Desk animationWriters everywhere, here’s a handy GIF perspective on the evolution of your favorite workspace: your desk. This animation purports to show the development of the desk from 1981 until 2014, although a Thinkpad stays remarkably unevolved throughout much of that period. But the rest all changes – or rather, gets sucked into the laptop, one scheduler or address book or pinboard replacement at a time.

Every gadget or desk accessory disappears into the screen. Calculator: Gone. Fax machine: gone. Diary: Gone. Rolodex: Gone. Landline: Gone (into Skype). Globe: Gone (Google Maps). Encyclopedia: Gone (Wikipedia). Newspaper: Gone (Google). By the end, only the mobile (storing e-books?) and the shades remain.

Is that really a true picture of how your workspace and work habits have evolved? I’d love to hear if so. It looks very drastic and bleak to me – but who knows? Let us have your input on what you really need on your desk – and what technology has taken away.

(Big thanks to Best Reviews. The image originally appeared here. The photographer was Doug Thomsen.)

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