Web Worker Daily compiled this list of 10 franchise establishments where web workers can do their thing. The list involves cafes (Starbucks, Cosi, Panera Bread) and bookstores (Barnes and Noble, Borders Books). These are practically cozy enough establishments where you can hang out, bring out your laptop, and work. It’s quite interesting that for web workers, any place is a workplace, be it in a cozy cafe or as rough-and-tumble as a McDonalds as long as it has wi-fi Internet.

I personally have tried blogging in coffee shops and cafes with wi-fi services. And a cup of frappe takes me a long way. The ambience just works for me – jazz music, dimmed lighting, and comfy seats. Sure there’s the usual chatter but I find it easy to block them out and focus on work. Probably it’s also the caffeine or sugar from the drink giving me an extra boost too.

But even when I was working the corporate route, I still used my position to excuse myself from being physically in the office and sneak to the nearest Starbucks or wi-fi enabled cafe to work. Maybe it’s the lighter ambience provided by these public places too that helps. Sometimes, the different atmosphere just kickstarts your creative juices once in a while.

However, some people still swear by working in their home offices. Going out or being in a public place tends to shatter their trance-like concentration. A bit of obsessive-compulsion perhaps.

Still, I think it’s a matter of “what works” for this case. The point really is, mobile computing is making the idea of the workplace more and more flexible.