This is what I was thinking, as well.

There's also the possibility of someone eventually getting it into their head to spoof a Congressional IP address and cause all sorts of fun mayhem for the enjoyment of their twitter-provided audience.

Thanks for bringing some credibility to the discussion, AC. What the fuck is a "Tier 1 Chinese city?"

Any farther north, and I'll be in Canada, but thanks for the tip.

It's 20 degrees F below normal where I am (and raining on this week's festival!). How do I get in on this global warming thing? :(

Two things:

1) It's Google, so probably not. There was a time when the things they did were interesting and relevant, but those days are long over. See Glass for more information.

2) More importantly, these classes are designed to lure uninterested people into becoming code monkeys. It will undoubtedly consist only of the most basic of concepts, and in Java, and won't bother covering the underlying math (sort of like Indian "universities"). It will attract people with both a victim complex and zero self-motivation, as people who have any are already enrolled in real CS courses. Everyone will get a certificate and a juice box when it's over.

The thought of this program being even remotely good gave me a bit of a chuckle, so thanks for that.

True. If this initiative does get even a few more women into tech, then it won't be a complete waste. It's an ingrained societal issue, after all, so baby steps are probably be the best that can be hoped for.

Because we didn't rig it, and we don't have the means to un-rig it. Unless you've got a few billion laying around that you'd like to spend on such an endeavor. Sadly, I have no such reserves.

Along with most of my friends and relatives, and quite a few of my coworkers. One doesn't need shitloads of money with the availability of loans and grants, *especially* if you're a woman or a minority. Go to smaller schools, which tend to be better in many ways than big brand-name schools, and you won't end up with a fuckton of debt when you're done (and you'll learn the same things because science works the same way no matter where you are). All told, I had to borrow less than $14k in the course of earning my BS from a small private college, and that will be paid off in five years. The idea of someone being $100k in debt for college (or anything that isn't a house, really) is completely fucking baffling and outrageous to me.

Likewise, this program is one that Google can trot out to say how "We're fighting sexism by trying to get more women into tech!" They know damned well it won't work; it's just bread and circuses to distract from the fact that they've been proven to be pretty fucking terrible employers.

In before "Netcraft confirms --"

Well, fuck.

You can reemphasize until the heat death of the universe, but that won't make it true. You've been reduced to a blubbering mess of baseless ad hominem and strawman attacks. Stop posting. You're just embarrassing yourself.

Please quote the part where I said any of that. Oh, wait, you can't, because I neither said nor implied any such thing. And you are acting like a baby. Stop it.