Katy Dickinson

What Happens After College? (Geeks and the Silicon Valley)

On Saturday, 4 April 2009, I am giving a talk in Lafayette, California, called "What Happens After College? - Kids with Neurocognitive Disability Working in Engineering and Computing" at the Orion Academy 3rd Annual Seminar on Post-Secondary Transition Planning for Young Adults with Aspergers, NLD and other Neurocognitive Deficits.

I put together this presentation based on information and advice from many sources as well as from my own experience as the parent of a 16-year-old son with social-cognitive disability. I had particular fun creating the "Geeks and the Silicon Valley" section of the talk. I included my favorite quote from Larry Wall (creator of Perl): "Most of you are familiar with the virtues of a programmer. There are three, of course: laziness, impatience, and hubris" plus an xkcd cartoon, pictures of tshirts ("You read my t-shirt. That's enough social interaction for one day.") from Think Geek and the xkcd store, and other geeky stuff.

The second part of the talk covers what counts in finding a job in the Silicon Valley (Recommendations, Academics, Experience, Being Fast), how to get experience before getting a job (Open Source, Internships, Volunteer Projects, College Jobs), and other essential knowledge. I make several references to The Unwritten Laws of Engineering (Revised and Updated, 2001) by James Skakoon and W.J. King, available from the ASME product catalog. My last quote is from Ivan Sutherland in his 1996 Technology and Courage (Sun Labs Perspectives-96-1):

“I, for one, am and will always be a practicing technologist. When denied my minimum daily adult dose of technology, I get grouchy. I believe that technology is fun, especially when computers are involved, a sort of grand game or puzzle with ever so neat parts to fit together... If the technology you do isn’t fun for you, you may wish to seek other employment. Without the fun, none of us would go on.”

You can review my presentation online, or you can attend the event to hear it in person!

Posted at 10:53PM Mar 30, 2009 by katysblog in News & Reviews  |  Comments[1]

KQED "California Report" on Sun-IBM Rumor

I was listening to local public radio station KQED this morning while driving my son Paul to school. One of the regular programs, The California Report, featured a long story by reporter Oanh Ha on the history of Sun Microsystems and rumors that our company is being acquired by IBM. Sun was profiled as a world-class Engineering company more in love with creating innovative technology like Java than concerned with making money. I have worked at Sun since before he was born, so the report made for an interesting discussion with Paul.

The audio story is now available on The California Report web page:

Sun Microsystems, IBM and Silicon Valley
The California Report
Mon, March 30, 2009 -- 8:50am
"Every time you're on the Internet, some of the digital magic you encounter comes from a programming language called Java. The company behind that software is a Silicon Valley pioneer, Sun Microsystems. Now, reports abound that IBM is in discussions to acquire Sun. If the deal goes through, it would mark an end to a chapter in Silicon Valley history and likely bring more jobs cuts to the Valley."
Host: Rachael Myrow
Reporters: Oanh Ha

Posted at 10:33AM Mar 30, 2009 by katysblog in News & Reviews  |