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Re: Calling All Female Hackers
Let me just say that I am not a hacker... more like a nerd who likes to find technical maneuvers to circumvent things, whatever it might be..ie finding ways around bugs in a games, legalities that make no sense, or even using someone's words against themselves. Again, Im not a hacker, but I am a female, so maybe I can add to what the ladies have said.
As far as conventions go, defcon is definitely not the smelliest I have been to, regardless of the fact that its population is 98% male. Try going to an anime convention during the summer in Texas if you want to compare the difference in massive crowd odor. Anime freaks make costumes out of the most unbreathable plastic like material they can find, wear it all weekend, and skip bathing. At other cons you can walk into a room and instantly be overwhelmed by body odor. Not once did this happen to me at DC... wait the HHV did have a funny smell to it, but Im thinking thats the smell of the hot irons at work. ; ) And by the way, the attractiveness factor of men at defcon is much higher than at gaming conventions. Let me say that again....Hackers are hot.
I did pick up on the number of guys that seemed to be uber grateful that a female was talking to them, but again that is not unique to defcon, and in fact is much worse at anime or gaming conventions. This occurs is very small numbers and on a more personal and individual level.
This might sound like I'm contradicting myself, but the opposite seems to be true of groups of guys. When there are large gatherings where the population is mostly male, I do find that being a female can get you ignored or even treated badly. In the case of gaming conventions or video game conferences, sometimes I feel that I get ignored. Even trying to break into a nearby conversation when not part of the group seems impossible. I have a friend who once got turned away for a board game at a con, and minutes later her boyfriend was invited. Its like the boys go all "doe in the headlights" when they see a girl. What sucks about this attitude is that its generally more wide spread and happens in larger groups.
This is how Defcon is different. DC has a tight knit group feel without the "go away, boys only" attitude. I'll say that I've made some really good friends at defcon, some of who I talk to almost daily. I think defcon is what you make of it. I went to the lock picking village and learned valuable lessons. Someone who was just standing buy noticed that I was having a hard time and demonstrated how it was done. I have to admit that I might not have gotten helped out if it weren't for the inadvertent "damsel in distress" factor...but Im kind of thankful for that. I was actually kind of surprised at how easy it was to talk to people at defcon....Overall I would say that con goers at DC were amazingly social.....a hell of a lot more open to social interaction than hackers like to give themselves credit for.
I hope this isnt hijacking the thread, but....The one thing I wish I could get over at defcon is my fear of other girls. I've always been the one girl in the "boy's club", so mingling with other females is hard for me... especially since I dont like fashion, clothes, shoes, or pretty much anything girly. So combine that with the fact that I know everyone at defcon is so much smarter than me, and the intimidation factor for interacting with other girls at defcon goes through the roof. In fact, I pretty much avoided the females at my last defcon...Do any other girls out there find it hard initiate interaction with another female?
Let me just say that I am not a hacker... more like a nerd who likes to find technical maneuvers to circumvent things, whatever it might be..ie finding ways around bugs in a games, legalities that make no sense, or even using someone's words against themselves. Again, Im not a hacker, but I am a female, so maybe I can add to what the ladies have said.
As far as conventions go, defcon is definitely not the smelliest I have been to, regardless of the fact that its population is 98% male. Try going to an anime convention during the summer in Texas if you want to compare the difference in massive crowd odor. Anime freaks make costumes out of the most unbreathable plastic like material they can find, wear it all weekend, and skip bathing. At other cons you can walk into a room and instantly be overwhelmed by body odor. Not once did this happen to me at DC... wait the HHV did have a funny smell to it, but Im thinking thats the smell of the hot irons at work. ; ) And by the way, the attractiveness factor of men at defcon is much higher than at gaming conventions. Let me say that again....Hackers are hot.
I did pick up on the number of guys that seemed to be uber grateful that a female was talking to them, but again that is not unique to defcon, and in fact is much worse at anime or gaming conventions. This occurs is very small numbers and on a more personal and individual level.
This might sound like I'm contradicting myself, but the opposite seems to be true of groups of guys. When there are large gatherings where the population is mostly male, I do find that being a female can get you ignored or even treated badly. In the case of gaming conventions or video game conferences, sometimes I feel that I get ignored. Even trying to break into a nearby conversation when not part of the group seems impossible. I have a friend who once got turned away for a board game at a con, and minutes later her boyfriend was invited. Its like the boys go all "doe in the headlights" when they see a girl. What sucks about this attitude is that its generally more wide spread and happens in larger groups.
This is how Defcon is different. DC has a tight knit group feel without the "go away, boys only" attitude. I'll say that I've made some really good friends at defcon, some of who I talk to almost daily. I think defcon is what you make of it. I went to the lock picking village and learned valuable lessons. Someone who was just standing buy noticed that I was having a hard time and demonstrated how it was done. I have to admit that I might not have gotten helped out if it weren't for the inadvertent "damsel in distress" factor...but Im kind of thankful for that. I was actually kind of surprised at how easy it was to talk to people at defcon....Overall I would say that con goers at DC were amazingly social.....a hell of a lot more open to social interaction than hackers like to give themselves credit for.
I hope this isnt hijacking the thread, but....The one thing I wish I could get over at defcon is my fear of other girls. I've always been the one girl in the "boy's club", so mingling with other females is hard for me... especially since I dont like fashion, clothes, shoes, or pretty much anything girly. So combine that with the fact that I know everyone at defcon is so much smarter than me, and the intimidation factor for interacting with other girls at defcon goes through the roof. In fact, I pretty much avoided the females at my last defcon...Do any other girls out there find it hard initiate interaction with another female?
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