Slashdot Mirror
Epson's Female Printer
zmcnulty writes "I finished translating the K-Tai Watch (Japanese) article about a new printer in the Colorio line from Epson. It's not only being marketed at women, it was completely designed by 'Team8' - an all-female project team created within Epson specifically for making a printer 'easy for women to use.'
Here is the original Japanese press release." Apparently they've been reading these studies.
Careful, guys!
It'll work well for the first few months then get tempermental. You'll be getting ready for work when a sheet of paper prints out saying "You're not wearing that are you?"
It'll start being non-responsive for a few consecutive days per month and have the odd spill of red ink on your important work. Then it'll start to cost you loads of cash in consumables.
You'll come home to printouts in the tray saying "You never take me to Best Buy anymore..." Finally, after a hard day at work, you'll get back to your abode only to find a Post-It note on the refrigerator saying "Moved out with the iPod, he understands me."
No siree.. give me a He-Man HP LaserJet anyday.
Trolling is a art,
The studies showed dissatisfaction with the way that electronics were marketed towards men. Women said that they were treated differently, and in many cases, were assumed to be stupid or unknowledgable, compared to men. Brenda Myers, quoted in the CNN article that the slashdot link in the parent links to, said, "Every time you go these places [national electronics retail stores], they think women don't know anything, and they don't you the same features as they would when my husbands goes with me."
Creating a printer that will be marketed under the theme "printer easy for women to use" is not going to mollify complaints like Myers, instead, it seems to reinforce her argument that electronics retailers and manufacturers think women are stupid. Saying that this printer is easy for women to use is really just saying is that women aren't capable of using all the other printers.
Of this article http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/03/04/133725 9&mode=thread&tid=126 - an all-female designed Volvo. It was only a few days ago. Why doesnt the article reference this?
Does it still say PC Load Letter?
...are we going to get the MAN'S printer??? Sexist bastards!
...how is operating a piece of computer hardware ever gender-specific?
Smells like somewhat of a double standard to me.
Informatus Technologicus
And it connects to the computer with a DB25 female instead of a DB25 male, right?
===== Murphy's Law is recursive. =====
This thing sucks... Every 28 days it locks up and I cant use it for like a week.
Seriously, is pressing a print button that difficult for fems that they need their own design?
Couldn't help but note that that old dying technology Bluetooth is an option. ;-)
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Great, to get rid of sexism let's impose more of it. Let's just hope it doesn't turn out as fugly as that "car" that was designed by women.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3528757.stm
eTrade SUCKS
This is just a Scam to sell cartridges. Who needs "black, red, yellow and blue" when you can have "puce, rose, lavender and turquoise"?
Scented inks, anybody?
Norman Cook's Ode to Sl
Posted_on Mar 16, 2004 - 10:52 AM by zmcnulty
Its a printer by women, for women.
I first thought this was just being marketed at women, but no - it was completely designed by Team8, an all-woman project team specifically created by Epson for this project.
More information on what makes a printer female inside.
Seiko Epson will release the Colorio me: E-100, atransportable inkjet printer developed under the printer easy for women to use themeon April 23rd. The printer is officially Open Price, but indicators suggest it should cost around 20,000 yen.
The Colorio me: is an inkjet printer designed by Epsons Team8, an all-woman project team formed specifically for the purpose of creating a printer easy for women to use. It has a handle on the round-style case for transporting.
Its an inkjet style printer, and prints using one ink cartridge with 6 colors. The printer resolution is a maximum of 2880 x 1440 dpi. To confirm what is being printed, it features TV output, and connects to the PC via USB. The size is 256 x 154 x 163mm (W x D x H), and it weighs 2.7kg.
Another feature of the Colorio me: is its ability to connect to cellular phones (with cameras)and digital cameras and print directly- and in addition to SD cards, Memory Stick, and CompactFlash, it supports miniSD cards and Memory Stick Duo when equipped with seperate adapters.
Loaded on board is the Cell Phone with Camera Correction mode, and images are printed on glossy card-size photo paper. Pictures taken with a cellular phone can also be printed easily. Finally, infrared and Bluetooth (Ver 1.1) wireless support is available as an option, and when the size and print mode is set via the operation panel on the printer, it can print wirelessly.
In addition, the Colorio PM-D1000 video-deck shaped inkjet printer will be released in May. The price on this one is also Open Price, but indicators suggest it should cost around 40,000 yen.
The PM-D1000 also supports miniSD cards and Memory Stick Duo with seperate adapters, as well as the Cell Phone with Camera Correction mode. It also has wireless (infrared and Bluetooth) support as an option. The size is 430 x 420 x 109mm (W x D x H), and the printer weighs roughly 8.3kg.
Inspired by:
http://k-tai.impress.co.jp/cda/article/news_toppa
Colorio me: Press Release:
http://www.epson.co.jp/osirase/2004/040316_1.htm
Colorio PM-D1000 Press Release:
http://www.epson.co.jp/osirase/2004/040316_3.htm
I called it a 'fucking bitch' more times than I can count.
If the printer is being used by a male (via the BO sensor), first thing it will ask is "Does the letter look fat in font size 14?".
Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
Hell, does this thing leak ink like crazy every 28 days?
Just like a guys printer. Only not as smart and worse at sports.
The main difference is its been designed to handle 2 inch Lee Press-Ons nails.
This is a test. This is a test of the emergency sig system. This has been only a test.
Or is it just slashdotted?
Introducing the Spike TV Printer, the first printer for men!
Count yourself lucky, dude.
"A great democracy must be progressive or it will soon cease to be a great democracy." --Theodore Roosevelt
I hope feminists complain soon.
The "Colorio me:" is an inkjet printer designed by Epson's "Team8," an all-woman project team formed specifically for the purpose of creating a "printer easy for women to use." It has a handle on the round-style case for transporting.
IANAW but I really don't see a need to make this thing look a) like a kitchen appliance b) have a handle and c) support tons more stuff than 99% of people use.
