How to plan your home office

Sunset, Oct, 1998 by Lisa Stockwell, Michael Goldstein, Terrie Rizzo

* Cool colors like green and blue are calming; warm colors like red and orange are more stimulating.

* Seam together two or more bright colors of commercial-grade carpet to create a floor pattern that will give life to the room. Chairs and carts roll easily across low-pile carpets.

* Build a pull-down table into the face of a Murphy bed for additional work and conference space.

* If your office requires complex electronic cabling, raise the floor above the subfloor just enough to hide the cables, advises San Francisco interior designer Joseph Horan.

* Wire baskets hung beneath a desktop can hold excess cable.

* A row of large clips attached to the wall by cup hooks allows you to keep important papers off your desk but within easy reach.

Practical considerations

* Plan for acoustical privacy. Make sure your office can remain a quiet zone while you are working, especially if family members will be nearby. Background clatter, appliance noises, giggles, or dog barks will not help you project an air of professionalism during important phone calls, and they can interrupt your concentration.

* Think about your desktop as real estate. How much of it can you comfortably devote to the computer and monitor? Should you opt for a tower computer that you can place beside or under the desk? You can also buy an adjustable keyboard tray and attach it under a table or in place of your desk's pencil drawer.

* If you are trying to decide between a laptop and a desktop computer, bear in mind that most laptops can be plugged into a larger monitor and keyboard to give you the advantages of both.

* Control the clutter. Solutions for organizing and hiding multiple wires and cables include hook-and-loop (Velcro) fasteners, plastic hooks and channels, and furnishings with built-in wire management systems.

* Office supply stores sell special cleaners for monitors and keyboards. And always keep that coffee mug well away from the equipment.

RELATED ARTICLE: Wired West

Answers to frequently asked questions about equipment

BY MICHAEL GOLDSTEIN

WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT ELEMENTS OF A HOME OFFICE?

For most people, the basics are a computer with a monitor, high-speed modem, and Internet access; a printer; a fax machine; a phone line (preferably two); and a phone. Other necessities: some form of backup and storage, a surge protector, and antivirus software.

* WHAT KIND OF SOFTWARE WILL I NEED?

The basics might include an office package (word processing, spreadsheet, and graphics), a financial program, perhaps a simple accounting package, and a contact manager for entering phone numbers, addresses, and other information about business or personal contacts. Contact manager packages available range from simple to powerful and complex sales-oriented programs.

* WHY TWO PHONE LINES?

One line is for conversations and taking messages, through either an answering machine or an electronic telephone service. The second line is for your fax machine and modem to share. Thus you could talk to a client while you send a fax or search out competitors' information on the Web.