I did appreciate how easy it was to liven it up inside your own cubicle though. There are entire lines of office products designed to work with cubicle walls. I had posters, calendars, and random knicknacks, and I was able to create a space where I felt happy. I've never been able to personalize a space the same way since.

Hell, at my current job personalization of your space is actively discouraged, since there's a culture of hot-desking if you're coming in from another office.

I used to work for a global 500 company that had cube farms at some locations, and others on an open plan.

I'm not gonna lie, the cube farms were an awful eyesore. But I still really enjoyed the occasional weeks I'd spend visiting those offices, and would have jumped at the chance to move to one. The people were quite a bit more outgoing and social, and yet the space still managed to be quieter. Noise level and character were generally comparable to those of my college's library.

I do sit next to others but do have full sized desk, two large monitors and with a pair of good headphones I think it works pretty well.

Right - I'd expect this in Japan where space really is a premium and the collective work attitude is much different but... why here in the States?!?