Adding a handle is not going to make ANYONE more likely to carry it around nevermind ladies (the only people that get to carry computer equipment are men -- at least in my experience)
Having 1000 options for importing data is also confusing. KISS.
That's my opinion.
Includes 2 paper trays and a lipstick dispenser*.
*only Epson-approved lipstick refills may be used.
It's pretty obvious this is going to sell pretty well to women, it's just the handle strikes me as useless.
How am I supposed to fit a pithy, relevant quote into 120 characters?
http://www.fu-fme.com/
It is VERY gender-specific!
A printer that looks like a portable radio? How on earth is that revolutionary? *rolling eyes*
And I can't imagine my mom being able to use that any better than she can use a normal printer. It doesn't matter what it LOOKS like...there's still the matter of actually figuring out how to hook the darn thing up, and THAT is what she has problems with.
"I came here to chew bubble gum & kick ass...and I'm all out of bubble gum"
Haha, I can see it now, some chick gets this for her bf, and I'll see it and start making fun of his "female" printer and how couragous he is to own one.
Now if only we could compare the microcode in the printer to some other solid names and see if there coding is up to par. I'd also love to see the comments in the code!
Mod +5 Drunk
(too easy)
The buttons have deep fingernail-shaped wells right next to them?
"A great democracy must be progressive or it will soon cease to be a great democracy." --Theodore Roosevelt
cyberdildonics... you'll find a lot more than just a 'joystick' that's gender specific..
warning, some mental images, you can't ever get away from..
every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
Put a big green button on it, labelled, "Yes, dear. I'm sorry. You were right."
According to the article, it has more high-tech gadgets than a normal printer, things such as high resolution, bluetooth, cell connection etc etc.
Don't most female just want a printer that prints, and with HelloKitty casing?
Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
How about one designed for men? The Epson I have seems to have been designed to be used by a robot.
I mean a real man's printer would weigh about 100 pounds, have a titanium shell, be able to hold 1,000 sheets of paper at a time. The cables that come with it would be an inch thick with massive connectors on each end that make satisfying "clunk" sounds when plugged in and lock into place. Every component would be made of steel: form feed would be achieved by pulling some burnished lever requiring manly strength that would mechanically push the paper through. And paper jams? There'd be no paper jams, if the paper wasn't in the right place the printer would crush it into oblivion.
Oh and the GIMP-Print people would already have a driver for it ready to go when I bring it home.
John.
What exactly is "easier for women to use"?
You put paper in one end, and it comes out the other end with words and pictures on it. Maybe japanese women are exceptionally stupid, I dont know. Does it come preloaded with paper and ink, and you throw it out rather than having to figure out how to put paper in?
Besides crafting it in pink plastic, or some other aesthetic nonsense, whats different?
The "designed for women!" thing is a great marketting gimmick. I mean, how many households buy two packs of razors, one for him, one for her. The only difference being that hers are pink.
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
just get one of these
Now to make a car that women can drive, and we are all set...
for the last time people, I am "frodo from middle eaRTH", not "middle eaST".
installing it on a high shelf.
I would shell out some serious bucks for a printer that had a super-easy-to-clean paper path, that was liquid resistant (ever try to get orange juice or peanut butter out of a laser printer?!!) with liquid resistant ink.
Hrm... also maybe retractable cords, bluetooth to the computer, anything else that can keep kids from getting tangled in the wire jungle at the back of a PC.
Any generalization is a stupid one.
Great.... now I'm gonna see a lot of spam for "Increase your paper size now!"
"I am not denying the existence of stupidity, or of stupid people." - phyruxus
Does this mean the cover will require a special tool only given to factory certified repair shops? While it refuse to print some things that aren't color coordinated, and just go ahead and use your credit card when it wants fresh ink?
So when will manufactures stop perpetuating myths that woman are too stupid for technology? For that matter why do I know so many woman that play at being stupid with technology? Ugh. Its a self propogating clusterfuck.
Hmm, just what I need to pay for.. a handle on my printer. You know I was wondering what my current printer was missing and bingo there it is. I need a printer that looks like a handbag because I might want to carry it around as a fashion statement the next time I'm out instead of using it to print stuff.
Reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Homer designs a new car for a company, bankrupting them.
I ought to have a whole herd o' them thangs purty soon!
See what I've been reading.
We know women don't make good drivers.
Equal rights for men! No more female oppression! Say no the females pulling the strings! Rise, my brethren! Revolt against our oppressors! It is our calling! What's next? Special cars for women, too!?
Hate me!
Apparently, women really like coolers (or possibly lunchboxes)
------- Oh damn.... the Sigfile escaped... -Great OM
....Pocket Rocket Printer?
"Look Lois, the two symbols of the Republican Party: an elephant, and a fat white guy who is threatened by change."
Hmm, it looks "cute". I'd imagine that the "form before function" people will buy this, female or male. It'll look great in that new VW bug along with the Michael Graves teapot.
OpenSource.MathCancer.org: open source comp bio
You don't make equal by making different. This sort of thing does not benefit women any more than apartheid benefits ethnic minorities.
Now here's a suggestion: why not make it easy for everyone to use? Or is that just too logical?
K
It comes in Ferrari red with black rubber grips, and a black leather "sports" dust cover. The feed trays are made of diamond pattern steel plate.
It has curves like a lotus, and when it prints, a speaker simulates the sound of someone revving a Harley Davidson. Spoiler, drilled aluminum function keys, and a portable base with 110-spoke alloy rimmed casters are available as a special option package.
The top of the printer also has special recesses for holding a beer and a remote control.
Can anyone tell me how to set my sig on Slashdot?
It's marketed towards women; I thought there might be hope for the slashdot crowd afterall...
Designed by women.
Does it leak red ink a few days a month?
(I am so going to hell)
If my wife gets one of these I will not be able to bring another printer home, much less put it in the same room!
Got Code?
Women and minorities this and that, yadda yadda I am sick of it. I want a printer designed and manufactured in the US by white american males, just like me....where's my affinity group? heh.
So this study, doubtless funded with some ungodly amount of money, told them this:
Women have difficulty operating some mechanical devices.
