About .51
“What’s .51?”
“Why .51?”
I’ve heard it said that writers write the books they want to read but can’t find.
.51 - Geekspace for Women was created because at first glance, I couldn’t find a site to give me what I wanted.
As a constant (translation: interminable) surfer of the web, I visit countless sites looking for the latest and greatest in technology, science, science fiction, games, ad infinitum. If it’s geeky, I want to know about it. One day, I added “women” to my search parameters in my trusty Do No Evil Search Engine, and was shocked to discover that I *really* had to dig for the kind of information I wanted.
Women are arguably 51% of the planet, and could be 51% of the Internet. There are many sites about getting women more interested in technology. What about those of us who already *are*? I want a site that caters to my brand of geekery (as well as a few others I haven’t tried yet), that doesn’t insult my intelligence and isn’t couched in cuteness or pink. Not that there’s anything wrong with pink. Give me the goods! Show me the women who are already accomplishing cool and amazing things in this world!
Couldn’t find it. Guess I’ll have to build it. Here on .51, I’ll be including:
- interviews with women who consider themselves geeks in one way or another, and are doing amazing things
- information about organizations of a technical nature for women
- reviews of music produced by, created by, or featuring women
- science fiction in its many forms - written, posted, on screen, on the web, etc.
- information and opinions about gaming, HOWTOs, ham radio and computing
- whatever I find geeky. (Admittedly, it’s a broad category, but it gives me a great deal of latitude.)
.51 - Geekspace for Women is for those of us who have been the only woman in a math or engineering class, who’ve been ignored at the hardware/computer parts/electronics store, who’ve been presumed to be somebody’s assistant/secretary/girlfriend/wife instead of the brains of the outfit - for all of us, this site is a big, fat “Get out of my way! I’m doin’ stuff!”
If there’s something missing that should be here, speak up!
Dedication
Both my grandmothers were exceptional women. One was a Navy nurse who became a pioneering Lamaze instructor early in that movement, and the other was a lifelong educator who worked variously as a teacher, counselor, and school administrator. Both were raised in the Deep South in the 1930s and ’40s, and both pushed against the limitations forced on black women at the time. I grew up knowing that they had high standards for me, and that they wanted me to live up to their hard-working ideals. Circumstances outside all our control made sure that we didn’t spend as much time together as we all would have hoped.
Both of them died before they could see what I’ve accomplished in my own life.
When I think about the kind of woman I am, and the kinds of things I have achieved and continue to pursue, I realize that I owe a great deal to them. They never once told me that I couldn’t be something I wanted to be, and never once belittled who I’d become. Even during those times when I hadn’t lived up to the potential they saw in me, they still encouraged me endlessly.
This project is dedicated to them.
