I wouldn't be so sure that private offices is a male-only thing, or that Microsoft advertising it had to do with the "lone coder." I know quite a few women who

I wouldn't be so sure that private offices is a male-only thing, or that Microsoft advertising it had to do with the "lone coder." I know quite a few women who complain about their open office work plans and would jump at an opportunity to get the same pay with a private office. Rather than being about a male-dominated "lone coder", Microsoft's guarantee of a private office means two things: 1) that a private office is a benefit to their target employees, and 2) that most companies at the time did not have a private office Otherwise, they wouldn't advertise it as much. In more recent times, I don't think that Facebook's push to open offices is as employee centric as Microsoft's push to private offices. Instead, I think Facebook (and Apple) are trying to save money, since an 8' x 10' office in San Fran costs an employer anywhere from $8,000 / yr to $30,000 / yr. So, it would have less to do with providing benefits to their employees and more about their own bottom line.