grace hopper | Trendy Techie

October 16, 2014
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GHC14 Day 2 - Megan Smith, Maria Klawe and Satya Nadella take the Stage

Summing up the morning keynotes in one emotion: awe. The surprise speaker that GHC had kept a secret until she walked out on stage was, as I expected, the new CTO of the United States of America, Megan Smith. What an inspiring and well-spoken woman! And though Satya Nadella’s interview stirred up quite a bit of controversy on the net, I was impressed by his support and bravery in being the first major tech CEO to speak out in support of women in tech on such a broad scale. Yes, he said what he said, but the internet seems to have forgotten all the other great, positive things he said in his interview, including his feelings that he enjoys working with women, that “working hard is something that is worth doing,” and “each one of us has a few superpowers.” But I’ve written a whole other post on that issue, so check that out and let me know if you agree!

This is probably the only tech conference in the world to have a long line for the women’s bathroom and none for the men’s. How refreshing!

Until now I haven’t really shared much from the sessions I went to. These pictures are from one of my favourite sessions, lessons in graphics from a Disney engineer! She showed us a lot of behind-the-scenes images and before and after stills from Disney’s Frozen.

When not in sessions, Sarah and I spent a lot of time in the Google lounge, charging our phones at the charging stations and taking advantage of the comfy chairs and lego block stools for those necessary feet-up moments. Being on your feet all day at a conference is no easy feat - notice that I ditched my Day 1 heels and wore flats on Day 2.

And then of course there was the ever-enticing career fair, which somehow managed to hold new surprises and more companies every time we visited. Below are some of the most entertaining booths we found on Day 2: HBO’s virtual reality Game of Thrones experience using Oculus Rift, Pinterest’s beautiful DIY-inspired booth, and an unexpected temporary tattoo booth hosted by Simple, a digital bank. Yes, that’s why I tweeted about getting a tattoo from a bank that day.

PS: My trip to Phoenix for the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing has been sponsored by Dalhousie University and Syncfusion, my official corporate partner! A HUGE thanks to both, I am so grateful.

Syncfusion is the enterprise technology partner of choice for Windows development, delivering a broad range of software frameworks and tools. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, Syncfusion has more than 10,000 customers, including large financial institutions, Fortune 100 companies, and global IT consultancies. Find out more in my announcement post about our partnership, and find me at Grace Hopper to get your FREE software license!

October 9, 2014
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Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing (GHC14) Day 1

When I imagined going to Grace Hopper, I had no idea of the scale of the event. This year’s celebration brings a record 8,000 attendees from 64 countries to Phoenix, Arizona for a three-day women in computing conference. The attendees come from all walks of life and all skill levels, and each one has a different story to tell about their experience with the gender equality gap in technology.

Day 1 of GHC14 united attendees with the first round of speakers including a keynote from Dr. Shaffi Goldwasser, a renowned computer scientists and Turing Award winner. The sessions here are all incredible and since I can’t make it to them all I’m looking forward to catching up with the ones I miss online. If you’re interested in following the live stream of the event, you can do so here. I’ll also be posting more detailed recaps of the ones I saw once I’m back home, for now I’ll stick to the recaps!

After the speaker sessions was the career fair, which placed the 8,000 attendees in front of a few hundred companies, a trade show-like opportunity for networking, learning about new companies, and swag collecting. Check out this photo of me with the late Grace Hopper!

Google’s booth was (expectedly) extraordinary, with the self-driving car and Diane von Furstenburg Glass taking the lead.

Microsoft also had an interesting and much more interactive booth, where attendees could build critters out of blocks, scan them with the Kinect for Windows (have you seen my post about the new sensor yet? Check it out on Microsoft’s Canadian Developer Connection blog!), and see them converted into graphical form, interacting with other attendees’ critters. The most interesting thing about this activity was that each critter’s personality was determined by the shape you made it in, and what colours you connected.

After the career fair Sarah and I went back to our hotel and had a swim to unwind and prepare for day 2! More on that tomorrow, and more detailed information about speaker sessions to come!

