This is sort of a spin off of the "Future Transportation" thread in an area that never really got going in first place.
It really is about at least two aspects:
1. Tele-work...working remotely from the "workplace"
I did this for about 2 years in the early 90's. I worked for a large software company based on Long Island. I had a basement office in my home in Iowa and did almost all of my work from there except for some visits to customers and some trips to Long Island to meet with my manager. Over the two years, I probably was able to work about 75-85% from home. I did telephone support for a product and programming. I had 2 phone lines, one to talk and one for modem dial-in.
Since those days, many more such people work from home and we have broadband like cable modem and DSL plus practical video conferencing.
2. Video conferencing
There are now stds for internet based video conferencing (H.323) and the equipment and broadband access required are far more common. At one time Kinko's was putting in public, "for-charge" video conferencing in over a hundred of their locations. I work at a university now and have been using multi-point, internet conferencing to connect with peers at as many as 11 other universities at once to discuss topics of common interest. It requires a little attention to meeting control, and the connections sometimes halts and freezes momentarily, however, the experience is much like "being there". I much prefer this over travel to a conference! No airport, no plane, no taxis, no hotel, no sleeping out of your normal time zone. It is hugely cheaper in terms of time and money and way easier to digest one 2-hour topic of interest every few weeks instead of going to a 3 day conference and walking into an entirely new session and topic every 50 minutes or so!
Anyone got experience in either of these areas to comment? In this case, the "mileage" has to be hugely better to stay home and spin a few electrons around the internet instead of moving my body hundreds or even thousands of miles! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
It really is about at least two aspects:
1. Tele-work...working remotely from the "workplace"
I did this for about 2 years in the early 90's. I worked for a large software company based on Long Island. I had a basement office in my home in Iowa and did almost all of my work from there except for some visits to customers and some trips to Long Island to meet with my manager. Over the two years, I probably was able to work about 75-85% from home. I did telephone support for a product and programming. I had 2 phone lines, one to talk and one for modem dial-in.
Since those days, many more such people work from home and we have broadband like cable modem and DSL plus practical video conferencing.
2. Video conferencing
There are now stds for internet based video conferencing (H.323) and the equipment and broadband access required are far more common. At one time Kinko's was putting in public, "for-charge" video conferencing in over a hundred of their locations. I work at a university now and have been using multi-point, internet conferencing to connect with peers at as many as 11 other universities at once to discuss topics of common interest. It requires a little attention to meeting control, and the connections sometimes halts and freezes momentarily, however, the experience is much like "being there". I much prefer this over travel to a conference! No airport, no plane, no taxis, no hotel, no sleeping out of your normal time zone. It is hugely cheaper in terms of time and money and way easier to digest one 2-hour topic of interest every few weeks instead of going to a 3 day conference and walking into an entirely new session and topic every 50 minutes or so!
Anyone got experience in either of these areas to comment? In this case, the "mileage" has to be hugely better to stay home and spin a few electrons around the internet instead of moving my body hundreds or even thousands of miles! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif