By Jim Neumann. Jim is customer support specialist at DEVONtechnologies and works from home in Michigan, USA, or any other place he likes.

Your alarm clock didn’t go off, your hot shower was lukewarm, traffic was backed up, you spilled coffee when that red coupe cut in front of you, and the boss was eyeing his watch as you limped in to your cubicle. This is a typical morning for a commuter. But there’s an alternative. According to current research, in 2020 almost 54% of US workers telecommuted at least once a month. I am one of them. So what is telecommuting really like? (mehr)

You may know that I like to work from places other than my office, e.g. from our local coffee shop. This summer we finally completed the renovation of our old garden house: a new roof, new door and windows, carpet, painted walls, electricity and (via D-LAN) Internet. Completed by a baroque-style secretary it now makes a nice little retreat from the everyday office and family madness. (mehr)

From March 4 through 6 Cocoa developers gathered in then-rainy Leicester, UK, for NSConference 5. So Alan and me joined them and enjoyed socializing with friends from the US to Israel. And while we  learned about quite a few interesting ideas from other developers, from business to programming, we also acquired *truly *essential knowledge: how to make our own cocktails. To the right you can see Alan having fun preparing his very first Singapore Sling under the eyes of a professional bar keeper. I did a Cosmopolitan so I guess it was the unofficial “pinkish cocktail night”. Or did we just try to summon Spring? (mehr)

As some of you may know Bill DeVille, our support hero, lives in a log cabin near Nashville, Indiana, USA. And while you might think that’s a peaceful place, it is not always. Here’s what Bill copied from the Sheriff’s Log this morning: … (mehr)

One of the advantages of an Internet-based software business is that we’re not as strongly tied to our offices than other people. And so we like to use our freedom to work in other places that we like, that have some advantages that very day (e.g. save us from driving a second round-trip to pick up our children), or that just have better coffee. Want to see how we’re working? See two current ‘office’ shots. (mehr)

While DEVONthink To Go is still ‘waiting for review’, we are using the time for our annual gathering, when the most of the team comes together from all over the world to talk about our plans for the forthcoming months. And as usual, the flights from North America to Europe are delayed. Thank god the sun is shining and the San Francisco Coffee Company at the Stuttgart Airport has great coffee, chocolate muffins, cold water, and free WiFi. (mehr)

Today I it was for the very first time this year warm and sunny enough for me to work on the balcony — the one balcony that gave this blog its name. People are sitting outside and are having a cup of coffee on my hometown’s market square. That’s how I should be! (mehr)

DEVONtechnologies is growing again: Last week Golden Retriever puppy Tippy moved in at Bill’s log cabin in Indiana, USA. Tippy has been happily adopted by Rottweiler dog mum Destry and is now keeping Bill and Destry busy. Welcome on the team, Tippy! (mehr)

This weekend I watched for the first time ever an American Football game, the Ludwigsburg Bulldogs vs. Albershausen Crusaders (regional top league). My daughter joined their cheerleaders team last year and she had her very first public appearance this Saturday. It was a hell lot of fun: great music, the cheerleaders performances, good barbecue, cheap (of course American) beer, and me trying to follow what goes on on the field — reading the basic rules of the game in Wikipedia on my iPhone. I knew that all that technology would be useful for something eventually. (mehr)

Long-standing readers will know that I like to work in local coffee shops and cafés. This January the first Starbucks opened in my area, about 20km north of Stuttgart, Germany. So I just had to try it — see the picture below. Reasonable coffee, agreed. But: WiFi was not yet operational and Starbucks in Germany does not offer it for free but you need to either pay by the minute or have a T-Mobile or T-Online subscription. Dear Starbucks, welcome to the 21st century — time to reconsider this antique concept. (mehr)