4 ms·

I'm happy to work for a company that embraces remote work, but it's undeniably more efficient and, for most people, fulfilling on a personal level to have a hig

I'm happy to work for a company that embraces remote work, but it's undeniably more efficient and, for most people, fulfilling on a personal level to have a high-bandwidth face-to-face conversation--and "the wifi hiccuped, what did you say?", as happens here and without exception everywhere else I've been, isn't that.

deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
hashkb 7y ago
> undeniably more efficient No. It's debatable. Many believe remote work is undeniably more efficient and the fulfillment you feel from high bandwidth conversations is a delusion.
- perl4ever 7y ago
  Regardless of how good a substitute you feel remote communication is in general, the effect of network problems and such is an objective fact, not anyone's opinion or delusion. Also, if we stipulate that my fulfillment from being in the office is irrelevant, that doesn't change the fact that other people will not conform to my preferred mode of communication. I'm fine with instant messaging, and a lot of people are, but in my experience, a majority don't or won't use it well.
  - hashkb 7y ago
    I've been working remotely for 5 years. Left the Bay Area last year. Network problems have not been an issue. Comcast goes down for a day.. I tether. Are we really saying latency and the occasional video freeze is worth forcing the whole company to commute to the office? And live within an hour or so of everyone else? The people who suck at communicating online suck in person too. At least online there's a record of who can't read or spell. And don't get me started on the hours I've had to wait while someone is in the hallway having a chat.
    - perl4ever 7y ago
      The people we're talking about are people whose entire job is communication. They're people persons. What don't you understand about that? I don't get to dictate how they work. Anyway, I have other reasons for not wanting to work remotely too. I've seen many comments on HN from people that are very sure that the ideal for anyone technical is a private office that's utterly silent and undisturbed for concentration. That isn't me. I do get irritable if someone is having a long non-work conversation that's barely loud enough to be distracting, but I don't want to be shut up in a closet. People derive value from asking me stuff and vice versa.
mnm1 7y ago
Sure, the communication might be more fulfilling--the efficiency is debatable--for certain people but at a cost of the quality and quantity of work suffering, the commute, time wasted, money wasted on office rent, certain supplies, parking, lunch, tolls, etc.
thatcat 7y ago
That's just an argument for government subsidized fiber internet, repeating your self a few times a day is a minor inconvenience compared to commuting.
- igammarays 7y ago
  Some of the best work happens not during scheduled meetings, but in spontaneous conversations with coworkers at random times during the day. Fiber internet doesn't solve that.
  - pkalinowski 7y ago
    You know, you can send a message to your coworker: "5 min call?" and BAM! One click of a button and you are talking live.

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

hashkb 7y ago

> undeniably more efficient No. It's debatable. Many believe remote work is undeniably more efficient and the fulfillment you feel from high bandwidth conversations is a delusion.

perl4ever 7y ago
Regardless of how good a substitute you feel remote communication is in general, the effect of network problems and such is an objective fact, not anyone's opinion or delusion. Also, if we stipulate that my fulfillment from being in the office is irrelevant, that doesn't change the fact that other people will not conform to my preferred mode of communication. I'm fine with instant messaging, and a lot of people are, but in my experience, a majority don't or won't use it well.
- hashkb 7y ago
  I've been working remotely for 5 years. Left the Bay Area last year. Network problems have not been an issue. Comcast goes down for a day.. I tether. Are we really saying latency and the occasional video freeze is worth forcing the whole company to commute to the office? And live within an hour or so of everyone else? The people who suck at communicating online suck in person too. At least online there's a record of who can't read or spell. And don't get me started on the hours I've had to wait while someone is in the hallway having a chat.
  - perl4ever 7y ago
    The people we're talking about are people whose entire job is communication. They're people persons. What don't you understand about that? I don't get to dictate how they work. Anyway, I have other reasons for not wanting to work remotely too. I've seen many comments on HN from people that are very sure that the ideal for anyone technical is a private office that's utterly silent and undisturbed for concentration. That isn't me. I do get irritable if someone is having a long non-work conversation that's barely loud enough to be distracting, but I don't want to be shut up in a closet. People derive value from asking me stuff and vice versa.

mnm1 7y ago

Sure, the communication might be more fulfilling--the efficiency is debatable--for certain people but at a cost of the quality and quantity of work suffering, the commute, time wasted, money wasted on office rent, certain supplies, parking, lunch, tolls, etc.

thatcat 7y ago

That's just an argument for government subsidized fiber internet, repeating your self a few times a day is a minor inconvenience compared to commuting.

igammarays 7y ago
Some of the best work happens not during scheduled meetings, but in spontaneous conversations with coworkers at random times during the day. Fiber internet doesn't solve that.
- pkalinowski 7y ago
  You know, you can send a message to your coworker: "5 min call?" and BAM! One click of a button and you are talking live.