Mark Goodge wrote:
On Mon, 31 Dec 2007 10:45:02 +0000, The Natural Philosopher put finger
to keyboard and typed:

Mark Goodge wrote:
On Sun, 30 Dec 2007 14:41:04 +0000, The Natural Philosopher put finger
to keyboard and typed:

Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 13:32:43 on
Sun, 30 Dec 2007, magwitch remarked:
Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 16:55:47 on Sat, 29 Dec
2007, "dennis@home" remarked:
Both of those work when it's done properly. Like the tube in
London, or car pooling 9-5 office jobs when there's several of
you in a suburb and you all drive to the same office in the city.
Why do they go to the office every day?
What is at the office that is needed?
Facilities and other people, usually.
Are they all blind or deaf and couldn't be contacted by e-mail or phone?
You can't email me 50 colour photocopies of this document I need to send
out this afternoon;
Why ever not?
How do you email paper?
Scan and send em.

That still doesn't get paper from A to B.

If your answer is that every teleworker should have a colour collating
printer at their home, so that you never need to transfer physical
documents, then you've just raised the financial bar considerably.
That might be practical in some circumstances, but not all.

Most.

You reckon it's practical for most teleworkers to have a colour
collating printer at home? How many teleworkers do you know who
actually have one?


Two to date.

Jobs differ. Some can be successfully teleworked. Lots of others can't.
A lot more can than you seem to think.
A lot of stuff can be teleworked. However, for teleworking to work,
you have to be capable of doing *everything* remotely that you would
otherwise do in the office in the course of a normal day. If there's
even one thing that requires actual physical presence in the office,
then you might as well be there all day and save the effort and
expense of duplicating equipment at both the office and at home.

I seldom found anything that couldn't be done remotely.

I've even done remote computer installations.

No, you haven't. You've done remote software installations, maybe. But
to actually install a computer itself - or fix it when the hardware
goes wrong - you need to be there where the computer is.


No, the whole *computer* was installed remotely. We sent it by courier,
and asked the customer to plug int into the phone, the network, and the
mains.


Of course, installing a computer itself may well not be a skilled job
- you just take it out of the box and plug it in. The skilled part -
installing the software - can often be done remotely. But you still
have to have someone there on site to do the job.



Thats where customers come in.


Although most offices still require lots of PAPER, there is no reason
why they should by and large, a lot of that could be scanned onto server
and the paperwork filed by one person.

Only when you get away from paperwork, to real hands on work, do your
hands need to be there.

Which is most jobs. Office work is still a minority of employment in
the UK.

I think not actually.

It bears checking, but there are precuis few 'blue collar' workers anywhere.


But most office work could be done from almost anywhere..

Some office work could be done from almost anywhere.


Most.

All software, tech support, back office stuff.

Tech support often needs to physically handle the kit that's faulty.
How do you replace a disk drive remotely?

Send the whole machine back. Most computer problems are NOT hardware. Or
have a local person who is JUST skilled enough to replace a harrdware part.

Or have a second computer ready to switch over. Then you collect all te
bad computers once a week, fix, em and send em back.

There are a million ways NOT to jump in a car and rush down on site and
fiddle..


Laywers.

Have to be able to appear in court.

But do not have to commute. Most lawyers do NOT appear in court: they
are on the hone, discussing things, or drawing up legal documents.


Accountants.. (harder as they insist of pssyical paper)
Graphic design
CAD/CAM design.
Shopping by and large.
All sales studff

Most people who work in sales stay in one place and their customers
come to them.

I see. That's why the Ford Mondeo is the top selling car of whenever,
bought exclsuively by companies who ran fleets of them for their salesmen?

I see your grip on reality is more tenuous than I thought.



All marketing stuff.

Things that couldn't be are doctors - altho NHS direct is a pretty
useful service - dentists, plumbers and the building trade generally,
manufacturing (directly hands on stuff: The back office could till be
managed remotely)

Plus a few more...

Train drivers
Chemists

Not sure what sort odchemists tyouy men, but most copuld be online.
Don';t need to 'be there'


Nurses
Security guards

With no offfices to guard, they aren't needed.

Shop assistants

With no retail *shops*, they aren't needed

Bus drivers
Taxi drivers

With no need to commute or go shopping, they aren't needed either.

Cleaners

Since yoiu are now at home, try cleaning your own house.

Teachers

Well even if they are theeir, they don't succeed in teaching, so might
as well put the while education thing online.

Actors

Replaced by virtual relairty shortly. Oh you men PLAYS. A minoriry
interest only. Hardly affects traffic at all.

Receptionists

Since there are no vistors, there need be no receptionists.


Telephone sanitisers

Another DIY job.


Police
Firefighters
Farmers
Vets

The last are the only irreducible residues therer really are.



to name but a few.

The fact that perhaps 15% of all work can't be done remotely is no
argument for not doing the other 85% that way.

There are far more jobs that can't be done remotely than jobs which
can. Maybe 15% of work that's currently done on location could be
teleworked instead.


If you do teh analysis holistically, there is no reason why 85% of all
work could not be done more, or less, remotely, or be simply obsoleted
by the fact that no one is travelling that much anymore.


Mark