According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, coffee
shops in New York are starting to discourage or even forbid the use of laptops
during peak hours and reducing the number of electrical outlets available to
customers. They found that too many people were nursing a cup of coffee for
hours while writing the great American novel or screenplay.
Other places that I often recommend if you need a working space away from home include your local library, the lobbies of big businesses, large hotel lobbies, unpopular pubs, and airport chapels or meditation rooms (obviously behaving in a way that does not disrespect anybody else who is there--better for brainstorming than bashing away on a laptop).
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