Facebook close to naming Sun Microsystems campus as new headquarters.

I liked both locations very much. If you have ever lived in the desert and liked it, you might like what we used to call "New Menlo". I can see how others might be horrified at the idea of working in such an austere landscape.

Downtown PA is a popular after-work destination. The burden of work can seem very light when you can hear groups of people laughing as they walk by during lunch or in the evening. The parking and traffic are a tolerable hassle. The city of Palo Alto has done a nice job of providing parking over the years.

The Sun offices out on the edge of the bay were unlike many others that I have worked in. Although there were cubicles in odd corners, more than 95% of my building was subdivided into high-quality office space with doors that closed (and locked!). The views, the site arrangement, and the good offices felt right for sustained, intense concentration.

The neighborhood surrounding the Sun campus on the land side alternates between post-WWII low income housing and warehousing or light industrial parks. It's fairly bleak.

I would not hesitate to walk a few miles after work in downtown PA. The network of trails on the bay levees are a wonderful place to run or ride a bike. I always liked to take short walks out there in the daytime or early evening.

On the land side of New Menlo, I never walked beyond the edge of the parking lot. I didn't know anyone else who did either. In that regard, the place is indeed a prison.