Introducing Live Wire: Computer Confidence for Women

Faster than a speeding modem ... more powerful than a Pentium microprocessor. At least until my screen froze, my system crashed and my software hit me with Kryptonite. It was just another day in the life of a middle-class, middle-aged professional woman just like the readers of Women Today. The experience reminded me of why I chose to write this column -- to help women like me survive the highs and lows of life with computers and profit more fully from their speed and power.

In a light-hearted, conversational way, Live Wire will explore the ways that women can become confident and self-sufficient in selecting and using computer equipment, connecting to the larger networked community, and using computer savvy as a powerful career tool. I'm aiming at the novice or limited user who wants to become more proficient -- but more experienced users might find something of value in this ongoing discussion of the issues.

Why a column geared to women? Simply put, we need it more. We use computers less than men, work in the industry in much smaller numbers, are far less educated technically and are less visible online. As a result, we and our daughters are shut out of good-paying jobs in America's top industry, intimidated by influential new technologies and more vulnerable to economic upsets. Estimates say that fewer than one out of four computer science degrees goes to women -- and that number may be declining. The world of computing still belongs to men, who run the data processing and telecommunications shops of most companies and dominate the PC industry itself.

Given all this, is it any wonder computers are still sold as ramming, screaming speed machines? That kind of hard sell is a big turnoff, but we can't let it keep us from doing what we have to do. In reality, computing has more to do with subtle reasoning, mechanical finesse and patience than it has to do with brawn and beefcake. Why, I myself am a petite person -- yet the only thing I really need my husband for (with my computer, anyhow) is to haul up empty cartons to the attic.

We need to "get with the program" or we'll be left behind. In the March 1996 issue of Glamour magazine, physicist/author Margaret Wertheim pleaded with women to get involved with computers, not only for our careers but also to boost our ability to take part in increasingly technological public-policy decisions -- decisions shaping our lives. She concludes, "Many women have not been taught to feel comfortable with technology; even more of us are simply apathetic about it. But it would be a tragedy if our progress in the workplace were halted by our own passivity."

Avoiding computers because they're scary makes as much sense as not driving in the suburbs. In fact, cars are far more dangerous than PC's -- but most of us know that to lead a full life, we have to drive. It's the same with computers. Sure, you'll have your fender benders. You might even crash. But what are you going to do instead, stay home?

That's where Live Wire comes in -- to help you get started, improve your skills, deal with mishaps and gain new confidence in your dealings with computers. One caveat: While I can show you the road to learning about computers, I cannot make technical or product recommendations. That's outside the scope of this column and my expertise. But, you'll find plenty of easy-to-follow guidance at your public library and on any online service. I'll tell you how to find it.

Finally, a few words about my experience. For 15 years, I've worked in the computer industry as a writer and producer, coming of age professionally during the time when personal computers not only came to every desktop, they shrunk to the size and portability of a good Coach briefcase. With no formal training whatsoever, I was handed a computer and expected to use it, explain it and make other people want to buy it. It hasn't always been easy, but I've never found anything else as novel, well paid and intellectually stimulating.

Nonetheless, I long refused to see myself as a "computer person." Such people, I knew, were nerdy, socially retarded and usually male. And here I am -- me, with my wide circle of friends and fanatical devotion to the "Color Me Beautiful" system. I've had to reconcile the gap between my obvious interests and my sense of being, well ... a girl.

In straddling the line between the world in which I was raised and the world in which I find myself now, I've often wondered why it was so hard. Then I read an industry pundit's observation that, when it comes right down to it, we both love and fear computers because computers mean power. And I thought, "Sweet Silicon Valley! Women are not comfortable with power."

In that blinding flash of insight, Live Wire sprang to life. Live Wire will help women take on the challenges of the computer age with a fearless, "can do" attitude. My first mission: to break down the familiar attitudinal barriers to computer use that many women face. Watch for that in May's Women Today ... and let's all start flexing our high-tech muscles today!