Given the amount of time we spend working, the successful design of a home office is critical, requiring the consideration of numerous factors, e.g., ergonomics, lighting, efficient use of space, and professional appearance. Barrett addresses these concerns in the first third of the text, devoting the remainder to the creation of a modular system of drawer cabinets, closed storage cabinets, shelving, desktops, and a "bridge" (a storage device evocative of the cubbyholes on a roll-top desk). The modular approach allows a great deal of flexibility, so these designs can be adapted to fit into any space and to meet specific individual needs.

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Gawaine ()	0.0 / 5	Sat 8 Oct 05
The book does a great job of covering both ergonomics and the furniture building side of things. It includes plans for desk cabinets, book shelves, and desks that are actually sturdy enough to support a real monitor. We're still building out our home office, using the book, and have run into only a few frustrations. It only falls short in a few ways. The worst problem is that some of the hardware that's needed is hard to find. The duplex hinges that are used for the cabinet doors are rare, and need to be mail-ordered from no-name specialty shops. It would have been helpful to have either had a web companion where you could buy the products, or to have had alternate plans showing more common alternatives, instead of using something that he's in love with. I also would have liked to see, for each project, a cutting plan. Cutting plans were only supplied for the file cabinet and the bookshelves. Since we tend to get our wood rough-cut at the lumber yard, it helps to have something we can print out. It would also have been good for each project to have a list of the tools needed.