing Apple's Continuity
feature. Where I could easily make or receive phone calls on Mac, get access
OTPs, messages quickly on my Mac. I noticed I was ending up landing social
media or hacker-news :D spending hours every-time I picked up my phone for a
call(there're a lot in this work from home situation).

And then after spending a day, going through a lot of spam! I noticed this app
on App Store called "Connecton". I'm surprised why was it hard to find it.

Putting out loud, so that I can save someone's time who needs this.

