I work in cubicles but the noise is also driving me crazy. There is always some conversation going on somewhere. In the office I am having more and more trouble holding on to a complex thought and in the evening I am totally exhausted. On the other hand working from home feels like paradise. It's quiet and I can look out the window when I need a break.

Because of the office environment I am now looking for a new job, either remote or an office. Open space has turned work from being interesting to plain misery and exhaustion for me.

I know this may sound like a poor substitute to private corporate space, but I can't praise enough the combination of noise reducing earplugs and active noise cancelling over earphones.

This combo plus somafm and a pomodoro timer app can instantly boost my productivity

> active noise cancelling over earphones

Some folks cannot wear those without discomfort or dizziness. I tried them out an fell into that category (I have some ear issues) which is damn annoying because my brother loves them for airplane rides.

Right now, I am in an office with my back to a window that looks out to insulation[1]. I'm pretty comfortable programming away.

1) they added a building expansion where my outside view was and we haven't gotten around to replacing the window with a shelf. I think I might add a moonscape, grain field, or some historical reservation appropriate image.

Get some action figures and make a diorama of happy people throwing a frisbee in the park.

I'm going more for freaking out the students than any up-up feel of a window.

Truthfully, I rather like not having a window behind me. I see several posters in this discussion who sound like that is preferable. Maybe we have a paranoid streak our just don't like people looking over our shoulders. The fact I handle some confidential information also makes me happier to not have a large viewing port behind me. Plus, I suppose I've seen one too many horror films and already had a "only idiots in horror films do that" moment.

Wearing earplugs for long periods of time is seriously uncomfortable, plus it doesn't do good things for your ears (it can cause wax plugs to build up).

I'm only willing to wear them when I'm really desperate for sleep and I'm in a loud place, or to prevent hearing damage. Neither is an everyday occurrence.

Have you looked into custom fitted earplugs? They're expensive^, but they're so much more comfortable than the foam guys.

I got a pair of Etymotic musician's earplugs to wear to concerts last year--they have a flat 15dB reducing filter, so music still sounds good without damaging my hearing. I can swap out those filters for simple plugs, and it's done wonders for my focus at work.

^)$150 is a lot for earplugs, but if you wear them to work, it wouldn't take long to justify. If you wear them to concerts too, it's not bad at all.

Almost anything in this category will do http://www.musiciansfriend.com/hearing-protection those crazy expensive one are probably overkill.

Yes, those are a great place to start, but after wearing silicone tri-tip earplugs for about five years, I sprang for in-ear molds. tri-tips are more than good enough to block out noise, but they're much less comfortable, especially if you wear them for hours on end.

If they aren't comfortable enough for you to wear all day, it's not that expensive. I mean, some people pay about that much for a keyboard, and a good desk chair is far more expensive.

That said... thank you for sharing that store! More people should know about musician's earplugs and enjoy live music without tinnitus.

I really enjoy live music, but after attending a rock show I temporarily developedtinnitus so bad it disrupted my sleep for 3 days. I had taken wonderful care of my hearing up to that point and it really bothered me that I might have permanently damaged by ears. I found the original Etymotic earplugs and bought multiple sets. I'd have new spares on me at shows that I would sell for cost. I'd give them to friends I went to shows with. Music is such a precious gift, it pains me that musicans are the first to lose it. Nearly any of these tri-tip earplugs will offer great protection and sound fidelity.

I'll take another look at the in-ear molds.

On the other hand, you can get amazingly well fit ear buds for a hundred or so, and the stuff the doctor uses to irritate your ears costs like $8 over the counter....

My biggest gripe is I can't combine it with over the ear stuff for too long cus it presses my glasses against my head too hard.

Lasik is totally worth it btw.

Not for those of us who have dreams of going into space someday.

(This isn't a joke, by the way.)

Can you elaborate? As someone eyeing (sorry) a Lasik operation in the not-to-distant future, I'm genuinely interested.

It looks like it used to banned for NASA astronauts. That's the best I can find in a few minutes. It's hard for me to imagine an issue for commercial space travel.

Edit: forgot my link: https://www.wired.com/2007/09/nasa-approves-a/

Looks like my info is a bit out of date. Thanks for the link!

You aren't allowed to go into space if you've had laser eye surgery, as there's too much risk of retinal detachment and other unpleasantness in low pressure atmospheres. Hell, you can have issues climbing really tall mountains if you've had Lasik.

I'd definitely look into it if I were you.

It says here that, "As of September 2007, the refractive surgical procedures of the eye, PRK and LASIK, are now allowed, providing at least 1 year has passed since the date of the procedure with no permanent adverse after effects. For those applicants under final consideration, an operative report on the surgical procedure will be requested." https://astronauts.nasa.gov/content/faq.htm

It's not just the noise. You as a human are wired to process movement around you. This takes mental energy.

This is true and I think the main reason people don't like windmills in their view. One cannot really relax when there is that kind of movement, especially in your peripheral vision. Millions of years of our ancestors being eaten by predators made certain of that.

True. When I am really focused on my work I often get startled when someone approaches me or even when someone just walks by.

Yes. A few years ago I invested in the Bose QuietComfort product. I slap them on at the mere hint of a distant conversation or sound that will break my train of thought.

I can't stand wearing earplugs or headphones over a long time. I wish I could but it bothers me too much.

Our company is setting to renovate their offices. I guess I'll know whether it's time to start polishing my resume when they announce what the new configuration will look like.

first you're silly for loving a company.

second, S. Jobs always optimised the work force for throughout put and lower cost. see https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-Tech_Employee_Antitrust...

if expensive and entitled employees leave and cheap one remains, it's a win in their books. Just like the salary collusion crime helped them keep salaries down in place of not being able to hire the best way from their competitors.

> I just absolutely love what they're doing and have done in terms of personal privacy.

Pffft. They're doing it to hurt their enemies, not to help their customers.

Apple is the worst company for those who love freedom and they're not on your side. I can't wait until their time is over and the damage that they have done to our industry has been reversed.

> Apple is the worst company for those who love freedom

I'm not really pro or anti Apple, but I'm having a tough time coming up with what you might mean by this. Can you elaborate?

Closed source and making it difficult to use non apple products and non apple software limits your freedom.

They clearly limit users at every turn that could lead to the user leaving their platforms. Especially on iOS.

I'm so happy they weren't able to do the same thing to PCs! If they had their way, the Macintosh OS would have been your only graphical/WIMP OS.