This is news?
I don't mean this as a sexist jab, though I think it's kind of funny. There are just some things that women very often aren't good at. Then again, there are certain things that they are very good at that men aren't. It's all relative.
Intolerance for ambiguity is the mark of the authoritarian personality.
Can anybody tell me what "Open Price" means?
Coming soon to Slashdot: meta-meta-moderation!
Here's an american dream car build by a team of genuine american guy !!
"Insanity in individuals is something rare, but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs it is the rule." - Nietzsche
They all have female connectors on the back
Why wouldn't men and the family (especially) want a user-friendly printer?
... I mean, a company has designed something *for* women, something which now makes all other printers a man's printer when clearly that isn't the case. Its not like a woman doesn't know what a power switch is or a ink indicator is? Whats going to be so different about a womens printer, that it is a *women* printer?
Jonathanjk.com
All these things are also separately marketed toward men. Sure, the boxes are different, and the ads are different, but they're basically the same product. At some point a long time ago, someone figured out that gender-neutral products didn't do as well as ones that skewed toward male or female, and everyone else followed suit.
So please only find the "printer for women" insulting if you find the notion of women's shampoo, socks, towels, cars, hair dye, and paper towels insulting.
-- Fratz, human
So, deisgned for women means make it look like a handbag - surely then they will sell thousands.
What next ? Shoe shaped power tools ?
Great, this is finally what I have been looking for. I can finally put all those pr0n pictures I have to good use. I will take the best parts from all those pictures and piece them together into the ultimate woman (who will most likely look like Jennifer Love Hewitt). Then I will wear a bra on my head and press print. Wah-la I will have my very own woman. Oh how my life will change.
Here is to hoping that the consumables aren't that expensive. I might just print me a harem.
I finished translating the K-Tai Watch (Japanese) article:
Internal Server Error
Process limit exceeded for uid 11363.
Well done. That makes for a good and interesting read.
http://dtum.livejournal.com
It's amazing that this printer "designed by women" looks like an ugly shoe box. I anticipated to see something that at least looked nice.
Printers aren't very personal objects. If I had gender issues with any of my electronics, I'd be more concerned about my phone, mp3 player, keyboard, mouse, monitor and computer in that order.
In soviet russia stale jokes recycle you!
The reason women buy more tech is they buy something, can't figure it out, toss it in a drawer and buy a different model.
Two years later:
Well honey, it's been fun, but I just saw a smaller, younger, faster, sexier model I just have to have. Don't worry though, I know a guy who's really desperate and I told him I would let him have you.
No, the female printer analogy is much more accurate. Cheap to begin with and always going for the Lock-in.
It's not only being marketed at women, it was completely designed by 'Team8' - an all-female project team created within Epson specifically for making a printer 'easy for women to use.'
What makes it "easy for women to use" as opposed to any other printer?
I swear.... with all the "women's rights" stuff, and women bantering on about how they want to be treated as equals, then why do we have "Lifetime, t.v. for women(tm)", or "Special K, A Cereal Designed For Women's Nutritional Needs", you know, "Strong enough for a man, made for a woman"
And finally the one that made me literally fall out of my chair when i heard it:
"Rogaine for women. Because women should not have to suffer from a man's problem."
Don't get me wrong, i mean... i dig chicks, but I guess i just don't understand why women have to simultaneously prove that they're both equal and special. They're like that with a lot of other things too. I cannot rationalize that, but they refuse to see anything wrong with a lot of their logic.
But what do i know? I'm just an insensitive male clod!!
do() || do_not();
Printer pr0n.
Cultural Thought Processes?
Does this mean when the Woman says she wants to computer to switch OFF, she really wants it to switch ON...
How exactly is this geared to women? Seems like every other printer on the planet, but with a useless handle.
----
All of whose base are belong to the what-now?
...design a printer with a single 6 color cartridge. It's bad enough my printer has 3 colors in one cartridge. Nothing like sucking money from the weak of mind.
--- "1.21 Jigawatts!" -Doc
" The studies showed dissatisfaction with the way that electronics were marketed towards men."
HOMO!
Sooo... is the hood welded shut? ;)
HitScan
Epson says they plan to ship it with a free gift! Your choice of either a Dish Scrubber or Laundry Soap.
I can count to 1023 on my hands. Ask me about #132.
We've lived with it for years, put up with it and now we ignore it.
Kind of like a wife.
female printer? i'd never buy one of those. I have a hard enough time keeping my blasted slave drives.
There must be some really dim moderators today!!!
What I want to know is why our culture (and the Japanese culture, apparently) has to design things "for women" when they want to make something easy to use? Do men really like to spend a lot of time with the useless details of making a printer work, or do they just not want to admit that features like video preview are useful, and that a lot of other "features" are just useless trappings?
I do have to admit, however, that no male designer would have designed a printer to look like a purse. There's probably a good reason for that.
Wake up - the future is arriving faster than you think.
... or coral
... or fuschia
From the press release, it doesn't look like it. Actually, it just looks like every other printer coming out of the shops today - rounded "softer" edges.
From the Epson of America website, a press release about the "PictureMate"... a printer designed for the mother of the household:
PICTUREMATE(TM) BY EPSON ELIMINATES
THE BARRIERS TO DIGITAL PHOTO PRINTING
First and Only Personal Photo Lab Enables Consumers to Produce Photos with Quality,
Durability and Cost Benefits of Traditional Photo Lab Prints in the Convenience of Home
LONG BEACH, Calif., February 9, 2004 Addressing all of the barriers that digital camera
owners have had with printing their photos, Epson today introduces PictureMate(TM), the first and only
personal photo lab that allows digital camera owners to easily print brilliant, long-lasting lab-quality
4" x 6" photos at home at a cost that is comparable to some of the most affordable lab print prices.
This breakthrough is made possible by Epson's exclusive archival print technology for photos that are
indistinguishable from traditional lab prints and last even longer.
