This is what struck me most about this article - that they seemed to think it was OK to sit in a a restaurant with a laptop open on the table, and not even being coy about it! It's plain disrespectful, not even so much to the people at your table (who presumably are either ok with it or at least know the person and could interfere), but more to the other patrons and staff. Imagine going out for nice night in town and some moron pulls out his computer at the table next to you and starts banging away and polluting the atmosphere with his bright lcd screen. Luckily around here waiters are starting to stand up for patrons and are asking people on their phones to move outside while they talk (which is a comparable social faux pas, but happens much more).

(note that it depends on the definition of 'restaurant' - I realize that McDonalds is called a 'restaurant' too in some parts of the world, I mean a place with tablecloths and staff that comes to your table, so starting at around a neighborhood pizza place or so. Also I've asked my wife to move to the bar or the lobby several times when she got out her computer in similar situations, I've been on all sides of the table on this one.)