Is the Office Obsolete?

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Interesting that these three inter-related and overlapping trends are mentioned in the comments.
In our research on freelance and independent workers several years ago (which is how we first learned about coworking), we found that the coworking community was very distinct and seperate from the telecommuting and remote office center communities.
Coworking was being driven by independent workers at a grassroots level. Telecommuting and remote offices tended to be driven by corporations. The two communities did not overlap or know much about what was going on in the other area.
We see this often in our work. And when these "nearby" groups start to connect as is happening in this space, it is another signal that a trend is moving towards the mainstream.

Coach Bags Outlet of LA 2:32AM May 23, 2011

I support telework because it's green, lean, and flexible. But one of the biggest drawbacks is that crumby feeling that you've been talking to yourself... coworking helps get rid of that, and I especially like the Jelly Coworking concept of "casual coworking." Use it when you need it sort of attitude. Coworking is a great resource for teleworkers.

Coach Bags Outlet of KS 2:31AM May 23, 2011

Wonderful that there is a book on the coworking trend.
Coworking & telecommuting are blending together in this though economic time. Many are looking for more affordable office options, while still being able to interact with fellow workers & not experience the loneliness that can come from always working at home or traveling.
This work concept is spreading to cities large & small. Chattanooga,TN has a new coworking space in the downtown business district with Jellies held every other Friday.twitter.com/conciergelevel.com

Allison of TN 11:38AM April 03, 2009

Interesting that these three inter-related and overlapping trends are mentioned in the comments.
In our research on freelance and independent workers several years ago (which is how we first learned about coworking), we found that the coworking community was very distinct and seperate from the telecommuting and remote office center communities.
Coworking was being driven by independent workers at a grassroots level. Telecommuting and remote offices tended to be driven by corporations. The two communities did not overlap or know much about what was going on in the other area.
We see this often in our work. And when these "nearby" groups start to connect as is happening in this space, it is another signal that a trend is moving towards the mainstream.

Steve King of CA 12:35PM March 14, 2009

I support telework because it's green, lean, and flexible. But one of the biggest drawbacks is that crumby feeling that you've been talking to yourself... coworking helps get rid of that, and I especially like the Jelly Coworking concept of "casual coworking." Use it when you need it sort of attitude. Coworking is a great resource for teleworkers.
You can find me at http://www.telesaur.com
And on Twitter: @telesaur

Telesaur of OH 2:15PM March 13, 2009

Coworkers have figured out what alot of telecommuters are starting to figure out. It is nice to work in a location outside the home around other "people" with similar jobs and interests.
Self employed workers are seeking out coworking facilities and telecommuters are seeking Remote Office Centers as a way to have a "place to go" to work and to socialize.
Remote Office Centers, which lease office space, internet and phone systems to telecommuters, provide the same type of facilities and interpersonal contact that Coworking facilities provide for the self employed. Telecommuters may be tired of making long commutes across town, but many of them miss their office, professional infrastructure and social contact. ROCs provide all of this, but in a location that is convenient to the suburbanite worker.
ROCs are fairly new, but can be found by searching the internet for "Remote Office Centers".

aullman of TX 9:18PM March 12, 2009

Steve, thanks for calling attention to the world's first coworking book! (and hopefully not the last)
Co-Author Drew Jones gave me a preview copy a month at the BIL conference in Long Beach where we were speaking together about Coworking, and I know the other authors and have visited their spaces.
I was delightfully surprised to find myself in it (wearing my Coworking Coachman's hat, no less), but mostly impressed with the breadth of coverage of the history of the movement, key principles of successful spaces, and the book's focus on the basics without lots of wordiness: picture, context, story, repeat. It's a winning formula.
Highly visual people may share my complaint that the pictures of coworking spaces don't always show them at their best, capturing just one view of the structure or furniture without the people that bring the spaces to life and make them communities, not just office-suite rental businesses.
But the separate section on the people of the movement gives a tantalizing taste of some of the incredible folks that I always look forward to meeting as I help them find sites, launch spaces, learn from each other, share best practices, and effectively communicate. Your review just hints at this glowing heart of the coworking movement: the community organizing at the core, with members working together to create coworking spaces that they help run, rather than being clients present at the sufferance of a careless corporation.
I can imagine the book's website growing to include plans for each site and basic stats; any such thing in print form would rapidly become obsolete, as spaces like San Francisco's Sandbox Suites and Citizen Space have both grown since the book was published (although as a print-on-demand book, it can keep up if the authors want it to).
Raines Cohen, Coworking Coach http://www.CoworkingCoach.com/
Planning for Sustainable Communities
Berkeley, California
P.S. Typo in your bio footer, looks like you've got an extra space in "affecting". And also in the middle of "I'm" in the second reference to the book.

Raines Cohen of CA 12:16PM March 12, 2009