Early Bird Registration for Grace Hopper Closes Today!

I know, it seems so far away, but the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing is just around the corner!  The conference will be held in Baltimore, MD, October 3-6, 2012.

I'm particularly excited about the Security technical track - something I've been asking about for years. The security related topics are always very well attended, and there's so much more to learn (for all of us) in security.

Whether you're student who's curious to learn about different technologies you can work on once you graduate, or a more experienced woman looking to expand your knowledge, there is something for you at the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing.

This is an amazing place to exchange ideas, meet other women working in your field, learn, network and remind yourself that you are not alone as a woman in technology!

What talks are you planning on going to? 

How safe is your hotel room?

I've heard many people lament about the loss of the old fashioned hotel room key - you know, like the one you use in your house. Of course, those get lost and are difficult to replace, so hotels have switched to electronic keys.

Those keys are problematic and annoying. It seems they constantly get erased or your door is recoded. At a DefCon conference a few years ago, I was sharing a room with 2 other people. Inevitably, one person's key would stop working - they would go to the front desk and get 3 new keys, but then couldn't find me. Then my key wouldn't work, rinse, and repeat.

But, now it seems that the manufacturers of these devices have put a too simple administrative interface on the actual doors that allow ne'er-do-wells access to your room.

Something to think about while traveling.

New job!

Okay, I haven't written for awhile - and boy, have I had things to write about! But, I've suddenly found myself much more busier than normal.  I've taken a new position at Oracle, I'm now managing the Solaris Cryptographic Technologies team.

That's right. I'm a manager now.  I've done it. Gotten the lobotomy. Working on my pointy hair.

I'm sure you've heard me say that I've been a manager before... at a record store and a dollar store.  The biggest management concerns we had at both were: hiring people that could count, knew the alphabet, weren't mean to the customers, and didn't steal too much.

Managing software engineers is, obviously, very different, but a natural progression from the team leadership I've been doing for a few years.  It's hard work - much longer hours, and the price for screwing up is more severe.

So, my postings have gone down - I'm using this to break the ice again, so to speak.