Occasional chat is great and everyone needs break. However, when everyone's break is interrupting me because it is too close and loud, then it sums up to too many breaks and situation in which it is hard to concentrate. No matter how I like the people - it might be even more interrupting when I like them and I am interested in what they say.
I’m not bothered by the background noise in my office. The sales floor is a different story, but the engineers I work with speak at a reasonable volume.