With an estimated 33 million households owning digital cameras at the close of 2003, more
people are taking digital photos to preserve their memories.1 According to the Photo Marketing
Association International (PMA) Digital Imaging Survey, the majority of these owners would like to
print more photos at home but feel the prints they are making don't look as good as lab prints. The
survey also indicates that owners believe 4" x 6" printing at home is difficult, too time-consuming,
and cost-prohibitive.
Epson, the brand that professional photographers prefer 4-to-1 over any other printer brand,
specifically designed PictureMate to break down the photo printing barriers for the amateur digital
camera consumer. Now even non-technical consumers can very easily print beautiful borderless, labquality
4" x 6" photos for only 29 cents per print on average comparable to the most affordable
photo labs and about half the cost of prints from other 4" x 6" dedicated photo printers.2 Epson's
innovative archival 6-color pigment printing technology ensures photos are as stunning and durable as
professional prints so memories will last for generations.
As a result, all digital camera owners will soon have the ideal printing solution for sharing
their memories of everything from holidays and vacations to a baby's first birthday party, without any
compromises and in the convenience of their own homes.
"As with film cameras and now with digital cameras, men and women evenly share the
picture taking responsibility, but studies indicate women generally are more interested in sharing and preserving those memories in print," said Fabia Ochoa, group product manager, Photo Imaging,
Epson. "Women, therefore, are typically the Chief Memory Officer(TM) of the home. I happen to be
one of them. However, digital camera owners told us they feel their home printers aren't meeting
their basic photo printing needs. Yet they also feel that alternative solutions -- such as the photo lab,
photo kiosks or online photo services -- are not as appealing as printing at home. Addressing the
needs of ease, quality, durability and affordability, PictureMate becomes the Chief Memory Officer's
ideal photo printing appliance for preserving and sharing memories."
Convenient Print Pack
Because saving time is a priority for the primary PictureMate customer, Epson is also
introducing the PictureMate Print Pack. This economical and convenient combo-pack contains a
PictureMate Photo Cartridge and PictureMate Photo Paper to print about 100 glossy 4" x 6" photos.
"The PictureMate Print Pack eliminates the guesswork of trying to predict when to stock up
on more paper or ink," Ochoa said.
PictureMate Product Overview
PictureMate was optimally designed as a printing accessory for any digital camera. No
computer is required since it supports all popular memory cards, including SD(TM) memory
card/MultiMediaCard(TM), Memory Stick(R), Compact Flash(TM) type I and II, SmartMedia(TM), Secure
Digital, MMC, xD and Microdrive
One week a month the thing prints out only in red. Total mess.
if you want "No More Hiroshimas" then I say "You First. No More Pearl Harbors."
At the risk of going out on a limb and getting labeled "sexist!", I'm going to (hesitatingly) share my own experiences.
While it's true that, often, women complain about being treated as "unknowledgeable" or "stupid" by sales or tech. support staff - it's also true that generally, they're not very "technically inclined".
I think what most women really want is to be able to go in and make a purchase, or ask questions, and not be made to *feel* stupid or unknowledgeable - no matter what their actual level of knowledge of the product is.
In other words, don't talk down to them - or arbitrarily decide the woman "isn't interested" in a particular feature, when explaining a product.
It's exceedingly rare when I run across a woman who honestly fully understands and cares about all the small, technical details of a product (such as a printer). That doesn't mean they want you to ignore having that discussion with them about the 1440DPI resolution capability of a new inkjet. It just means you're expected to explain what that really is ("DPI stands for dots per inch, and it refers to how many dots the inkjet printer can make on an inch of paper"), without acting like they're clueless for not knowing that in advance.
...are we going to get the MAN'S printer??? Sexist bastards!
OK, way too much time spent on unix today. My immediate thought was "There is no manual entry for 'printer'".
However it does lead on to another thought - how to finally move Linux on to the average home desktop. Clearly it too needs to be more female-friendly. And I know just the way to do it...
To go with the man command, there needs to be a woman command. It should pull the man entry, then pull google's "I'm feeling lucky" entries to replace every word in it. The end result is something that doesn't really tell you anything useful, takes way longer to get to the point than man would do, but gives the user a reassuring feeling that they've really shared with the command.
Given all the creative types on slashdot, I'm sure we could have a script working within the afternoon, in all the main distributions by the end of the week and Microsoft finally bannished within the month.
They are clearly labeled whether they are Female or Male on each end. Does it get more gender specific than that?
I can count to 1023 on my hands. Ask me about #132.
I know a bunch of short term freelancers who bring their own printers to job sites along with their laptops.
(S(SKK)(SKK))(S(SKK)(SKK))
I think its really cute when women try to operate machinery or electronics equipment. Its like you can see them reading off an internal script (press this button, wait for flash, press "left" until flashings stop...).
Its gets frickin' hilarious if something doesn't work according to that script. Its like something out of an Indian call center.
I don't think I have to mention how mental the Japanese are over cameras. Well, most (female) Japanese also like the photobooths that give you little stickers with your photo on them. I think this printer is designed for the average japanese schoolgirl who wants to take pictures with her friends and then print them out immediately, hence the handle to carry it with you. It doesn't even look like it prints on regular 8.5x11 paper, just 35mm print size photo paper. Add in the fact that it can print from a camera phone and you've got a device that would be a hit with ganguro girls everywhere.
:)
BTW, check out the pic of the girls of team 8, HOT!
God is real unless declared integer.
Does this mean that we can't beat the shit out of this printer to get it working again? Dammit, beating the crap out of my HP LJ 4 to make it work is one of the highlights of my work week, but I couldn't hit a girl printer.
-- Is it a right to remain ignorant? -- Calvin
I can't be the only one that thought "cool, now I can print my own girlfriend"
So I've been told...
Q: "What's the penalty for bigamy?"
A: "Having two wives."
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
"Are countertops designed around a woman's height?"
Who cares?
"Are doors built to accomodate pregnant women?"
Who cares?
"Are computers designed to accomodate women's cultural thought processes?"
Who cares?
See how easy life is when you try?
