8 essentials for every self-respecting geek’s office - The Next Web Article
If you pride yourself in your geekery, then there are a few things that are essential to your office. Whether you fancy yourself a minimalist, a bit extravagant or somewhere in between, wearing the geek badge is like joining a team. You need to don the uniform.
Fortunately for you, this uniform doesnât require cheap polo shirts and ill-fitting pants, but rather quintessential office stuff. I say stuff because it doesnât all fit into one category, so letâs go down the list.
Great Speakers or Headphones
Letâs face facts, even the best of laptop speakers still suck. Fortunately, you donât have to break the bank or run yourself short on space in order to get some top-notch audio. Brands like Logitech are renowned for making great-sounding audio equipment that will save both space and cash, such as its Z623 THX-rated speaker system.
If waking up your neighbors or disturbing your office-mates is a concern, shoot for some headphones. Weâll stick with ear buds so that you can easily stash them in a bag. I did a round-up of four great ones that are all under $50 which you can read here but if I had my choice, Iâd have to go with the Shure SE535-V. Oh yeah, theyâll run you more than $400, but theyâre worth every penny for drowning out that cubicle slave next to you with pristine audio serenity.
Device Charging Station
If you donât have one yet, get one. Thereâs nothing quite as annoying as trying to shuffle around 5 different cables with 2 USB ports, especially when you end up unplugging your keyboard or mouse. iDaptâs i4 should fit the bill nicely, offering you 3 exchangeable âtipsâ, then a spare USB charging port on the side.
Cheeky Movie Memorabilia
Maybe youâre a huge fan of Office Space (arenât we all?) or perhaps Clerks is more your style. Whatever the case, you have to have a nod, at least somewhere, to your favorite flicks. In my office, itâs Lord of the Rings, thanks to my other half. We have a life-sized bust of a goblin that weâve named Reggie. Heâs found a home on top of a book shelf.
Maybe you donât have room for something that big. Never fear, stores such as ThinkGeek have you covered with items like the famous red Swingline stapler. Whatever room you have, make sure you have paid homage to the Hollywood greats (or not-so-greats) somewhere.
Rechargeable Batteries
Thereâs nothing worse than being 3 hours into your frag-festâ¦errâ¦I mean data entry workâ¦and having your mouse batteries go dead. Well, OK, not being able to find spares around makes that situation suck a lot more.
Itâs for times just like these that you should plop down a few bucks on a set of rechargeable batteries. In fact, make sure you have enough to power all of your devices, plus having a set fully charged for when the inevitable happens. Not only will it keep your frustrations low, it will also help to create less waste by eliminating the need to throw away the dead ones.
If you are in an office that gets a fair amount of sun, Iâm a big fan of this AA/AAA battery charger that will get you juiced back up with solar power. Since small batteries such as these donât hold loads of power, it doesnât take long to get them filled back up and it keeps another plug from running up your electric bill.
Something Green
Humor me here for a bit. If you havenât managed to get something to stay alive in your office, you should give it another try. I donât know the scientific reasons behind it, but having a living plant in your office just makes things nicer. In fact, if you work in a noisy environment, a broad, leafy plant can even cut down on the ambient noise.
There are other options out there, too, for those of you whose thumbs are more black than green. If youâre the type of person that forgets to water your cat, try a Philodendron or a Jade plant. African Violets are great for a splash of color beyond green. Any of these can manage to go the better part of a couple of weeks without dying due to a lack of water. Just keep them in some light, pour out your water cup into them at the end of the day and youâll be set.
Need a geek spin to make you feel at home? #-Link-Snipped-# that you can do which will remind you to water your plants by letting them talk to you.
Proper Lighting
While nothing can beat the light from that big ball of gas in the sky, itâs not always the best light to have when youâre trying to work on a reflective screen. Itâs incredibly difficult to direct sunlight, but the benefits of that type of light are well known.
For those of you stuck in cubicle hell, try adding a sunlight desk lamp. These little guys will give you the benefits of sunlight, without having to work by a window all day. Better yet, theyâre directional so you can keep them from reflecting your own face back at you all day.
Look, we may be the pasty-skinned and proud of the world, but thereâs no reason to be the ones with eye strain and seasonal depression.
A Great Keyboard
How you define a great keyboard is going to vary greatly from person to person. Iâve used loads of them over the years and my present favorite is still Appleâs USB keyboard with the keypad. Iâve tried using the Bluetooth, smaller version, but I tend to use the keypad too much to go without it.
#-Link-Snipped-#If you want to earn some real geek cred, though, youâll need to buckle down and grab yourself something like the Das Keyboard (pictured above). Designed for those of us who have an addiction to that click-clack sound from the old IBM PS-2 keyboards, the Das Keyboard has a model that doesnât even bother with screening the keys. After all, you know where they are, right?
Proper Book Displays
Chances are, youâve collected a mass of books over the years. Between manuals, âIdiots Guidesâ and just old favorites, youâve probably got drawers and shelves stuffed with them. While we might be in the digital era, no Kindle can ever compare with kicking back with a nice copy of an MCSE or Cisco certification guide.
Youâve gathered them, so do them justice and display them properly. Whether itâs with a trippy, floating shelf like the ones pictured here or some other choice, a good book collection is the sign of true geek credibility. Show those things off proudly.
Iâm sure you have some others, but this is my essential list. Granted, mine goes a bit deeper because I have entire boxes full of cables and audio gear that no self-respecting audio geek could live without, but this should be a great start for the rest of us. So what did I miss? Drop a comment below and tell me what needs to be in my office next.
