I work with a female programmer who is married...she thinks of herself as having many traits more commonly found in men, such as an obsession with computer games, etc. But she still very different from men who program. She insists on spending at least 15 to 30 minutes a day talking...just about anything. She told me that, otherwise, programming is just too dehumanizing and technologically-overfocused. This focus, which is a male trait, is something that doesn't bother me, but I enjoy the talks. It helps me relax and "be myself" for a change.

We studied the trend of women in IT back in the 80s when I was in college, and the prediction was that by the year 2004, there would be 20-30% women in the field (it was 5% at the time). I think the actual percentage in 2007 (in America) is between 10% and 15%...this is progress and we should welcome it.

Men invented computers, programming languages, and set up the IT departments (dysfunctional as they may be) that employ computer programmers. It is not unsurprising that women feel unwelcome and out of place in these environments. Even the woman who manages the network engineering dept. where I work tends to be unusually focused and logical. I think the industry draws these kinds of people to it. As I grow older and become more well rounded as a human being, I find myself increasingly out of place with the people around me. I have been told that IT values computer professionals who have people skills and are team players, and they do. But such people in IT are rare. People with such skills stay away from IT like it was the plague...they don't like working with people who lack the normal human graces.