New kinds of jobs need new kinds of work spaces, a place that bridges the gap between your garage or extra bedroom and the familiar “cubical farms” where so many employees toil each day.

Just how those new spaces could work for members of the state’s “info-tech and digital media community” was the subject of a lively panel discussion early this month at American Locomotive Works in Providence, sponsored by the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation.

Jack Templin, co-founder of an organization for information technology and digital media entrepreneurs called the Providence Geeks, and project leader for RI Nexus, an Economic Development Corporation initiative to promote the information technology and digital media economic sector, moderated the panel. (Its Web site is www.rinexus.com)

“People are reenvisioning their working spaces. ‘Meat space’ — the physical space where people get together — is still important, which might seem counterintuitive for people who are so adept at working in virtual space,” he said. Templin said the new kinds of working spaces are mostly geared for individuals or small teams who share office space and equipment on an as-needed basis, which is known as coworking.

Successful coworking spaces, he said, foster innovation by putting people with complementary skills and knowledge into close proximity.