Alec Appelbaums’s (above) and these co-working spaces sound ideal as places where people “are more like neighbors than colleagues.” When I was a teenager I was sure that I wanted to have my office be in the back room of a coffeeshop with a bunch of other freelancers–guess my idea wasn’t so original after all.

Some of the coworking situations are all people working for themselves; but it would be interesting to see more office organized this way. If the scope stays small it is possible for each person to be the boss of their own single-person department. Organizational decisions can be made by consensus; this removes the hierarchical nature of the traditional office which is responsible for much of the spatial layout and human interactions that make your job “work” instead of “career.”

On a side note, where can I contact a lawyer as progressive as Laura, the author? All the lawyers I speak to don’t “get” this co-working, locative-media, “open source”, etc. technology marketplace… or do I need to go to the treehouse first?

I’m thinking of co-working as a response to a post-school environment, where there isn’t a common social ground in which to learn and work together, or meet new people, or an analogue to an ‘open studio’ for artists where your paint doesn’t spill over into my space, but we have a fertile environment to do stuff in. For ‘knowledge workers’ and that breed of that you’ve spelt out, the search seems to be for an environment that enables that creative exchange.

David seems to me right about cordiality taking precedence over communication, and the importance of willing parties.

I’m intrigued by the question of how to design coworking spaces that enable cross-pollination and creative action, while preserving the lines of privacy, confidentiality and quiet. How do these models spark collaborations and set up environments that enable that, in the case where activities are dissimilar? Informal social opportunities (that don’t disturb others)?

Any examples and insights as to failed coworking communities yet?

I think this article was on the money. The reorganization of knowledge and our changing relationship to work, family and community is going to change how we look at the future development of our cities. It’s not about the big city-changing projects anymore. It’ll be about the many small layers that make great cities, that are conducive to the new ways of working and interacting, and reusing/improving what exists to fit with the new ways of work and life.. Great places matter again. Community matters again. Family matters again. New technology is enabling us to get back to basics.

The traditional model of work is changing rapidly. I wonder how long it will take the “old guard” executives to figure this out.

I thought the concept had been started much earlier than 2008, though. We opened in 2005, and I believe there were already shared workspaces in the city. The Writers Room, another writing space, has been around for 25 or more years. Sunshine Office Space and TechSpace were also open for a few years when we opened, as well. Though, these may not be the type of collaborative workspaces you’re writing about here.

Very much enjoyed the piece. I do hope the question, “Where do you work?” will come to mean, at which shared office location to you work, rather than, who do you work for.