French doors typically have multiple glass panes. I'm not sure if using them as pocket doors there isn't a issue of saftey. Two door being pushed/pulled togehter I'm guessing to some degree are going to hit each other or the stopper inside the wall rather hard. Might knock the glass lose or worse crack it. I don't think I've ever seen glass paned pocket doors, perhaps for this reason? If it were me I'd talk to the manufacturer of the hardware to see what they have to say.

"I went to work in an office that had a pocket door that never worked right because someone had driven nails into it at some point and it was never the same after" (palimpsest) Yes. This happened to us when DH nailed the baseboard on the wall between the laundry and kitchen. The door came off track. When we renovate I will replace or remove. However, this was builder grade. On our extension I added three pocket doors. The one I had put in for the powder room is a solid core door, not thinner than most doors, as I wanted as much sound-dampening as possible with such a device. We used Johnson Hardware - not the home depot variety which runs $ 40 or so, but commercial grade. Look at the Johnson site under 1500 Commercial Grade and you will also find non-standard size frames (door max thickness 1 3/4"). Use a good carpenter.

The closed doors tell the world it is a place that is never used. That would inspire me to re-purpose that room. Great place for a home office. My sister did this and also removed the doors. It was amazing how open and updated just doing that made the entry feel. I would never actually eat in there with the doors closed, and the vision of running children while adults eat..well I see a head or arm going right through that glass. How big is that room? Imagine it full of eating guests...can the doors open easily w/o chairs being sucked in? Pocket doors and actually using the room seem to give you more space, or find a way for the doors to open out into the hall.

I'm going to say none of above (if pocket doors not an option).... I see french doors in new construction offices all the time and all I can attribute it to is "what everyone is doing" because from a practicality issue it makes no sense to me. Most people's offices are for working in and are functional and private and often times, messy! Why would people want that to be "open" to everyone? You certainly don't want your guests to see it and it is even unappealing and even stressful to look at a space covered in piles and clutter. I know everyone's office is not this way but trust me :), most are not the tidiest rooms in the house! Put solid doors that offer noise control and privacy. Also gives you other options if for some reason it needs to serve another function at any time- i.e. guest room.