They make a handle, so it's easy to carry with you to to the bathroom to "freshen up". :-D
Sorry, couldn't resist. But seriously. What is that about? I can't remember ever moving any printer of mine since the date of purchase. Only move them to the trash when they brake, or get replaced.
I made the mistake of buying one of these printers. In the store, it printed everything I asked. Now that I get it home it only prints twice a month if I'm lucky, even then it complains half the time
Still too many buttons.
I say it should just include one:
The "Call stereotypical male computer geek" button.
He-he-he! Okay, sorry.
and with such a stunning deluge of churlish "humour" about women it has suddenly become apparent to me why computer programmers can never get dates!
2 1337 4 u!
the effeminate qualities infused in their own hardware.
I can remember target marketing directly at women as far back as the 70s. Lionel released it's "Lady Lionel" which had simpiler instructions, all pink and blue cars, and is now a very valuable collectors item. However, at the time, the Lady Lionel compeletely flopped and it did more harm them good to the Lionel train company.
This signature was left intentionally blank.
In my experience, generally speaking, men are more functionally oriented, so they want to learn as much as they can about what they're buying so that they can make their own decision about what best fits their needs. Then they feel a sense of accomplishment, even more so if it's complex to operate, because they can put their knowledge to use.
Women are more socially oriented, so they would rather have someone ask them what their needs are and then recommend the best product to them, without forcing them to learn all the details. Then they feel supported, especially if the item is very simple to use and does everything the salesperson/marketer said it would.
Different marketing and design strategies are required to specifically target either gender.
Hell, I'd like to see your sterotypical slashdotter fix the car or move a piano!
Printer for woman features
Known problems:
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
and your "women's cultural thought processes". Its because of sexist remarks like this that the myth of such gender-specific stuff continues to spread.
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
"White channel" on TV. Black channel is allowed, white channel would be a no-no and perceived as racist.
for her pleasure
Now we need one that looks and sounds like a Harley... But what do I know? If it sells, it sells. Great for the slagging tech industry. Can I interest any of the ladies in a pink fuzzy case for a PDA?
them just making easier manuals or user interfaces : So -both- sexes won't have to figure how a printer (or insert any other hardware) works properly.
it stops working and gives you nothing but attitude.
Sounds like both genders of users, froma Tech Support point of view.
Mod Karma -1: I sed bad wurds. If I cep my mouf shut, I wud be at riyses.
I think a lot of you are missing the point. Obviously, marketing something like this in the US for women WOULD be a stupid idea. However, in Japan it is not actually that bad of an idea. Basically you have to consider two things:
1) It DOES have a handle. The cell phone use in Japan is something quite out of this world. Everyone has one, everyone uses one -- especially teenage girls. The main use of these telephones is not actually for talking either. There is a lot of text messaging and picture taking going on. Not only that, but the new cell phones are basically the same quality as digital cameras. So, with a handle, I could very easily see people carrying around a printer to give photos to friends. Internet access is just not that common over there.
2) Women are starting to be seen as a huge powerhouse in Japan. There still exists lots of gender bias, but recently (the last few years) women in Japan are starting to be looked at by businesses. With something being marketed at women, it probably has a higher chance of success compared to something just being marketed to everyone.
If the price is kept low enough, this could very well become something a lot of girls buy, or get as presents for Christmas to use with friends. Maybe as some kind of option for the purikura style of pictures.
WHAT THE FUCK are you talking about, you young whelp?!!!!
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
...That we now have mice with no balls. Printers are tempermental enough, damn it! ;)
Epson has managed to be both Sexist and Racist in a single promotion.
A printer for women, and targetted at the Japanese?
So first they are implying that women can't figure out their original crappy Stylus's, and especially their Japanese customers?
Saskboy's blog is good. 9 out of 10 dentists agree.
But if you do aim at the ground and miss, you just learned how to fly. Or, I guess the dart did. Whatever.
that all people lack technical proficiency. This allows me to be pleasantly surprised, rather than disappointed, when I find out that the support technician on the other end actually knows how to turn his/her _own_ computer on, and that no, it really isn't a drink holder.:-P
picpix image polls. create - share - vote. fun!
I thought it would print females...
This gender specific stuff is idiotic. Printers for women only? What are they going to do?
Print on politically correct 6 by 8 inches paper?
Each printout will have a pink boundary?
It will be tuned to your biological clock and avoid printing in red for a few days?
Photos containing photos of violence, guns etc will be left out like that currency thing?
This printer can fit in your handbag you purchased for 1200 from prada?
If you're ugly, will it make you look good?
Epson's next going to come out with wood color printers that look like ammo boxes for the guys?
I mean wtf is this?
iPods are for fags.
So I've been told...
Q: "What's the penalty for bigamy?"
A: "Having two wives."
Other A: "Two mothers in law"
Still a pathetic joke, though
"She's furniture with a pulse"
Finally a printer that will work with having to be bribed, it will continue to work during a sporting event. No more lost print jobs (the printer will actually ask for directions). But the best feature--will automatically put the "lid" down after changing an ink cartridge
The article doesn't really say what it is about this printer that makes it "for women", but maybe the plugs for all the external devices is the key. It doesn't work for me though. I've got no cell phone, no digital camera, and soon I'll have no TV either. The handle is hokey, the top of the printer is rounded, so you can't stack anything on it.
I'll stick with my HP 520. It's old and it's slow, but it's a solid piece of well designed and functional equipment, and that's what this woman cares about: quality engineering. I'll give it up when it dies, which at this rate looks like about 2125.
Superbly sensible concept. I think they should do the opposite to other devices that are already running on female logic such as the washing machine (what on earth is a delicates pre-wash anyway?)
I'm sure this does happen, but I don't think it's a reflection of women having inherently less technical ability than men. I would see it more that women are less likely to feel embarrassed about asking questions, whereas a man might research his purchase beforehand just to avoid looking clueless in the store.
Acer makes it!
Surely there are differences between cultural cognitive style that are larger than the differences between men and women of the same culture. So we have for instance pickup trucks designed for cowboys and cowgirls - same trucks, different color schemes - which are different from the SUVs designed for suburban breeders, etc.
