thoughts on microsoft

So far it's been great, and I'm not saying that just because I think people working here might also be reading this blog. (-;

Good people, relatively free reign over my project, and lots of freedom over how I want to work, dress, live, etc. I love it.

That being said, there's a lot of work, but it's fun work. I've been spending a lot of time going crazy with Web browsing getting myself up to speed on what the competition is doing in all the related spaces, and that's a lot of stuff. Thankfully, I'm already addicted to facebook, flickr, and various mapping things, but there's just a ton of stuff out there that I haven't toyed with yet. For example, mobile services. I just got a new phone today with an unlimited data plan, so that's something that I can take a peek at. So as I said, it's work, but it's fun.

Also, some other random notes for a bit of flavor. The cafeteria here is great. Choice of sushi, Indian, Italian, Mexican, burgers, sandwiches, salads, stir fry, etc. I've noticed that I'm mostly gravitating towards two places. The Indian for sure, and then the place upstairs. I think tomorrow I'll change it up and get a sandwich of some sort. Those tater tots have been teasing me...

The other thing is that the facilities here are beautiful, but also goofy. The campus here is really nice. Great landscaping, nice rhododendrons and even a waterfall by the outside eating area. On the other hand, the hallways here are death traps. They're not very wide, there are tons of blind corners, and there's carpeting so you can't hear if anyone is coming. End result is a lot of people almost running into each other. Typically a little annoying, but potentially catastrophic. I'm fearful every morning as I exit the kitchen area with my (complimentary) cup of hot tea of coffee. The other thing is that the toilets don't flush very well. I'll let you use your imagination about how I've determined that.