5 ms·

I'm extremely biased because I think any effort to "normalize" a 40-mile commute is poison to any environment, but I still don't get why, if everyone working at

by rtpg 13y ago

I'm extremely biased because I think any effort to "normalize" a 40-mile commute is poison to any environment, but I still don't get why, if everyone working at places like Google want to live in SF, why can't Google and co. just have offices in the city? I get that they wouldn't be able to build their own little disneyworlds that way, but instead of having Google build an entire ecosystem, they could just have offices and people could just go downtown to eat, or not need laundry services because they don't lose 2 hours a day in a bus. If offices were built closer to the city, they could be smaller but I'm fairly convinced most people would consider it an upgrade to quality of life in general. When I did some work in Tokyo, going outside at lunch and just breathing some fresh air during the 10 minutes spent transiting really helped to refresh the mind. I've never worked in Google-like environment, but the whole closed-off , prison-like state of the campus seems very off-putting. It's basically the business equivalent of gated communities with their own services, to the detriment of services shared with everyone. I can get why people can get mad.

myko 13y ago
> I've never worked in Google-like environment, but the whole closed-off , prison-like state of the campus seems very off-putting. Where is this prison like Google environment you're talking about?
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
- fallinghawks 13y ago
  Agree, that's a most ridiculous statement.
btian 13y ago
Have you even visited Google's campus in Mountain View? There is no such thing as closed-off prison-like campus...
- JoeAltmaier 13y ago
  Texas has prisons out in the dusty plains, where prisoners are not bound nor fenced. Its the distance that makes it a prison. So in this way a very remote campus IS a prison - you have no practical choice but to exist in that ecosystem.
  - sokoloff 13y ago
    I understand the analogy, but anyone outside tech that reads an argument like that, especially if they've ever BEEN to an actual prison (even as a visitor), will have an extremely hard time hearing anything else about your argument.
    - JoeAltmaier 13y ago
      Here's another one. A prison is a state of mind. I find the cute circus campuses offensive and distasteful. Stuck in one day in and day out, I would crave freedom.
      - fallinghawks 13y ago
        And here's one for you. People who work for Google are there by choice. They couldn't be happier to be working with a bunch of like-minded, innovative people. Surprise! (I don't work for Google. I know several who do.)
        JoeAltmaier 13y ago
        Yeah; young people do lots of things to be part of a group. And they like shiny things. And they don't know any better. Sure there are other kinds of young people, lets not pigeonhole them, but they're not working at Google is my guess.
      - fallinghawks 13y ago
        I assure you, you are in no danger of Google security officers pointing a gun at you and saying "You're going to work for Google now."
macspoofing 13y ago
>If offices were built closer to the city, they could be smaller but I'm fairly convinced most people would consider it an upgrade to quality of life in general. What is this 'solution' solving exactly? These protests are targeting tech workers and tech companies because tech workers want to live in San Fran and thereby drive up the price of housing. How would that change if Google had offices in San Fran?!
- rtpg 13y ago
  Because then things like restaurants downtown would have more foot traffic during lunch time to help make sure local businesses don't shut down. Also, it could help make downtown "bigger", so even if the end result is the same (higher rent), there'd be more apartments available (instead of the suburbs that take a lot of space for not many families).
  - macspoofing 13y ago
    I'm pretty sure the San Fran downtown is already in-demand, and as I said before, you can't have everything.
- dredmorbius 13y ago
  Clearly: if the offices were in SF, Googlers would 1) overrun Muni, 2) Ride fixies to work, and/or 3) operate Google Shuttles within city limits only. The lack of an attractive neighborhood and/or housing near Google HQ is another component of this issue. I find the protests highly misguided, generally.
- darkstar999 13y ago
  I thought the protest was about Google using the public bus lanes, etc for private use? This could eliminate that.
- darkstar999 13y ago
  I thought the protest was about Google using the public bus lanes, etc for private use? This could eliminate that.
wuster 13y ago
Google is rumored to be looking for a campus in Mission Bay: https://www.google.com/search?q=google+mission+bay&oq=google+mission+bay https://www.google.com/search?q=google+mission+bay&oq=google...

by rtpg 13y ago

myko 13y ago

> I've never worked in Google-like environment, but the whole closed-off , prison-like state of the campus seems very off-putting. Where is this prison like Google environment you're talking about?

deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
fallinghawks 13y ago
Agree, that's a most ridiculous statement.

btian 13y ago

Have you even visited Google's campus in Mountain View? There is no such thing as closed-off prison-like campus...

JoeAltmaier 13y ago
Texas has prisons out in the dusty plains, where prisoners are not bound nor fenced. Its the distance that makes it a prison. So in this way a very remote campus IS a prison - you have no practical choice but to exist in that ecosystem.
- sokoloff 13y ago
  I understand the analogy, but anyone outside tech that reads an argument like that, especially if they've ever BEEN to an actual prison (even as a visitor), will have an extremely hard time hearing anything else about your argument.
  - JoeAltmaier 13y ago
    Here's another one. A prison is a state of mind. I find the cute circus campuses offensive and distasteful. Stuck in one day in and day out, I would crave freedom.
    - fallinghawks 13y ago
      And here's one for you. People who work for Google are there by choice. They couldn't be happier to be working with a bunch of like-minded, innovative people. Surprise! (I don't work for Google. I know several who do.)
      - JoeAltmaier 13y ago
        Yeah; young people do lots of things to be part of a group. And they like shiny things. And they don't know any better. Sure there are other kinds of young people, lets not pigeonhole them, but they're not working at Google is my guess.
    - fallinghawks 13y ago
      I assure you, you are in no danger of Google security officers pointing a gun at you and saying "You're going to work for Google now."

macspoofing 13y ago

>If offices were built closer to the city, they could be smaller but I'm fairly convinced most people would consider it an upgrade to quality of life in general. What is this 'solution' solving exactly? These protests are targeting tech workers and tech companies because tech workers want to live in San Fran and thereby drive up the price of housing. How would that change if Google had offices in San Fran?!

rtpg 13y ago
Because then things like restaurants downtown would have more foot traffic during lunch time to help make sure local businesses don't shut down. Also, it could help make downtown "bigger", so even if the end result is the same (higher rent), there'd be more apartments available (instead of the suburbs that take a lot of space for not many families).
- macspoofing 13y ago
  I'm pretty sure the San Fran downtown is already in-demand, and as I said before, you can't have everything.
dredmorbius 13y ago
Clearly: if the offices were in SF, Googlers would 1) overrun Muni, 2) Ride fixies to work, and/or 3) operate Google Shuttles within city limits only. The lack of an attractive neighborhood and/or housing near Google HQ is another component of this issue. I find the protests highly misguided, generally.
darkstar999 13y ago
I thought the protest was about Google using the public bus lanes, etc for private use? This could eliminate that.
darkstar999 13y ago
I thought the protest was about Google using the public bus lanes, etc for private use? This could eliminate that.

wuster 13y ago

Google is rumored to be looking for a campus in Mission Bay: https://www.google.com/search?q=google+mission+bay&oq=google+mission+bay https://www.google.com/search?q=google+mission+bay&oq=google...