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Comment by _grrr | Hacker News Reader

We used to rent desk space near the Old St roundabout, which is the place the article discusses. In the winter I used to have to wear gloves at work because it was so cold and draughty in the office (warehouse) we were in. They were running gloves, so I could still type, just about. Happy days.

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Well that is European winter for you.

No, just British houses. I moved to Britain last year from eastern Germany. It gets much colder on the continent.

The British just don't understand the concept of insulating their houses, and like to complain about their actually rather mild weather.

`Extreme weather conditions' is British English for `snow'.

I second that. Having moved from northern Poland where -20C is nothing extraordinary in winter I was quite surprised by the amounts of energy used to heat typical British homes. I guess that is what you end up with if the majority of houses are >50 years old and zoning laws prevent you from changing the outside appearance of the building by for example installing extra insulation.

That's exactly what the problem was, the building was an old Victorian printing press, with some desks and an internet connection thrown in. Half the windows weren't flush when closed, and there was a big steel door entrance which conducted away the heat with ease. It was cheap though, if I remember correctly we used to pay 65pounds per week for two desks. Normal rates were probably double that. There was a good crowd of people there too.

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