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Wait, I don't get it. I'm at GDC. A very large portion (maybe even a majority) of either gender is non-technical. It's an industry event so there are lots of sa

Wait, I don't get it. I'm at GDC. A very large portion (maybe even a majority) of either gender is non-technical. It's an industry event so there are lots of salespeople, hr, biz-dev, etc. I wouldn't assume a man I met here was a developer. There are some pretty obvious booth babes (the energy drink girls, ones with swords, etc.) There are women who, while perhaps non-technical, legitimately work for the companies they're hawking. I don't get the impression they're hired guns, though I haven't done a survey. Perhaps it's easy to say because I'm not a woman, but I think I'd feel less uncomfortable here than anywhere else where I was outnumbered 10:1.

joezydeco 14y ago
So GDC isn't the Game Developer Conference? I thought E3 was for the marketing and sales types.
- CodeCube 14y ago
  E3 targets the consumer/sales end of the game market. GDC targets the developer (in the general sense, designers, 3d modelers, etc.) ... so there are marketing and sales types trying to sell developer tools (maya, perforce, etc.)
  - mattmaroon 14y ago
    Yeah. It's more technical and less consumer than E3 for sure. So instead of ads for games, you see ads for game development tools. The ecosystem is huge now that there are multiple platforms (console, pc, mobile, web, etc.), ad channels, payment methods, etc. All of those tools are still b2b companies, and b2b software companies have lots of non-technical people. Sales, support, execs, etc. I haven't done a poll but I'd bet even here the non-technical people are at least 50%.
- saraid216 14y ago
  It's the Game Developer Conference. Marketing and sales are sort of baked into the very idea of a major conference, these days. It may not be ideal, but it's reality.
- deleted 14y ago
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peterevans 14y ago
I think the problem I have with your comments is that you haven't put yourself in her shoes. You've simply related how you see things and drawn your conclusion from that alone. Her point was that women engineers seem to have a hard time at GDC -- so yeah, as a male engineer, it's not shocking that things seemed fine to you. She took the time to put up a sincere blog post about her experience; she's probably not doing it to be contrary or to troll. The least any of us can do is to factor in her perspective.
- mattmaroon 14y ago
  Well, her point was that she felt more uncomfortable at GDC than other conventions because there are female employees. I put myself in her shoes as much as I can, but I just can't imagine why GDC having female employees working in booths in biz dev is a bad thing for other females. I don't think she's trolling either but it's just a strange sentiment.
- thedufer 14y ago
  But his point is that the problem she's writing about (people assuming she's non-technical) is true of both male and female devs, because there are so many non-technical people of both genders. Him being right doesn't make her "contrary or [a] troll".
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furyofantares 14y ago
> It's an industry event so there are lots of salespeople, hr, biz-dev, etc. I would assume those people are technical until evidence to the contrary presents itself.
- mattmaroon 14y ago
  Why? I'd assume neither and then find out.
SoftwareMaven 14y ago
I think the issue is what it takes to convince a person you are technical. As a man, if I join a conversation while other people are talking technical, I will generally be assumed to be technical. I can easily imagine women not having the "technical" bit default to true. You highlight a real issue, though. Given the percentages, if a technical conference has a large percentage of non-technical attendees, it is likely women will be seen to have the "technical" bit off. Certainly more women in tech would fix it, but that isn't the solution, because we won't get more women in tech if they continually feel uncomfortable. Conference organizers could do more. Instead of "attendee"- and "vendor"-type badges, they could have more detailed badges that are noticeable quickly and easily. I know I would appreciate knowing at a glance, in any technical conference, how technical the person I'm talking to is. Saves us time talking past each other or covering ground we both already know.
- mattmaroon 14y ago
  GDC badges have your job title on them and the size isn't tiny so it is readable. You can generally tell if someone is technical or not that way, though it's not 100%.
spocktacular 14y ago
The trick is that when people you talk to universally assume you're not technical due to your gender, it is simultaneously: a) exhausting to have to change every person's perception of you prior to being able to really engage in conversation b) demoralizing when your male peers are treated with more respect automatically based on their gender c) a sad loss of opportunity to engage in the discussion, when no opportune moment arises where you can comfortably communicate that you are qualified to participate The author cited conversations where men she was with did not have the same experience as her. She essentially had to work harder in order to be seen as an equal participant.
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joezydeco 14y ago

So GDC isn't the Game Developer Conference? I thought E3 was for the marketing and sales types.

