BlogHer is a whole 'nother kind of conference, a Fellini film incarnate — at times heady and profound; other times, a bit syrupy or just entertainingly eccentric. As a disclaimer, I've been attending a conference each month for the past five months — a personal record for me. So, I've been building a set of expectations based on the cumulative experiences I have had these past few months.

Reading through the program, it looked no different than other conferences. In fact, it seemed (or, I had hoped) the conference would be fairly technical. (It is in Silicon Valley after all where programming languages comfortably substitute for English as a natural language!)

Well, it was nothing at all like what I had expected. I was fascinated by how much the demeanor, discussion and trajectory of the conference was (re)shaped by simply changing the proportion of women to men. (There were reportedly 80% women to 20% men. Funny how the proportions echo Pareto's numbers.)

A couple of observations:

The Male Dominated Technorati 100

This was the runaway hot topic of the opening ceremony. Is there a built-in bias in the way Technorati and other blog indeces determine who's at the top? A few women argued that there is a bias. A couple of women theorized that because blog index rankings are based on quantity, not quality, it naturally favors the way men build their own personal social networks.

According to them, women network face to face. They have dialog. But, men don't and this makes them more effective viral networkers (by Technorati standards) because they're preconditioned to create social networks by focusing solely on amassing a large quantity of connections. In contrast, women typically focus on building the quality, not quantity, of their connections.

Mary Hodder suggested that we propose a new algorithm for defining the top blogs. Later in the conference, Mary also served as the catalyst for compiling a list of women speakers to help make sure that women are represented in blog/technology events. The blogosphere quickly picked up on Mary's comments (See Stowe Boyd and Social Software Weblog)

My thoughts? I'm not sure I care that much about the Technorati 100. For the same reason top box office numbers or Billboard sales don't necessarily sway me, nor do they guarantee that those movies or CDs are good. But, just like there are sleeper movies that do find a wider audience, so too with good blogs. Maybe this calls for a *Frankenstein Index*: some kind of index that tracks long-tail blogs with legs? Even Blogrolling's Hot 500 offers an alternative. [UPDATE Aug. 7: Interesting sidenote. Apparently, Calacanis shares the same thoughts about Technorati 100 and Blogrolling's Hot 500.]

“Hot Chicks Who Can Code”

Anina, a model and blogger, remarked at the closing ceremony that she was impressed to see so many “hot chicks who can code.” Dunno if I fit into that category: I'm not sure I'm hot and I'd categorize myself as a code dabbler.

I find myself on a constant quest to improve my programming and problem-solving skills. I was, therefore, somewhat disappointed that the tech workshops at Blogher weren't technical enough. For example, the Advanced Tools workshop was, from a content perspective, roughly the equivalent of the Beginner (Remedial) Contagious Mechanics taught by Cameron Marlowe — both of which were too novice for me. So, what's considered an intro-level session at a general audience web event is considered an advanced-level session at Blogher.

I also noted that there was often great emphasis on "no coding required" and "cut and paste" solutions. Even in the vlogging session, it was pointed out that the software used was developed by her boyfriend. I guess I don't understand women's general aversion to technical things and to programmming in particular. They, therefore, cede the ability to control and define their blog or, even better, to push the boundaries of the technology itself. Knowing the technology and having the programming skills are such empowering tools. Add them to your arsenal.

Don't I Know You?

It wouldn't be a true conference if I didn't bump into someone I know. This time, it's Heather, a truly cool person who I first met when she was chief evangelist for a cool DHTML product developed by Netscape. I was really glad to run into her. She's now VP of KwikReel, a startup that promises to simplify and expedite studio casting. KwikReel is currently in the process of obtaining angel funding. Visit their site for more information.

Technorati tag: blogher