June 6, 2005 – Tap My Mind

Down here at Tech·Ed this year they are having a Women In Technology lunch one day. I think the reason that they are doing this is because they want to celebrate and encourage the number of women in our field. To be honest, there are hardly any in comparison to the number of men — at least from what I’ve seen over the last few years.

Well, today I had an epiphany and realized exactly why the numbers are so skewed.

I was sitting in a classroom waiting for a session to start. I was in the same row as a young woman. While the place was beginning to fill up, there were open seats all around. In our row, everyone pretty much was following the “leave a seat between each of us” rule that is common for large gatherings of people that don’t know each other. Well, an older man, probably 60-ish, came and sat down in the chair right next to this woman. Then he proceeded to talk to her for the next ten minutes until the session started.

Now, I should make a few points here. I am 100% in favor of being friendly, and trying to meet new people. However, when it is obvious that the person you are talking to is just giving you the shortest possible answers to each of your questions, then it’s time to stop.

Anyway, it’s my opinion that experiences like this can only hinder the advancement of women in tech. The fewer women there are, the more likely each is to be the “target” of some extra-friendly (creepy) guy.

Just a thought…

Well, day one has come to a close — at least as far as technical sessions. We started out the day with Steve Ballmer’s keynote. I guess it was interesting enough, but it wasn’t really what I was expecting. Maybe it’s because I’ve heard a lot of these ideas before (integration, ease of use, mobility, etc.). I was just expecting to hear something new and exciting. I did get a pic of Steve Ballmer from about ~~2 miles~~ 1000 feet away, though There were also lots of vendor booths to browse. I got a bag full of ~~crap~~ schwag that I will need to filter through. There’s no sense taking most of it home, but some of it could be interesting.

I pretty much skipped lunch in favor of the snacks that Microsoft has provided all day. There were Krispy Kremes and fruit in the morning, and various kinds of sugary goodness throughout the day. I still have an unopened bag of Cracker Jacks in my bag.

My first afternoon session was pretty interesting. I went to a T-SQL Tips & Tricks session. I learned a couple things, although I am sure I will forget them. Fortunately, I should be receiving a DVD with all of the sessions slides and audio in a few weeks. I also went to a session on the new VS Team System. It would ahve been a good session except the presenters weren’t all so great. It was obviously very scripted — even the “surprise” that one of them had when another showed them a feature. Of course, we all know that they already know all this stuff, but trying to be actors and play surprised is unnecessary. 🙂

I ended up leaving that one about 15 minutes early. Then I headed down to the first floor where all the vendors are setup. They had food everywhere, and it was actually pretty good, so no need to grab any dinner.

I’m not yet sure what’s happening tonight, but a couple things have been mentioned. Last night Gerry and I ended up having dinner with Andrew Flick from Infragistics (and INETA). That was good, and pretty low key.

Anyway, I guess that’s about it for now. I’m just going to hang out for a while and see what’s happening.

A Blog by Scott Isaacs

Day: June 6, 2005

Women In Technology

TechEd – Day One