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Windows Azure Dance Routine

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41–50 of 79 posts

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not I, but then again, I'm almost impossible to offend. This just seemed more silly and out of place than anything else. The 'zOMG SEXISM' drum is getting beaten especially hard recently.

This video just shows how necessary it is to beat that drum.

If you say so. There are more and greater issues to this video than mentioning a penis.

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#42

I had to rage-stop this video halfway through... this is ridiculous. In this day and age, I would have thought that the developer community has come to realize that sexism is out and inclusiveness is in (no, adding a "(and vaginas)" is not inclusive). We had our fun, but it significantly damaged our culture and firmly planted our female participation at 15-20%, with a female OSS contribution rate of 1.5-5%. We (I'm s…

FWIW, there was a lot of internal outrage over this yesterday. I even saw a public message to marketing asking them to please put a stop to any other items like this that were planned.

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#44

So, this is the second story in about a month about crazy sexist stuff going on at industry events in Scandinavia. The Dell thing I thought was beyond the pale; but this seems to be in good fun. What's up with Scandinavia?

As a Dane I would guess were are just less concerned with PC shit. And the general culture does not go ape-shit just because a nipple is visible.

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#45
post #16

I had to rage-stop this video halfway through... this is ridiculous. In this day and age, I would have thought that the developer community has come to realize that sexism is out and inclusiveness is in (no, adding a "(and vaginas)" is not inclusive). We had our fun, but it significantly damaged our culture and firmly planted our female participation at 15-20%, with a female OSS contribution rate of 1.5-5%. We (I'm s…

Yes, this wasn't offensive to non-male-heteros - it was just offensive. Yet I have to say I'm still laughing and it being completely over the top lends it a certain element of 'this is too ridiculous to be considered a serious attempt to empower the hegemony'. It's bad taste in general, rather than offensive to any one party.

I've been trying to count the offenses...to men, women, developers, drug users, anti-drug activists, lyricists, grammarians, hermaphrodites, crypto folks, choreographers, markup mavens...it's almost, dare I say it? "Genious" Art.

It's absolutely so bad that I can't even manage to be outraged by it, because it brings me to tears in laughter even just thinking about it, it's such a perfect nugget of awful.

I was actually legitimately outraged by this yesterday:

http://ryannorth.tumblr.com/post/24675908508/boys-only-how-t...

(Follow-up here: http://oomscholasticblog.com/2012/06/scholastic-responds-to-...)

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#47

I wonder if those playing the "it's cheesy but c'mon, it's not offensive" line have missed the 20+ discussions about sexism and how to foster a healthy environment for women in tech on HN over the last year. The assumption that developers are men is enough here, and speakers at the conference mentioned in the song have expressed surprise and distaste at their inclusion. For example, they say "Lea Verou will make your…

I am an atheist, which I know generally offends people, and some people think I deserve to die for that.

Meaning I can't give a shit if some people get offended. If females don't show up, that is their choice.

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not I, but then again, I'm almost impossible to offend. This just seemed more silly and out of place than anything else. The 'zOMG SEXISM' drum is getting beaten especially hard recently.

This video just shows how necessary it is to beat that drum.

You can't beat the drum about social issues and culture.

You can beat the drum about something people don't know, a food drive, a political issue, etc but it makes no sense to keep whingin about something that people already know and have made up their minds about.

Remember House? People don't change.

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#49
post #47

I wonder if those playing the "it's cheesy but c'mon, it's not offensive" line have missed the 20+ discussions about sexism and how to foster a healthy environment for women in tech on HN over the last year. The assumption that developers are men is enough here, and speakers at the conference mentioned in the song have expressed surprise and distaste at their inclusion. For example, they say "Lea Verou will make your…

I am an atheist, which I know generally offends people, and some people think I deserve to die for that. Meaning I can't give a shit if some people get offended. If females don't show up, that is their choice.

You being an atheist really has nothing to do with this. Being offended at how women are objectified/marginalized in the tech industry and being offended at someone's personal religious choice are two completely different things.

Also, it's "women", not "females".

Re: Windows Azure Dance Routine

#50
post #37

I dunno, I'm sure for some people there's a great crime against women hidden in there somewhere, but all I see is a great crime against good taste. I think something has to pass a certain muster of sophistication before it can be genuinely offensive. This isn't the doctrine of coverture, it's a penis scrawled near the entrance to the ladies' room. What I really want to know is, is it so hard to get decent entertainme…

Just to clarify: That atrocity wasn't organised by the conference, they'd just agreed to give Microsoft (their biggest sponsor) the stage for a bit to do their big Azure announcement. There's certainly a lesson for conference organisers in there about how much you let your sponsors get involved in the conference, but what happened on stage was still all Microsoft's fault.

Also just to clarify: As a woman who was actually present in the room when Microsoft decided to jump the shark, I don't feel especially offended by this (with the exception of the line about Lea Verou, which is beyond creepy). As a developer, though, I'm deeply offended that someone in Microsoft's marketing department could imagine we'd go for this kind of trash. That performance speaks volumes about the developer stereotypes sales people nurture, and that is especially offensive coming from a company like Microsoft, where you'd think company culture should perhaps lean a little more towards respecting the people who create the actual value the company thrives on.

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