October 7, 2014
by thetrendytechie 1 Comment

Touchdown in Phoenix! (YYZ - PHX)

Hello from Phoenix! Flying in over Arizona was such a surreal experience, I’ve never seen such flat cityscapes and jagged rock formations jutting out of the ground like roller coasters. I’m writing this post from my bed in the Crowne Plaza hotel, looking out the window at desert foliage, palm trees, and those weird sandy-red mountains. I’ve been here just an hour or so and already I wish I had more time to explore this beautiful place. There won’t be much time for exploring this week, with the packed schedule of the Grace Hopper Celebration. But hey, I’m here for the conference, not the scenery! Today is a downtime day, settling in to our hotel and picking up our conference passes. Yes, you read that right - I’m traveling with my good friend Sarah, who will also be blogging our journey on her brand new blog, La Vie en Code! Hooray for girlcoder bloggers, let’s grow this niche.

In the meantime, here’s a look at my trip from Toronto to Phoenix! It was not one without hassle, even though I specifically tried to avoid stress by booking a direct flight, as I mentioned in my last post about traveling for conferences. I booked the flight on Air Canada Rouge which, unbeknownst to me, is a fancy way of saying “Air Canada with no leg room, unkempt flight attendants, and only half the necessary amount of carry-on baggage space.” My knees were touching the seat in front of me without anything in the pockets, and it’s not like I’m extraordinarily tall! And I know this isn’t really a reason not to take an airline, but the flight attendant uniforms were hideous. I’m talking grey pants, burgundy sweater, abstract scarf, and GREY FEDORA. And in some cases, unbrushed hair. Anyways, I’m going to avoid Rouge flights in future, even though my flight home will be with Rouge too.

The trip started out really well, with an hour spent lazily browsing the seemingly-infinite breakfast options available in Pearson International Airport. They recently renovated their international departure areas to include thousands of iPads that track your flight for you while you order and pay for food and drinks right at your seat. Naturally, everything is quite expensive, but that’s not unusual when it comes to airport food. In the end I went with a blueberry-lemon muffin, a double peppermint tea with honey, and a huge bottle of water…can you tell I’m getting over a cold?

The views from the aircraft were beautiful, and the ones from the hotel room even more so! I love that the foliage is all such a vivid green even though it’s growing in such sandy soil.

Now Sarah and I are off to do some exploring with our prep day! Two bloggers unleashed in a new city? No way we could resist.

October 7, 2014
by thetrendytechie Leave a comment

Announcing: Trendy Techie + Syncfusion Partnership

Since launching Trendy Techie in May of last year, I have been fortunate enough to have formed relationships with many companies, from tech startups to fashion designers and everything in between. But this partnership is a special one for me, not only because it is with one of the most complete and praised enterprise suites out there, but because it is a company with a culture of inclusivity, generosity, and future-thinking. Announcing: Trendy Techie’s partnership with Syncfusion.

Syncfusion is the enterprise technology partner of choice for Windows development, delivering a broad range of software frameworks and tools. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, Syncfusion has more than 10,000 customers, including large financial institutions, Fortune 100 companies, and global IT consultancies. It would be impossible for me to sum up in one blog post all the services Syncfusion provides, so starting next month I will be documenting my exploration of their tool suites, starting with Essential Studio for Windows Phone.

Syncfusion is my corporate partner for this year’s Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing, a conference that brings together thousands of technologists from around the world, this year to Phoenix, Arizona. Syncfusion is a big supporter of women in tech, and has a large number of female developers among its ranks - 20% of Syncfusion devs are female! In a show of support, they have provided me with free licenses to their essential suite of tools - find me at Grace Hopper to get your free license!

Throughout the week I will be adding more information about Syncfusion to my Grace Hopper posts, so be sure to check back to learn more about the extensive scope of the license. In the meantime, let’s hear from Geetha, Jayapradha, and Sujatha, three of Syncfusion’s female developers:

“I like being an independent and self-sustaining person. Being a software engineer, it helps me to be who I am and I love the challenges it brings to me every day. It keeps me going, helps to thrive and enjoy at the same time and at the end of day, makes me to look forward the next day.”

