ict section HOWTO Encourage Women in Linux By Val Henson The Operating System or OS is the most important pro Why are there so few women in Linux? Women stay gramme that runs a computer. Computers must have an out of Linux for many of the same reasons they operating system to run or manage other programmes. The stay out of computing in general, plus a few rea OS performs basic tasks such as handling input and out sons specific to Linux. Many excellent books and research put to and from attached hardware devices. It keeps track papers have investigated this topic in depth, but we can offiles and directories on the disk and controls peripheral only summarise the top reasons why women avoid comput devices such as disk drives and printers. The OS also en ing as a whole. We'll also debunk some common theories sures that different programmes and users running at the about why women stay out of computing in general. same time do not interfere with each other and that unau thorised users do not access the system. Let's start by examining two of the most common expla nations why there are so few women in computing:"Women Currently, almost everyone in the entire computing just aren't interested in computers," and 'Women aren't as world uses Windows OS, Mac OS, UnixOS and other pro smart as men." The problem with the statement'Women just prietary softwares developed by IT conglomerates such as aren't interested in computers" is that it doesn't actually say Microsoft, Apple, and Sun Microsystems. This ensures anything. It is equivalent to answering the question "Why is profit to these companies to the tune of megabillion dol the sky blue?" with "The sky is just blue." The implicit argu lars. Needless to say, this set up also promotes consumer ment here is that women are genetically predetermined from conception to not be interested in computers. Very few people dependency on such companies who now have the digital are willing to say exactly that in so many words, but that is hegemony over all of us. the message behind the "just aren't" theory. If you are un willing to accept that women's lack of interest in computing For several years now, NGOs and other civil society is genetically predetermined, you need to start exploring what organisations involved in the promotion ofICT for advo cacy have been exploring the use ofopen source softwares environmental causes are involved. to counter digital hegemony. Open source refers to the us A more explicit version of this theory is that "Women ers'freedom to run a programme for any purpose; to study arent as smart as men," or any of the usual corollaries— how the programme works and adapt it to one's particular women aren't as good at some skill as men are, usually needs; to redistribute copies that will allow people to help mathematics, spatial reasoning, or logic. Newsweek regu each other; to improve the programme and share the im larly trumpets studies finding gender-related mental dif provements with the public. Isis promotes open source as ferences while ignoring the studies that find no difference at all. Frequently, other researchers are unable to duplicate an alternative to proprietary software amongst women's the results or find flaws in the original researchers' meth groups, women communicators and activist organisations ods, but those stories tend to get much less press. These in Asia and the Pacific region. studies also make no attempt to control for differences in me upbringing of men and women. For example, studies One such open source software is Linux that is a reli frequently show that women have better developed linguis able, secure, and cost-effective OS. Originally developed tic capability in some way. This is taken as proof, at least by by Linus Torvalds in 1991 at the University ofHelsinki in the press, that women are genetically predisposed to be more Finland, it is constantly developed by a team of volunteer verbal than men. But at the same time, studies also show programmers world wide and sold by several large soft t at young women are rewarded more than young men for ware companies. Its source code can be freely downloaded, verbalisation. The sheer existence of physical differences be modified and distributed by everyone. tween male and female brains is not in and of itself proof that men and women are bom with differences in mental capacity. We still need to separate what differences are This article is based on the experiences ofwomen Linux caused by genetics, and which are caused by the environ users!programmers in Australia, Britain, Canada, and ment. As a result, if you ask the experts, the only consensus the USA. on gender-related mental differences is that there is no con sensus. This is an area of ongoing research where results 44 women in action no. 1-2003 ict section edu/-gendergap/papers/ munity and then to fit in will continue to be hotly de When he later re-measured sigcse97/sigcse97.html>. with it. Many women who bated for decades or centu the skulls' volume with in leave the field would have ries. Something else to keep compressible lead shot, he For example, while 53 stayed if they had been in mind is that similar ar discovered that much of the male. guments have been made differences in volume be percent of the male compu about many other fields— tween the skulls disap ter science (CS) freshmM It is true that this is a from medical science to edu peared. He had been subcon rated themselves as highly prepared for their feedback loop:fewer women cation—when women first sciously stuffing the skulls in computing leads to fewer began joining them. For ex belonging to white males courses, zero percent of the women in computing. It is ample, women couldn't be with more linseed than the femalethemselves CS freshmansimilarly. Butrated at important to understand doctors because they skulls belonging to women or that this feedback loop weren't physically strong non-white men. Keep this the end of the year, six out causes women to leave com enough to set broken bones, story in mind when you read interviewedthe seven female had either students an A puting, who wouldn't have would faint at the sight of studies claiming to find that left if, all other things being blood, or didn't have the some brain structure is a dif or B average. Objective rat equal, they had been men. proper bedside manner. ferent size in men and ings don't agree with most This is important because Those arguments were women's self-estimation. 1 women. personally encountered this male classmates often as abandoned when women phenomenon: Despi e sume their female counter turned out to be just as good Now that we've ad plenty of objective evidence parts leave the field because doctors and teachers as dressed some common mis they "just aren't good men. Maybe men will turn conceptions about women to the contrary, including enough." Women's low self- out to be better at compu and computing, let's look at grades, time spent on as estimation contributes to ter science than women,but the real reasons why women signments, and high place this false impression. history does not support stay out of Linux and com ment in a programming con that hypothesis. puting. I personally believe test,myselftobeatthetopofmy I still didn't consider Women are Discour that the tendencies and aged from an Early Age A good reference for behaviors I'm about to de class in college. Looking Societal pressure for the general topic of measur scribe are the result of the back objectively, it seems women to avoid computing ing differences between hu way most women are raised: clear to me that I was per forming as well or better begins at an extremely early man groups and the moti in other words, they are the age. Preschoolers already vation behind those meas than many of the far more result of gender socialisa confident men in my class. have conceptions about urements is The tion. I'm not claiming that which jobs are men s, and Mismeasure of Man by women are bom less confi which are women's. An ex Women Have Fewer Steven Jay Gould. Scien dent, or anything else, I'm cellent review of studies tists have been "proving" just observing general ten Opportunities for documenting gender role differences in the brains dencies in women and point Friendship or Mentoring socialisation from an early and bodies of groups of hu- ing out how Linux culture Like any other disci age can be found in Dr. Ellen mans for centuries, al discourages people with pline, computer science is Spertus's excellent"Why are though in hindsight, both those tendencies. Many of easier to learn when you There so Few Female Com their methods and their re the reasons I'm about to list have ftiends and mentors to puter Scientists?" paper: ^v sults were flawed. For ex also apply to other under- ask questions from and form ample, Stephen Jay Gould represented groups in com a community with. How reviews the methods of one puting or science. ever, for various reasons, scientist measuring skull men usually tend to mentor capacity in men and women Women are Less and become friends with of different races (and by Confident other men.When the gender implication, brain size and Women severely under imbalance is as large as it is intelligence).