I should've setup a proper home office when COVID began

"gin-san - shitpost specialist" (gin-san-)
08/20/2020 at 19:01 • Filed to: None

The second best time to set one up was this week.

Finally got a desk, chair, a rug so the wheels from said chair don’t ruin my hardwood floor, and a 4K monitor (although this is also for my personal use).

After months of working on a small laptop screen, 32" of 4K is awesome. I finally retired my 720p 32" Samsung LCD that I’ve been using for over a decade. It was a great second screen if I wanted to look something up while not interrupting my streaming video. It’s not worth much at this point, it’s old enough that it still has the classic RCA, S-Video, and Component video connectors (hell I still remember when Component was new and awesome).

Now my home office setup will basically be my laptop screen for Outlook/Teams and then the main 4K screen for my whole workflow - what I normally put on 2 1080p screens fits snugly on my 4K screen so working from home should go so much smoother.

I really wish I had done this earlier, but as time passes I’m less and less optimistic about how quickly we can go back to the office. While I still go in periodically, it’s not the same without my team around since I really do like my immediate colleagues.

DISCUSSION (19)

jminer > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 19:51

I did this about a month ago - finally threw away the crappy particle board desk that was an ergonomic nightmare and replaced it with a folding table.

Did that plus an upgraded keyboard and am much happier. We’re not done for a while yet I’m afraid...

gin-san - shitpost specialist > jminer
08/20/2020 at 20:01

The only desk I could find was from my local computer store; it’s just a no-brand Chinese-made desk, but it actually feels much more solid than any Ikea stuff I’ve ever had.

The specs say that the table top is particle board but they must be some dense particles since the table top weighs so damn much. The rest of the table is a relatively light steel tube frame. The price was right, and it was available when no Ikea desks in my area are in stock.

It was a convenient find since, as a gadget lover, I went shopping for the monitor first since the store was having a sale and then later found that they sold tables.

Luckily, a couple of things Ikea had in stock were an office chair and a rug; I left work in a hurry to get it because the stock they had at opening dwindled to less than half while I was at work, and they only had a few left by the time I got there. The chair kinda sucks but once again it was available .

liam > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 20:03

Yeah, when I figured I had another 6 month of this I went and got my 5k monitor from the office and brought it home - much better on the eyes!

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 20:11

Y eah that is Chinese wood, sawdust, wax and glue. I t weighs more than lead. It’s really called MDF, m edium-density fibreboard.

facw > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 20:13

I’ve had a pretty good setup thr o ugh out, though my desk needs to be replaced. Crappy Ikea particleboard sags in the middle. I’d like to replace it with slightly less crappy Ikea actual wood, but alas my local Ikea has been sold out for a month and a half.

I need to replace my middle screen (a 2560x1600 30"), but I’ve been sort of scared off by two horrible 43" displays I bought and returned. Looking for a 4K 32"er now, but I’d like one with Freesync and HDR support (at the same time! ) and ideally IPS since I’ve had bad experience with VA panels. That seems to limit me to one very expensive display with poor reviews, so I’m hoping there will be a new generation of stuff.

jminer > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 20:16

I went to our Microcenter last week and they had a lot of empty spots on the shelves.

There are a few things tech related I’d like to pickup but everything so expensive.

The end of last year I luckily bought a 32" 1440p monitor that I do love and am glad I got then.

Sovande > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 20:27

I went cheap and made some sawhorses and got a hollow core door from Home Depot. Quick coat of poly and it was ready to go.

Kinja'd!!!

gin-san - shitpost specialist > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)
08/20/2020 at 20:46

I always thought it was supposed to be lighter. Doesn’t Ikea use the same stuff?

gin-san - shitpost specialist > liam
08/20/2020 at 20:48

While a few of us are in the office every now and then it looks like the majority won’t be going in anytime soon. My friends who do white-collar work like this are all mentioning the same timeline; it’ll be until the end of this year, at least.

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 20:59

It’s cheaper, not lighter. Conference tables made out of it weigh a lot!

Nom De Plume > Sovande
08/20/2020 at 21:08

Très chic.

ranwhenparked > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 21:10

I have a proper home office, but barely used it during the stay-home order, since its up on the second floor, too far from the kitchen and coffee maker. I’m back to normal work Monday-Thursday, but still working from home on Fridays, and am still using the dining room. Its fine, my office is one of the rooms I’ve never touched since I moved in, so its still 1980s floral wallpaper and double knit curtains, plus an Ikea desk that’s falling apart.

Sovande > Nom De Plume
08/20/2020 at 21:29

That was my nickname in high school.

shop-teacher > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 21:33

No, MDF his heavy as hell!

subexpression > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 21:34

I worked from home full-time for a while so I already had a decent setup, not great but it fits me . My desk is a shitty old Wal-Mart desk, but it gets the job done. Same for my chair, the fabric is flaking off now but it gets the job done and I just have to vacuum regularly . I did add a second monitor arm .

Going back to full-time work from home has proven what I already suspected - I can’t do these shithole offices anymore. In the office I was sinking deeper in to depression with every passing day. Staying in the same job but working from home means I still have all the same bullshit to deal with (actually more because they keep adding it) , but I keep feeling better.

shop-teacher > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 21:35

I’m also just now setting up an actual office area, but even though we’re teaching remotely, my district is requiring us to do it from within the building now ... for ... reasons ... I guess.

Chariotoflove > gin-san - shitpost specialist
08/20/2020 at 21:37

I brought my office setup home in March and have had it working in my dining room since. But I think it’s time to return it to work. I bought an iPad Pro to be my home machine for portability.

I remember in college when my room mate and I took the closet door off its hinges and propped it up on plastic crates against a wall. We put the computer and stereo on it. Worked great.

Anyway, glad you have a good setup. Now you can procrastinate much better.

Nom De Plume > Sovande
08/20/2020 at 21:41

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Nom De Plume > Nom De Plume
08/20/2020 at 21:43

Kinja'd!!!