> cameras on 100%

i hate the idea of camera on 100% of the time.

I am not presentable when WFH. That's the point.

I might also be on the toilet - which otherwise is dead time!

Screw presentability, having a camera pointed at you and on all the time is creepy and awful. It’s not the same as being in a room with actual people, it’s way worse.

Just meetings with 100% camera-on, even, are awkward and draining in ways that meeting in person or just having a call are not. Having a camera on you is like having a person making hard eye contact without blinking or looking somewhere else, ever. It’s bizarre and it sucks.

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yepitwas 4 days ago | parent [-]

I can't edit this more but to temper this: I don't mind camera-on for 1-on-1 conversations, I don't mind camera-on while actively participating in larger meetings, that kind of thing, that's fine.

Camera on all the time so someone could just pop in and start watching at any moment, even not during a call? Terrible, absolutely terrible. Camera on for larger meetings the entire time, even when I'm not participating? Tolerable for very short meetings, but brutal and distracting for even a half-hour meeting.

Again, it's like being stared at. If the context of how I'm participating wouldn't naturally have people looking at me more or less uninterrupted if this were an in-person conversation, having the camera on is really unpleasant. So, when I'm talking, fine, being directly addressed by someone, sure, camera on is OK, but in a group setting when I'm not the (or a) current center of attention? Bad.

FWIW I did some work with McKinsey way into the Zoom era, though long enough ago that I can't vouch for their still doing this, but: they culturally favored just using group phone calls, complete with the phone number option being a common way to connect (Teams and such have this, too, but it's more of a back-up that IME doesn't get used unless absolutely necessary—they'd actually dial-a-phone-number call in as a routine way of operating). Even when everyone involved could have used video, they usually just did the call-in audio only thing. I was like "that's weird and old-fashioned" at first, but what I found it to actually be once I got used to it was flexible, robust, and entirely sufficient most of the time. I think people really overrate the importance of (everyone having) a camera for most calls.

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wpm 4 days ago | parent [-]

>Camera on all the time so someone could just pop in and start watching at any moment, even not during a call?

That's not at all what I meant. I don't think it was how I typed it, I grant it could be, but you might want to read my original comment again. I am not advocating for just sitting there in your Zoom Personal Room, camera on, all day every day. That would be insane. But for synchronous work with others, a camera on that lets me know you're there, listening, providing feedback with body language? Thats why shit just gets done faster in person. Remote teleconferencing is low bitrate on the human communication spectrum. At least, lower bitrate than being in the same room. Cameras increase that bitrate.

In my meetings in Zoom, (scheduled, 1 hour, normal), everyone on my team has cameras on almost all of the time. I don't even turn mine off if I step away to grab the coffee pot from the kitchen, it lets people know immediately I'm not able to speak but can hear them fine.

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yepitwas 4 days ago | parent [-]

One hour with a camera pointing at my face is like one hour of someone staring into my eyes. It’s exhausting and feels gross.

	▲	wpm 3 days ago \| parent [-]
		That's weird. Sorry.

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thedevilslawyer 5 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Cameras off is a drain for collaboration. Frankly, I think your productivity would benefit from RTO. Professionalism does help in collaboration.

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lucketone 4 days ago | parent | next [-]

When I solve problems, I need text, I need diagrams, I need demos (i.e. screen sharing).

I don’t need faces, unless I’m interrogating somebody.

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thedevilslawyer 4 days ago | parent [-]

> I .. I .. I.. I.. I..

In all seriousness: you've outlined what you need. Perhaps you should reflect on what any collaborator needs.

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lucketone 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

Our team is doing just fine, thanks for taking interest.

I will not convince you, but there are a lot of people like me, who can operate productively without observing faces.

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Aeolun 4 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Since they’re not collaborating with you, and are presumably a well paid professional, maybe their collaborators are perfectly happy with how they work?

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2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

[deleted]

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cebert 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Why does anyone need to see my face. Work is transactional. Few if any coworkers are actually your friend. We’re getting paid to get a job done.

	▲	wpm 3 days ago \| parent [-]
		Because I need to see if how I'm explaining something is hitting. I need to see if you are listening. I need to know you're actually there and not distracted. It's a job. Not a confessional booth.

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anon7725 4 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I’m going to be nowhere near as productive on the toilet at work as I am on the toilet at home.

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4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

[deleted]