So, printers designed for women. How about marketing printers designed for blacks with their special cognitive needs (and if they aren't special, why are blacks so disproportionately in special ed?*). After all, if the (woman) Secretary of Education in Georgia can take the word "evolution" out of textbooks to suit the special cognitive needs of Southerners* (although she more recently bowed to pressure and allowed the word back in) - which is kind of like welding that car's hood shut so the women won't be bothered by all those things inside - why don't we just pander to every stereotype (especially the ones supported by survey data) that correspond to cultural groups? Why limit it to sex?
*Disclaimer: This is humor. I neither believe that blacks have special cognitive needs, nor that more than a few percent of any population should be in special ed (it's approaching 30% in my mostly-white town - ridiculous). I do however believe most Southerners need remedial education in evolution (which is borne out by surveys).
"with their freedom lost all virtue lose" - Milton
"Those mofos weight 50 pounds and are nearly indestructible."
Sadly my foot wasn't.
I will actually consider buying this printer. Many scoff at the idea of a feminized product but it has a few key points. One is the ease of use. I don't want to get into a discussion about whether it is appropriate to call an intuitive interface girly. All I want to do it plug the printer in and for it to work. Screw configuring all the drivers and other features. The other reason is that I am tried of having soul-sucking equipment to look at. Cubicle decorations not withstanding, most offices have the flavor and appeal of gruel.
Anyways, I can't say I agree with the idea of having to make a female printer to get those two things but I can say that I those two items are important to me.
As long as the handle folds away neatly then I don't see what's the fuss. Think of it being along the same lines as the 5+ different compilers that come with a linux distro. You may not use all of them but if you do need to use them you are glad they are there.
Unfortunately, I can't find a bio from the offical US Navy site.
that a printer designed for lesbians could never be connected?
Yeah, yeah....
-1, stupid fscking politically incorrect post....
"City hall" in German is "Rathaus" Kinda explains a few things......
Difference Between Men and Women
Instead of a shredder, you can get an optional attachment that takes a piece of paper, crumples it up in a ball, and flings it in the air where a FOUR FOOT HIGH JET OF FLAME SHOOTING FROM THE PRINTER consumes it.
Now that's a printer I would pay some money for!
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
While I'm wary of stereotyping, it's a good experiment to have all-woman design teams and to have a naive targeting like this.
If the majority of men finally will speak out and say "Hey! We don't enjoy this technical bullshit either!" then we can wrap up the experiment and target "people who don't enjoy technical bullshit".
I like my "equipment" simple but powerful. Think women are impressed if you can only perform by waving a manual around?
eheheheh, sexual joke, eheheheheh... *sigh* man I feel old.
I think, therefore I am...I think.
How cute! It has a little handle for when I take it to a picnic.
_________ Help me get a PSP!
"Haha, have you seen most women try to operate hardware, lol!"
They never seem to have any trouble with the vibrators.
As a woman, I say these women are idiots. I can use a normal printer, and never once thought it was made specifically for men. If you cant use a normal printer cause its made by men, you are way to sexist
The article doesn't mention that Hopper was the first person to find a 'bug' - http://www.jamesshuggins.com/h/tek1/first_computer _bug.htm
Also we ought to mention Ada Lovelace - Enchantress of Numbers, Founder of Scientific Computing, whoe helped Babbage with the Analytical Machine.
Guys at the computer lab used to print females all the time, even way back in the early '90s. Especially when they got that alt.binaries feed.
Or does this one actually print real females?
Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachtani?
www.fogbound.net
but marked "lift points". You know, portals with hand grips near the base of the unit that are clearly marked (so you don't break it by holding it in the wrong place)
THIS THING CAN TURN ON A DIME, MACROSSZERO STYLE ALSO FUCK BETA, ~NYORON
Damn! At reading "Epson's Female Printer" I thought it would be a quantum leap like improvement of this innovation. Then I realized it is just a printer for women and not to print women.
Damn you, slashdot!
Some of the features everyone seems off about strike me as kind of useful.
To start with, the handle. I could actually see a lot of use for this myself - I am not printing often, and it would be nice to make the printer easier to tuck out of the way. Also, I have a laptop and it would be nice to sit out on the porch with a printer at times. The actual device looks about twice as big as I would like for such use though (if that's an 8x11 sheet of paper in the press photo).
The second thing I kind of like is the video. It's nice to have a last minute visual confirmation of exactly what the printer is about to do. I didn't read the whole thing but it would be even better if it auto-detected paper sizes loaded to provide a helpful warning it was going to crop.
The single ink cartridge is still a bad idea though, even though it's simpler... I don't know. I think more people would have a problem with the cost than figuring out which ink cart needs to go I know, you could hit a button and it would print out a slip telling you exactly what ink carts to buy so you could take it to a store and hand it to a clerk. That would be useful anyway, as even with one cart it can be tricky knowing which thing to buy when you get to the store. I always forgot which exact model of Epson Stylus Photo I had (was it the 700 or 750?) which was kin dof annoying, and I was trying to be careful.
I do agree though that the idea of a "Womens Printer" is pretty stupid, just make a printer that's easier for everyone to use and you will have a lot of happy customers.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
"When are people going to learn that solving problems with attidudes towards women (for example in computer shops, car mechanics etc) are not going to be improved by having special "female" versions of things?"
Well, there goes the "feminine aids" market.
"Now here's a suggestion: why not make it easy for everyone to use? Or is that just too logical?"
[Looks uncertainly at a box of tampons]
BUENOS DIAS!!
Jou have yust received a mehican puter birus!!!!!
Since we not so technologically adbanced in mehico, dis is a manual birus.
Please delete all the files on jour hard drive jourself and send this e-mail to eberyone jou know.
Tan jou por yelping me.
Julio Manuel Jose Rodirguez Garcia
MEXICAN HACKER
it prints out blowup dolls?