CodeCube 14y ago
E3 targets the consumer/sales end of the game market. GDC targets the developer (in the general sense, designers, 3d modelers, etc.) ... so there are marketing and sales types trying to sell developer tools (maya, perforce, etc.)
- mattmaroon 14y ago
  Yeah. It's more technical and less consumer than E3 for sure. So instead of ads for games, you see ads for game development tools. The ecosystem is huge now that there are multiple platforms (console, pc, mobile, web, etc.), ad channels, payment methods, etc. All of those tools are still b2b companies, and b2b software companies have lots of non-technical people. Sales, support, execs, etc. I haven't done a poll but I'd bet even here the non-technical people are at least 50%.
saraid216 14y ago
It's the Game Developer Conference. Marketing and sales are sort of baked into the very idea of a major conference, these days. It may not be ideal, but it's reality.
deleted 14y ago
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peterevans 14y ago

I think the problem I have with your comments is that you haven't put yourself in her shoes. You've simply related how you see things and drawn your conclusion from that alone. Her point was that women engineers seem to have a hard time at GDC -- so yeah, as a male engineer, it's not shocking that things seemed fine to you. She took the time to put up a sincere blog post about her experience; she's probably not doing it to be contrary or to troll. The least any of us can do is to factor in her perspective.

mattmaroon 14y ago
Well, her point was that she felt more uncomfortable at GDC than other conventions because there are female employees. I put myself in her shoes as much as I can, but I just can't imagine why GDC having female employees working in booths in biz dev is a bad thing for other females. I don't think she's trolling either but it's just a strange sentiment.
thedufer 14y ago
But his point is that the problem she's writing about (people assuming she's non-technical) is true of both male and female devs, because there are so many non-technical people of both genders. Him being right doesn't make her "contrary or [a] troll".
- deleted 14y ago
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furyofantares 14y ago

> It's an industry event so there are lots of salespeople, hr, biz-dev, etc. I would assume those people are technical until evidence to the contrary presents itself.

mattmaroon 14y ago
Why? I'd assume neither and then find out.

SoftwareMaven 14y ago

I think the issue is what it takes to convince a person you are technical. As a man, if I join a conversation while other people are talking technical, I will generally be assumed to be technical. I can easily imagine women not having the "technical" bit default to true. You highlight a real issue, though. Given the percentages, if a technical conference has a large percentage of non-technical attendees, it is likely women will be seen to have the "technical" bit off. Certainly more women in tech would fix it, but that isn't the solution, because we won't get more women in tech if they continually feel uncomfortable. Conference organizers could do more. Instead of "attendee"- and "vendor"-type badges, they could have more detailed badges that are noticeable quickly and easily. I know I would appreciate knowing at a glance, in any technical conference, how technical the person I'm talking to is. Saves us time talking past each other or covering ground we both already know.

mattmaroon 14y ago
GDC badges have your job title on them and the size isn't tiny so it is readable. You can generally tell if someone is technical or not that way, though it's not 100%.

spocktacular 14y ago

The trick is that when people you talk to universally assume you're not technical due to your gender, it is simultaneously: a) exhausting to have to change every person's perception of you prior to being able to really engage in conversation b) demoralizing when your male peers are treated with more respect automatically based on their gender c) a sad loss of opportunity to engage in the discussion, when no opportune moment arises where you can comfortably communicate that you are qualified to participate The author cited conversations where men she was with did not have the same experience as her. She essentially had to work harder in order to be seen as an equal participant.

deleted 14y ago

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