We followed the highway out of the city.

The surroundings became more rural as we followed directions to the complex of buildings.

The meeting began soon after we arrived.

At a pause in the proceedings we were taken on a tour.

It seemed as if everything had been constructed to demonstrate the thought and attention they gave to the workers' environment.

It looked more like a modern university campus than an arm of IBM.

From the fifth floor of one building we looked across to the corner of another which had been placed at an angle to avoid the tiresome boxy symmetry of city buildings.

To the right was a grassy area with walkways and carefully groomed trees.

I looked to the left and noticed what seemed to be a metal gate blocking a walkway.

But there was no fence, just a gate.

It was about eight feet tall and painted red.

A metal post stood in front of it, topped my a device that would read a magnetic strip on a plastic identity card and, one assumed, open the gate to those who qualified.

A hedge not more than a foot high ran from the far side of the gate to the corner of the building.

On the near side of the gate the ground rose in a gentle slope to the base of the building we were in.

There seemed to be nothing requiring anyone to use the gate.

A small child could walk around it.

I asked our guide about this.

She explained that at one time a fence ran from the gate to each of the two buildings.

An executive from corporate headquarters came on a tour and saw it.

"Looks like a prison year" he said. "Take down the fence."

"But why did you leave the gate up without the fence?" I asked.

"Oh, it still works" she said.

"There are sensing devices in the ground and closed circuit cameras are trained on the area."

"It's still necessary to use the gate."

In a few moments we continued our tour.