Oh well, back to cryo-sleep until it all comes together. ;)
"A witty saying proves nothing." ~Voltaire
"d'Oh!" ~Homer
A Female Printer? Well I guess that means it'll only print in red for a few days every month.
Proof:
> Its an inkjet style printer, and prints using one ink cartridge with 6 colors.
Didn't Team8 ever take any clues from Canon!? The 3-colour cartridges + 'smart' chip are nothing but a ripoff tactic to get people to pay for overpriced cartridges!!! As if that isn't dumb enough, Team8 decides to make the cartridge 6 colours! If that's what what Epson mean by respecting fellow women, you can guess what do other Epson printers mean for them.
I was just reading the Troubleshooting Section of the manual and came across this error "Out of paper light is flashing". Here's the fix: "Nag your husband, boyfriend, or SO and remind him that the roll must go on the TP holder a specific way, and not on the counter until the light goes off."
GeneralKael -- Slacker Extraordinaire
... Hiding in a sewing machine case.
Ugly lump of a thing waiting to go down the annals of time.
Nothing new, move along now.
I haven't seen anyone mention the source of the article as being japanese, unless they've been modded down.
Japanese culture has an entirely different structure than North American or European. This is especially true for women. I think a big part of the significance of this announcement is that there is an all-women team of engineers in Japan.
I have doubts that this product will even be considered for any markets outside Japan.
All it does is complain and send out white sheets.
If you're talking about Ada Byron, Lady Lovelace, her claim to be "the first programmer" is badly exaggerated. The machine with which she was familiar with Babbage's Analytical Engine, which was never built.
If you're talking about Admiral Grace Hopper, then all homage to her for cool, but she was hardly the first programmer.
All employees must wash hands before seeking equitable relief.
Guys,
If after reading all the comments posted here, you cannot understand why more women do not care to spend time learning about technology, you're pretty $%$%$# stupid for smart people. If someone bleeding 5/28 days out of the month means that they cannot understand technology I'm missing some correlation here.
From The Article: It's an inkjet style printer, and prints using one ink cartridge with 6 colors (emph. added).
Inkjet printers, due to how the printing process works, do not use the different colors of ink at the same rate. If your ink cartridges contain more than one color, the entire cartridge must be replaced when one color runs out even though there is still some useable ink left in the cartridge. This printer will most likely be even more of an ink ripoff than most of the inkjets in the market today.
At our school, we don't earn a degree when we graduate—we earn pi/180 radians
When a man designs a computer for women
Whats next, a woman designing a computer for men ?
>Couldn't help but note that that old dying technology Bluetooth is an option. ;-)
;-)
Bluetooth is dying!
Ok, you mod bastards, now you can go ahead with your "-1, off-topic".
that SPECIFICALLY shows only white people (99%), clearly states that it only shows white people, and doesn't give a shit about national minorities.
Or a channel that only has shows for men (no, not sex related), calls women bitches, gays - fags, and boosts macho side of male personality.
Would something like this be protected by the 1st ammendment?
There is no dart.
> Volvo service staff are the only ones who ever need to access the engine, when the time comes for routine service.
It's all baloney. Volvo isn't the only one who know cars, and nobody should buy a car that totally relies on any single manufacturer for parts and services. Having one M$ is bad enough.
> When service is due, the car automatically notifies a service centre of your choice. The service centre then suggests an appointment time which you can confirm or reject.
How do I know the car isn't sending what isn't suppose to, such as where I drive and how much do I drive? And for that matter, the signals are probably not encrypted, allowing such information to fall into the hands of stalkers and sexual predators!
Given concept cars are usually nothing but a show off piece, the idea of 'car made for and by women' sounds nothing more than dumb marketing slogan that doesn't really address women needs.
Imagine...a Beowulf cluster of these!
First of all why do "women" need "easier to use" printers, they can be just as smart as men. Secondly doesn't everyone need an easier to use printer?
Is there anything better than clicking through Microsoft ads on Slashdot?
OK. Serious ideas.
"I would shell out some serious bucks for a printer that had a super-easy-to-clean paper path, that was liquid resistant (ever try to get orange juice or peanut butter out of a laser printer?!!) with liquid resistant ink."
Imagine a large horizontal cylinder done in matte chrome with black endcaps mounted to a flat base. Roll paper comes in a cartridge that's installed through one of the endcaps[1]. There's only a covered slot that the paper comes out. Retractable power cord. Wireless comunications to computer. Controls locked behind a thumbprint controlled door.
[1] The ink cartridges install through the same opening and plug in, or made part of the paper cartridge. Same if it's a laser printer.
"Hrm... also maybe retractable cords, bluetooth to the computer, anything else that can keep kids from getting tangled in the wire jungle at the back of a PC."
Ever seen an Apple? All people really need on the desktop is display (wireless), keyboard (same), and input/output devices (plug into either one, or anywere else).
Client/server can apply to a home based setup too.
High speed connection between everything and the camcorder plugs into the firewire "anywere". Same with USB. Think outside the box, people.
Then it'll cut your nuts off while you sleep :)
No, but seriously. This is really bad to see. There are enough gimmicks in the printer market already. Printers need to PRINT. Gimmicks just serve to distract from functionality.
Could we have some input from the all female development staff as to why they made this product? I want to know!
All the anti-women comments on here are neglecting the fact that there were women who knew enough to design the product.
because the sales guy in the store doesn't know either (usually), so the guys are less likely to get ripped off in this respect.
I learned this really quick. No matter what the sex, the salesperson still makes things up to sound helpful and push the sale.
THIS THING CAN TURN ON A DIME, MACROSSZERO STYLE ALSO FUCK BETA, ~NYORON
When I'm in the mood to print something, its print mechanism aches.
When it is in the mood, it takes forever to get warmed up. When it doesn't successfully print something, it's my fault no matter how long I spend trying to get it to print. Occasionally, it tries to fake printing.
Watch out for a paper jam! That takes months to work its way out....
-fragbait
I hate sexist jokes as much as any guy can, but DEAR GOD, I hope that's supposed to be THE GUY talking, not the girl...
I know a guy who's really desperate and I told him I would let him have you...
