[paddez]

A few of the offices even have a pool (Google Dublin, and soon Google London)

Because the buildings are usually located in very central city locations - I've often used the offices as a way to kill time til' check-in opens for hotels after a long-haul flight (grab food, caffeinate, have a shower, etc)

Recently I took a night train between Stockholm and Copenhagen.

Showered in the Stockholm office, walked 5 minutes to the train station, slept, woke up in Copenhagen, grabbed a hearty breakfast in the CPH office.

It's a little perk that is honestly vastly underestimated

[philsnow]

On the topic of the perk of just showing up to an office and being able to get in, I completely agree that it's underestimated. I visited the Zurich office once and my flight got in at some terrible hour after a bad Frankfurt connection (aren't they all though?). I couldn't get in to my corp housing, but I just rolled up to the office with my suitcase and walked around giving myself the tour while the buildings were ghost towns. I think I dozed off in some room that had an aquarium.

Likewise, one time I was on vacation in Hong Kong and just waltzed into the office and hung around for a little while. I actually ran into a friend of mine in the office who I had no idea lived in Hong Kong or worked for Google at the time.

[philsnow]

YouTube's San Bruno office (well, the Gap building at 901 Cherry) has a gym and pool. It's also bright, airy, and did I mention bright? So much natural lighting, it would be a shame if you had a super glossy monitor and no way to block glare 4 hours out of the day.

I got a tour one time of some of the less-visible infrastructure of the building. There is a huge concrete slab under the building that acts as a heat bank, and somewhere there are windcatchers (I don't see them in aerial photographs) which funnel air over the concrete before it goes into the interior. This keeps the inside cool in hot weather and warm in cool weather, without an active air conditioning system.

There are pictures and diagrams of some of the above features here https://mcdonoughpartners.com/projects/901-cherry-offices/ .

It's also nestled in the 280/380 interchange, so my commute very often took me up and back down on 280, which is probably my favorite stretch of road in the world. I grew up in the south bay, a stone's throw from 280, and driving up and down 280 has always been relaxing for me, even when there's (somehow) traffic.

In retrospect, I didn't fully appreciate that office. Thanks for the 5-minute reminisce.

[itronitron]

I assume the data centers get to have heated pools

[quietpain]

Even the toilet water is heated

https://www.wired.com/2012/03/google-sewer-water/

[milesward]

eheheh solid

[zigman1]

That's interesting to hear that it is so relaxed in Europe. I work in EU at a multinational with offices all around the world, and within Europe, we are not legally allowed to enter the offices in other countries. The reason is simply that if there is a labor/work inspection (sorry, don't know the exact English expression) they can get a fine if I do not have a work order for a project abroad.

[eitally]

This is true in the US, too, but selectively and only really enforced in a meaningful way by a few states (including California). If you spend 30+ days in California for work reasons (visiting a employer's office would count, even if you're not on the clock when you do it) it triggers state income tax requirements. No fine, but equivalently unpleasant.