We scanned this from a computing magazine from 1970

https://twitter.com/computermuseum/status/406810708853018624/photo/1/large

by demartini • 13 years ago

53 61 13 years ago

twitter.com

codfrantic• 13 years ago

NSFW tag maybe

;-)

duiker101• 13 years ago

If that photo is NSFW it means you should really not open any photos at work. And probably not be on HN even.

walshemj2• 13 years ago

especially looking at sinful pictures might lead to naughty things and eventually shudder to music and dancing.

beachstartup2• 13 years ago

to me it means he should find a new job, working with adults instead of children.

username42• 13 years ago

I think there is a new generation in IT very different from the previous ones. Rejection of misogyny is the norm now. Seems to be an improvement.

varjag4• 13 years ago

The photo is sexist, not misogynistic.

knowitall12• 13 years ago

In what way is it sexist - because the woman wears a mini skirt? Because it is suggested that it is worthwhile to attract women? Because the guy doesn't wear a mini skirt - and she likes him for his salary, not his looks? Because the ad doesn't mention her PhD in mathematics?

I think this is all blown very much out of proportions. Sexual attraction is a basic aspect of human life.

TeMPOraL3• 13 years ago

Also lack of hacker spirit and tendency to with fashion instead of thinking. It doesn't seem like an improvement to me, but I guess that's what happens when stuff goes mainstream.

walshemj2• 13 years ago

What you mean that male "hackers" dont jump on fashions? OO new language of the day the "xxxx must die" meme etc.

chromanoid• 13 years ago

I guess this has nothing to do with improvements in IT. The society as a whole has changed. Back in the 70s there were severe inequalities not only between sexes. When you look at IT I guess the improvements are even severely behind many other modern areas of work.

moron4hire4• 13 years ago

My own observation has indicated that misogyny is still very common. What is new is more lip-service paid to the concept of inclusion, but the old attitudes are still there. Sure, corporate anti-sexual harassment rules have certainly curbed many of the symptoms: you don't see men in power pinching the secretary's ass anymore. But it hasn't seemed to have changed the thought process: i.e. that men in power view women as secretaries rather than as peers.

knowitall12• 13 years ago

Men in power probably don't see anybody as peers. That is the meaning of "in power".

nosage• 13 years ago

AMA Request: Chris Wood

Killah911• 13 years ago

British humor is quite different from American humor. This seems more in line with the company trying to be funny rather than the overtly sexist gesture it appears to be at first glance. Not saying it isn't sexist, but it seems like an attempt at humor which may be lost on those who aren't quite familiar with British humor.

petercooper• 13 years ago

Especially of that era. Carry On movies, On The Buses and all that. Doesn't necessarily make it right in the modern context but bawdy humour was absolutely the norm up into the 80s.

I watched the On The Buses movie a while ago and was actually taken aback by a scene near the intro where the two main characters basically restrain and grope a new female bus conductor. And that was the best selling British movie of 1971 and one for all the family..! :-)

frobozz• 13 years ago

I was similarly shocked by characters in their 40s ogling and catcalling at "girls" in school uniform (though clearly played by women in their 20s). This seems to be a norm of the era, and it goes so strongly against today's paedogeddon mores that even a gritty crime drama wouldn't have too much of it nowadays, let alone a family sitcom.

For those unfamiliar with the British School system: someone in a school uniform is definitely below 18-and-a-bit, and considering the nature of further education before the late 80s, would very likely have been below 16 (even more likely if female).

roel_v• 13 years ago

You're very kind in your characterization, I'm willing to spend my karma on a less euphemistic statement: leave it to Americans to get up in arms about perceived 'sexism' in an ad like this, especially keeping in mind the date on it. LOL at some of the comments below - 'misogyny'? Really?

Cthulhu_• 13 years ago

So, are we going to reverse-judge the 70's now? I'd rather have this than a bunch of obese neckbeards wearing Unix T-shirts promoting working in IT.

TeMPOraL3• 13 years ago

Yes, because gender issues are the most important thing on this planet and everything is deeply related to them.

I wonder when people will start whining about how sexist keywords in programming languages are.

yapcguy2• 13 years ago

I just looked at the keywords for Go, Java and C to see if there were any gender based words. There were none.

However there were quite a few phallic references, e.g. sizeof, extends, long.

Oops.

vasilipupkin• 13 years ago

It sounds like you don't have a daughter. I do, so gender issues are actually more important to me than I expected them to be a while back

davidw• 13 years ago

I think this image illustrates a problem with our industry that would have made me think twice about becoming a programmer: I don't know about everyone else here, but I have a heck of a time getting any work done with the beautiful women perching themselves on my desk. I've tried everything, but they just keep roosting there.

DanielBMarkham• 13 years ago

It's time to take action. For far too long women in IT have suffered from poor eyesight and terrible life choices.

I vote we get rid of your desk.

BerislavLopac• 13 years ago

Actually, I think they wanted to highlight the salary offered. ;-)

forinti• 13 years ago

Which is not so great at 26,200 2012 pounds.

dingaling• 13 years ago

That was a fairly reasonable 2012 programming salary outside City of London.

Actually a smidge on the high side, particularly for anywhere north of Birmingham.

balakk• 13 years ago

I thought it was more about the perks.

jccalhoun• 13 years ago

In contrast, here is an article encouraging women to become programmers that appeared in Cosmopolitan in 1967: http://thecomputerboys.com/?p=239 and an article that discusses it which contains pictures of a couple other ads: http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~nathanen/files/cbi-gender.pdf

knowitall12• 13 years ago

"doing/buying/applying x raises your attractivity to the opposite sex" is really the most basic advertising message ever. Is that really a problem (more than advertising in general)? Why/how?

I get that this ad is targeted at men - but that in itself can not seriously be made out to be a problem either? Should all ads/messages/stories/games/movies be unisex?

JoeAltmaier4• 13 years ago

She's about 65 now...

informatimago• 13 years ago

Nothing has changed, don't they lure you with similar things at google? Today it's free food and other perks, http://www.google.com/about/jobs/lifeatgoogle/benefits/ but it's really the same.

On the other hand, perhaps this kind of ads should motivate girls to be attracted to programmers: stable and well remunerated jobs. I've not written "programming", right! Check: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MejkH61o_U

makerops• 13 years ago

Food and "things" are not the same as women.

dasil003• 13 years ago

On one hand, I think that's the GPs point, but on the other the ad is clearly meant to be humorous.

DanBC• 13 years ago

Nothing has changed

Sadly, booth-babes prove you right.

vezzy-fnord• 13 years ago

Interesting to note how the (trigger warning: cisgendered heterosexual male) COBOL programmers get ladies with ease, yet the fancy modern (cisgendered heterosexual male) Ruby programmers have to resort to constantly showing how non-sexist they are in a vain attempt to attract the opposite sex.

Almost makes me want to learn COBOL.

yapcguy2• 13 years ago

I've talked to a few women in their 20s and 30s about this and their opinion was that guys who are always beating their chests about how they help women fight sexism in technology are probably doing it get into some warm panties.

beachstartup2• 13 years ago

which of course, ironically perhaps, is a terrible strategy.

jheriko• 13 years ago

saw this yesterday - found it amusing, in no way imagined it would trigger a debate about sexism.

minikomi• 13 years ago

Meanwhile, in Japan https://paiza.jp/poh/ec-campaign

We scanned this from a computing magazine from 1970

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