I like it.<p>For a while, we had a couple people who really liked pair programming at work. Our desks really, really weren't fit for that. They went through a lot of things and finally settled on 1 person having the work computer, and the second remoting into it. They would sit at their own desks, which were close enough to talk, if loudly.<p>Other than a few latency issues, it seemed to work pretty well for them.<p>This setup, though, would have been MUCH preferred.<p>As for the cost of the second monitor... Most non-pair places buy 2 computers AND 2 monitors... Our stations at work even have 2 monitors per computer, with only 1 developer at it.<p>I think the cost of the second monitor is a very small price to pay for efficiency.
I'm not sure I understand the concept of pair programming. It seems to me that the keyboard clashes, while able to be avoided, would be rather annoying and be less efficient. I could see collaborative editors working out much better.What does the second programmer do while the first one is writing code
I've never tried pair programming, and I'm not convinced it would be a good idea for most programmers out there. I like to be able to think alone, and sit and reflect upon things, then go back into discussion with my colleagues either via "real life conversation" or via GTalk or e-mail.<p>I'd be willing to check it out for the sake of not rejecting it without cause. However, finding a co-programmer that is a correct match seems to be the biggest challenge.<p>PS It's good to see that your workers also have decent chairs, and not just gymballs. :-)
Seems like the tables don't need to be so deep, which would help use less space. Maybe not, though,<p>I do something similar when I'm pairing, but we just sit on opposite sides of a conference room table. The offset is key so you're not constantly leaning over to see the other person.
Hey Josh, what if I want to turn my head to the right to look at my pair? One of the things I need ergonomically is to even out the twists in my spine. Seems at a place like Pivotal you might want to encourage people to do the same.