- Brad McCarty
Fortunately for you, this uniform doesnât require cheap polo shirts and ill-fitting pants, but rather quintessential office stuff. I say stuff because it doesnât all fit into one category, so letâs go down the list.
Great Speakers or Headphones
Letâs face facts, even the best of laptop speakers still suck. Fortunately, you donât have to break the bank or run yourself short on space in order to get some top-notch audio. Brands like Logitech are renowned for making great-sounding audio equipment that will save both space and cash, such as its Z623 THX-rated speaker system.
If waking up your neighbors or disturbing your office-mates is a concern, shoot for some headphones. Weâll stick with ear buds so that you can easily stash them in a bag. I did a round-up of four great ones that are all under $50 which you can read here but if I had my choice, Iâd have to go with the Shure SE535-V. Oh yeah, theyâll run you more than $400, but theyâre worth every penny for drowning out that cubicle slave next to you with pristine audio serenity.
Device Charging Station
If you donât have one yet, get one. Thereâs nothing quite as annoying as trying to shuffle around 5 different cables with 2 USB ports, especially when you end up unplugging your keyboard or mouse. iDaptâs i4 should fit the bill nicely, offering you 3 exchangeable âtipsâ, then a spare USB charging port on the side.
Cheeky Movie Memorabilia
Maybe youâre a huge fan of Office Space (arenât we all?) or perhaps Clerks is more your style. Whatever the case, you have to have a nod, at least somewhere, to your favorite flicks. In my office, itâs Lord of the Rings, thanks to my other half. We have a life-sized bust of a goblin that weâve named Reggie. Heâs found a home on top of a book shelf.
Maybe you donât have room for something that big. Never fear, stores such as ThinkGeek have you covered with items like the famous red Swingline stapler. Whatever room you have, make sure you have paid homage to the Hollywood greats (or not-so-greats) somewhere.
Rechargeable Batteries
Thereâs nothing worse than being 3 hours into your frag-festâ¦errâ¦I mean data entry workâ¦and having your mouse batteries go dead. Well, OK, not being able to find spares around makes that situation suck a lot more.
Itâs for times just like these that you should plop down a few bucks on a set of rechargeable batteries. In fact, make sure you have enough to power all of your devices, plus having a set fully charged for when the inevitable happens. Not only will it keep your frustrations low, it will also help to create less waste by eliminating the need to throw away the dead ones.
If you are in an office that gets a fair amount of sun, Iâm a big fan of this AA/AAA battery charger that will get you juiced back up with solar power. Since small batteries such as these donât hold loads of power, it doesnât take long to get them filled back up and it keeps another plug from running up your electric bill.
Something Green
Humor me here for a bit. If you havenât managed to get something to stay alive in your office, you should give it another try. I donât know the scientific reasons behind it, but having a living plant in your office just makes things nicer. In fact, if you work in a noisy environment, a broad, leafy plant can even cut down on the ambient noise.
There are other options out there, too, for those of you whose thumbs are more black than green. If youâre the type of person that forgets to water your cat, try a Philodendron or a Jade plant. African Violets are great for a splash of color beyond green. Any of these can manage to go the better part of a couple of weeks without dying due to a lack of water. Just keep them in some light, pour out your water cup into them at the end of the day and youâll be set.
Need a geek spin to make you feel at home? #-Link-Snipped-# that you can do which will remind you to water your plants by letting them talk to you.
Proper Lighting
While nothing can beat the light from that big ball of gas in the sky, itâs not always the best light to have when youâre trying to work on a reflective screen. Itâs incredibly difficult to direct sunlight, but the benefits of that type of light are well known.
For those of you stuck in cubicle hell, try adding a sunlight desk lamp. These little guys will give you the benefits of sunlight, without having to work by a window all day. Better yet, theyâre directional so you can keep them from reflecting your own face back at you all day.
Look, we may be the pasty-skinned and proud of the world, but thereâs no reason to be the ones with eye strain and seasonal depression.
A Great Keyboard
How you define a great keyboard is going to vary greatly from person to person. Iâve used loads of them over the years and my present favorite is still Appleâs USB keyboard with the keypad. Iâve tried using the Bluetooth, smaller version, but I tend to use the keypad too much to go without it.
#-Link-Snipped-#If you want to earn some real geek cred, though, youâll need to buckle down and grab yourself something like the Das Keyboard (pictured above). Designed for those of us who have an addiction to that click-clack sound from the old IBM PS-2 keyboards, the Das Keyboard has a model that doesnât even bother with screening the keys. After all, you know where they are, right?
Proper Book Displays
Chances are, youâve collected a mass of books over the years. Between manuals, âIdiots Guidesâ and just old favorites, youâve probably got drawers and shelves stuffed with them. While we might be in the digital era, no Kindle can ever compare with kicking back with a nice copy of an MCSE or Cisco certification guide.
Youâve gathered them, so do them justice and display them properly. Whether itâs with a trippy, floating shelf like the ones pictured here or some other choice, a good book collection is the sign of true geek credibility. Show those things off proudly.
Iâm sure you have some others, but this is my essential list. Granted, mine goes a bit deeper because I have entire boxes full of cables and audio gear that no self-respecting audio geek could live without, but this should be a great start for the rest of us. So what did I miss? Drop a comment below and tell me what needs to be in my office next.
- Brad McCarty
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