Desk

From ArticleWorld

A desk is a type of furniture and is categorized under tables. It has a horizontal surface that is used to read or write on with pens or on a computer. Desks are usually found in offices or at other places of work. They have one or more drawers for storage of papers and files mainly.

The desk is different from a table in one crucial aspect – one can sit on only one side of the table, an exception being a partners desk. Desks come in various shapes and sizes. On one end is the Armoire desk which is built within a large wardrobe or cabinet and on the other end is the portable desk, which can be easily placed on a person’s lap. The desk forms as they are today, were first produced in the 17th and 18th century.

Industrial era desks

A boom in the white – collar job sector during the industrial revolution gave rise to the need for practical desks. They began to be produced in mass quantities using cheap and innovative steam – driven woodworking machines. This was a first in the manufacture of desks. Master craftsmen made ornate desks for the rich while others could choose from a range of desks mass – produced.

Paper correspondence increased and so did the need for specialized desks. The classical cylinder desk gave way to the rolltop desk. The latter provided a fast and a low cost method of locking up the excess flow of paper without filing everything at the end of he day. The Wooton desk was one of the last types of the desks attributed to the monstrous “pigeonhole” era.

Newer forms

At the beginning of the 20th century, the typewriter came into vogue. Steels desks were used that had been designed to take the heavier loads of paper and to bear the heavy pounding of the typewriter. The L – shaped desk became common, with the “leg” used as an annex for the typewriter.

After the Second World War came anther boom with the advent of photocopying. Modular desks were introduced which seated numerous workers close to each other.

The biggest boom was probably the introduction of computers in offices in the 20th century. Ergonomic desks were built which had been specifically adapted to keep the computer. Then came cubicle desks, which became an immediate hit in USA. They brought co – workers closer together without reducing their desk space.