- Geetha Rani

“I think my passion, creates something out of nothing and destroy something irreplaceable by god called developers”

- Jayapradha S

“I do Testing as I love defect free product. “

- Sujatha Babu

It’s inspiring to hear what drives real female developers, as we don’t often get to hear from the ones that aren’t in the media spotlight. And if you look at them again, you’ll notice that none of them look like the stereotypical programmer - that’s exactly what Trendy Techie is about. Too often girlcoders get asked why we are developers, or get told that we look “too pretty to code” (no, I’m not joking, yes, it’s stupid), and it’s time that society see what real female developers look like. That’s why I’m so excited and honored to be part of this year’s Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing, with the support of Syncfusion.

October 6, 2014
by thetrendytechie 6 Comments

The Trendy Techie Guide to Packing for Conferences

This week I am packing my brand new carry-on full of business casual outfits, high heels, and gadgets, and hopping on a plane to Phoenix for the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing. For years I’ve dreamed of attending this conference and I am so happy to finally have the calendars align, and be able to attend thanks to generous sponsorships from Dalhousie University (where I’m doing my BCS) and Syncfusion. Since I started my degree I’ve attended a number of business and tech conferences in Canada and the US, and have honed the skill of light packing down to an art. Here are Trendy Techie’s top tips for traveling smart for conferences.

1. Downsizing Your Luggage = Downsizing Your Stress

It can be extremely difficult to fit your whole life into a small suitcase, particularly if you have a tendency to overpack. But when you’re running through an international overlay after a delayed flight, the last thing you want to worry about is your checked luggage. I once almost missed my connection from Montreal to Seattle because I had to pick up my checked bag from the carousel and re-check it after going through U.S. customs. Since that day I’ve made an effort to learn how to travel light by packing everything into the carry-on allowance. The easiest way to make a carry-on feel roomier? Use smaller bags to compartmentalize. Organizing items into smaller packages (a bag for makeup, a case for jewelry, a tote for gadgets) helps you find your things quickly and take them out without disturbing the rest. Traveling light cuts down on hassle and gives you a lot more peace of mind when traveling.

2. Lighten the Load by Choosing Dual-Purpose Devices

Pictured above: foldable Arc Mouse, Surface Pro with keyboard, Swarovski USB Bracelet

With so many devices playing important roles in our everyday interactions with the world, it can be difficult to pare it down to just one or two devices for the week of a conference. And while I’m sometimes tempted to leave it all at home for once, that is simply not possible - particularly when you’re presenting at the event. To minimize luggage weight while still maintaining the full functionality you need, the best thing to do is bring your dual-purpose devices. To Grace Hopper I will be bringing my Surface Pro with the keyboard, which is powerful enough to support my mobile work needs and app development while still being small enough to fit in my Geek tote and be carried around all day. I’ll also be wearing my favourite James-Bond-esque gadget, the Swarovski-adorned USB bracelet you see above. It wraps around the wrist as a beautiful bracelet and keeps the most important data accessible at all times. This bracelet saved me when I was giving an app development demo at NBTC, because the laptop I had brought wasn’t working with the A/V configuration. Luckily, I had my presentation and demo saved on the USB, and was able to use the machine they had on site.

3. It IS Possible to Fit Heels in a Carry-On

The trick to fitting heels into your light-travel habit is to forgo the shoe boxes and silk bags, and opt for a soft microfibre towel instead. This provides a soft barrier between your shoes so they don’t scratch each other or dirty the suitcase liner. Microfibre towels don’t generate static or take up a lot of space, so they’re perfect when you’re budgeting room.

4. Be Prepared for Every Situation

Dry shampoo, nail polish, and a portable charging brick are three things you should never travel without. Dry shampoo to freshen up between events during the day. Nail polish to touch up the inevitable chips in your manicure (top tip: paint your nails before you leave, and top up any scratches or chips during the week). And of course, a portable charger to keep your phone, camera, and other small devices alive during those long days where outlets are often unavailable. I use this “power trip” one from Dabney Lee, which is as pretty as it is functional.

If the hotel you’re staying in has a pool, bring a bathing suit! Even if you’re not sure you’ll use it, it’s better to be prepared and doesn’t take up too much space.

To all those Trendy Techies on their way to Grace Hopper - I look forward to meeting you! For now, on to Phoenix!

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