Girl Geek Dinners Melbourne is attempting an extremely challenging feat this month. Since I started organising events in September I wanted to choose themes and topics that bring women together from each different area of tech.
October was about Crowdsourcing and how the wisdom of the crowds can shape a business and technology. I couldn't have hoped for a better result in terms of a balanced view from the perspectives of a those who facilitate collaboration and those who see it as a form of outsourcing.
Anyway, for November I wanted to go even further and ask women from all over the world to participate in a global discussion about tech. I even created a video which is unheard of because I am probably one of the most camera shy people you'll ever meet. But I did it because I think it'd be really cool to see and hear from a wide range of women in different disciplines and different industries. I think it's also interesting, having moved to Australia form Canada, to discover that there are small differences in what is trendy in tech from one country to another.
My 2010 tech review has to do with social media (because it's my area) and I think the fact that location software has become mainstream is the biggest trend. Being able to broadcast your location and receive friend's (and strangers) locations is very interesting.
My 2011 tech prediction is that privacy is going to become more important then ever as we become less and less autonomous. I like the idea of sharing where I am at any given time, but only with those who might need to know- or those I select.
It has been interesting to observe some of the reactions to Facebook's connect feature - a few friends use it a lot and one in particular was asked why he feels the need to "spam" everyone with his every move. I think this is case in point that not everyone needs to know that I just walked into Nando's in Richmond, but friends who live and work in the neighbourhood might like to know.
Digital media and web technology has always battled with relevance and semantics. Getting the right message to the right audience is the selling feature, but when things don't go according to plan the results are extremely costly. It's been recorded that marketers are ready and waiting to bombs us with ads the minute we start checking in more often. That could be the reason there remains to be only 4% of adults are using location software services.
*If you're a female working in tech GGDMelb wants to hear from you! Please create any type of content with your review and predictions and use the title GGD Tech Discussion: 2010 Review, 2011 Predictions. Find out more about our global discussion here.
