Female Programmers: Are they special?

Last week, at lunch with two Microsoftie-friends, we got into a discussion about why there aren't many women in Computer Science. I've heard so many theories, but all we really know is that there are so many factors and some of them date back to childhood.

"So how'd you do it?" Jim asked, as though there was some huge obstacle I had to overcome, what with my being a woman and all. "Well, much the same way as you", I replied.

I applied to Engineering school. I was accepted. I did my homework. I took exams. I interviewed for internships. I got offers for some, I got rejected from others. Jim and I - we did the same thing. Was it harder for me to correctly prove that p is prime in discrete math? Do I deserve special recognition because I was able to do that proof despite my having an X chromosome where Jim has a Y?

My mother studied Electrical Engineering and no doubt, she had actual obstacles: people who would actually say "Kathy, I'm not sure Engineering is really for you. Perhaps you'd want to consider something more suitable for you, like fine arts?" Although you'd never hear her say it, women probably did have to fight professors to get into class, or to find an employer who would consider hiring a woman. But look at where we are thirty years later - no one's ever told me "go away - you're a woman."

Instead, we have so much special recognition that it's as though there are two types of programmers: regular programmers and then female programmers. Does it really help encourage this latter type if we give them a special attribute?

I'm not saying there aren't subtle ways which make women less likely to pursue Computer Science. A quick comparison of the United States to other countries tells you that that must be the case. But, by and large, society does not actively push women out of technology - women just aren't getting drawn into it as much.

Is that a problem? Yes, it is. Let's try to fix that.

Was it harder for me to get here because I'm female? No.

So that's all I'm saying - while various cultural issues make women less likely to pursue Computer Science, it's no harder for women to do it. So why label women programmers as "special" if they're doing the same thing as the "regular" programmers?

Bad Snail Mail, Bad!

It seems like generally a good idea to limit the amount of snail mail you get that has sensitive information on it (social security number, bank account, etc), right? I called my bank today to ask them to stop mailing me copies of my bank statements. I don't like snail mail in general and with all this identity theft and such, paper bank statements are just begging to be stolen.

My bank said no because apparently, Washington State has a law where banks have to send you a monthly paper statement. You'd think that with Seattle as a center of technology, Washington State would understand that paper bank statements are bad. But no no - it's law that I have to receive a nice little envelope every month with my bank written in large lettering so that would-be identify theives will know just where to look. What's up with that?

Seattle's Kwik-E-Mart

Despite my best attempts to not read through my RSS feeds in morning, I stumbled across an article about 7-Eleven turning some of their stores turned into Kwik-E-Marts. Well, I was curious, so I looked up the locations on 7-Eleven's website.

Not only was there one in Seattle, but it was just a few blocks from my apartment. I took a small detour on my way to work this morning to visit it.

I was somewhat impressed by the thoroughness of the Kwik-E-Mart makeovers:

Repainting the outside


Squishee & Buzz Cola Machines


Changing the sign on the top of 7-Eleven


Cardboard cut-outs of Simpsons characters (Ralph, Chief Wiggum, Lisa, Bart, Maggie, etc)


Kwik-E-Mart Chairs


Employees wearing Kwik-E-Mart uniforms


I have a few more pictures up on my Picasaweb album.

It's the last thing - employees wearing Kwik-E-Mart uniforms - that stuck me as being strange. As it just so happened, the guy at the cash register was indeed Indian. Ok, fine, dress up your stores... but your employees? Really? Are they commodities like that? And in those stores who have Indian/Pakistani employees, it feels a tad uncomfortable - like the stereotype is screaming at you.

The makeover, while somewhat amusing, just strikes me as being a little tacky. It's like 7-Eleven is a Disneyland ride, themed and all. But hey, that's marketing, right?

Stupid, stupid plaxo

Oh Plaxo, you were so close... so close...

Your syncing between Google Calendar and Outlook was great. Almost. But in the process, you've just spammed a whole bunch of my friends by sending out event cancellations for events that were 2+ months ago (well, let's hope it was only prior events and not future events). You also deleted the full guest list for an upcoming event and - for those who have Gmail - told them that it was canceled. Why, Plaxo, why? You came so close...

Maybe I'll try it again when you're out of beta.

Anyone got any good solutions for syncing between Google Calendar and Outlook (or Google Calendar and Blackberry)?

No iPhone for me!

I do not want an iPhone. That's right, I said it. I do not want one.

I like my blackberry pearl. It's small. It's cute. Email works beautifully. It runs Google Talk, Gmail, Google Maps, etc. I can install new apps on it. It has actual keys on the keyboard. I like it.

Music on my phone isn't a bad thing, but it's not that great. If I want to play music, I'll bring my iPod with me. And besides, I'm fairly sure that the size of my iPod plus the size of my blackberry is still smaller than the iPhone.

I do, however, want to play with one... just for a few days.

On a related note - how much productivity will be lost over the next few days due to the iPhone launch? What's going on today at the Apple campus?