*shudder*
...now a printer that puts clothes on pr0n when it's printed out!
If I recall correctly, the 96-ish and up Ford Taurus vehicles were designed by a team of only women.
I mean, look at it.. it looks like a kotex pad on wheels!
To take it to Best Buy, you insensitive clod! Didn't you read the parent post?!
Actually, this printer makes a great deal of sense in a Japanese context. Its mission in life is to connect to mobile phones, which are overwhelmingly used by and marketed to young women in Japan. (Girl's mobile phone culture is very strange and heavily developed - google "gyarumoji").
Collecting photos of each other is a major social pastime for young Japanese women, there are a number of businesses specialized in this such as the print clubs. Increasingly, print shops are offering printouts from mobile phones. The Epson product seems designed as something that can be taken along on an outing to make prints immediately.
A lot of Japanese electronics for home use are designed to be stored when not in use - so portability, compactness, etc. are important. The concept of a dedicated home office or computer desk is relatively rare.
What Epson has done is design a product very specifically focused on the lifestyle of young keitai girls. These girls are usually *very* tech savvy. So the product is not necessarily "dumbed down", but with a feature set adapted to their needs.
"They're employed there because they're willing to work for minimum wage."
Don't worry the outsourcing phenomenon should start improving this demographic.
Colorio ...almost a great name... but a little too close to Cholera for English speakers.
It does remind me of the name 'Infolio'; which was a pen-tablet computer made by PI Systems of Portland Oregon in the early 1990s. This company disappeared when the entire first generation tablet computer sank in the early 1990s, taking this product name with it.
'Infolio' is a perfect name for a tech product. It is beautiful to hear and fun to say.
What does happen to excellent marketing ideas and strategies when the start-up that conceived them goes under? Can they be bought and reused? Do they become available for reuse after the start-up that developed them has been gone for ten years?
If it costs 10x more like woman's clothes do?
Thanks, Epson, for promoting stereotypes. I appreciate it so much...
-jls
Techno-pagan
On this one, the lid is glued shut, so when you have a paper jam or run out of ink, it's time for a new printer! :-D
My 55 year old mother is about the most non-technical user you can find. Yet she still knows how to comparison shop and ask the right questions. She read up on the subject and learned what resolution was, and picked the printer because 1: it worked directly with her canon digital camera without software and 2: it was small, and she plans to take it when travelling to print copies of pictures for friends.
She doesn't use her computer for much, but she's smart enough to go clicking around when she forgets how to do something like stream audio, and often she figures it out.
My father on the other hand, is way smarter than my mother. But he's a worse computer user. He writes down step by step procedures for everything and if anything changes or he doesn't recognize something he freezes up and starts yelling at me to come help him. Even for simple things like the default save directory changing in a program. He's terrified to try and experiment with anything because he thinks he'll somehow "break" the computer in such a way that it won't be fixable.
If this plan of Epson's works more power to them but I just don't see a need for female-specific hardware. As far as I know they're fine with buying the hardware we have now. Though I do wish some niche markets would be more thoroughly explored like highend wireless optical mice for left handed users.
Introducing the new Occam Fusion! Now with sqrt(-1) fewer blades!
"Mom, can we have some Stove Top Corn Bread?"
Not that I would buy Stove Top products, but it seems odd that the only network who carried their corn bread comercials was BET. While corn bread is soul food... it seems to be just a popular dish all over america.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
Ads for printers now (in the mainstream press) don't have much in the way of specs as it is.
And as for shampoos and cosmetics, they DO have specs. Not the low end cheapo stuff as much, but you have the information as to what the shampoo is supposed to do, what ingredients are in it, what it was tested on (since people do care if their products were tested on animals), and so on.
It's all a matter of what you are interested in -- because I care about photography, I could probably rattle off the specs of many cameras and the pros and cons of all of them. Some can't. I could tell you which moisturizer is best, because I've been actively researching switching brands. But ask me which distro of Linux to use? Forget it. I don't use it, I have no need for it, why bother learning about it? Save my brain cells for important things like cameras, moisturizers, power tools, produce. Things I need.
I do. Are you saying that the female branded shampoos are nto insulting? You don't find the Idea that women are more concerned with their apperance more than anything else insulting? The coperate shills brainwashing of little girls into believing the most important decision of their day is the pattern on their socks doesn't bother you? I guess I just don't understand most people.
Well.. maybe. Or Maybe not. But Definitely not sort of.
This thing is about marketing, period.
We have all grown up in a society where products are gender-coded from a very young age.
Just think about children's toys with a "boy" model and the "girl" model are exactly the same, except one is pink and the other is red or blue.
Or Gameboy vs Gamegirl.
Seems to me that this a is just a variation on that.
Why does a printer need a carrying handle? How often do you move a printer?
Believe me, make it easy to move, and women will move it. Functionality? Bah! There will come a day--and only females know which day that will be--when it has simply been in the same spot too long and must be moved immediately. Look at furniture, for instance. I don't know what great, catastrophic, disaster we are being saved from, but for some reason when a woman has the revelation that "the day" has come, it's an emergency. And it is. Because if you don't help her realize the destiny of every piece of furniture in the house--and I don't care if she wants you to move the dining table so the kids have to crawl under it to get to their seats--she's going to have a splitting headache that will last until you do.
This printer reminded me of a cartoon I saw which was titled, "Computer ergonomically designed for a woman" It consisted of a normal pc with an ironing board attachment. (okay maybe it was an elongated heat resistant mousmat, but it was designed to be used from the standing position and had an iron)
I could sell everyone here a new 4-function Winnebago with square wheels and a fahnestock clip on the ethernet port if this is how y'all perceive product marketing.
We know how women view electronics..
if it's a female printer is it going to check what gender we are? "Sorry you're not female, not removing sexual organs"
--- [Insert intresting Sig here]
Why does a printer need to be marketed towards women? Does no one see the inherent sexism in this? "Dense enough DPI for a man, but made for a woman..."
Looking at the photo, it still has buttons, just like masculine printers. And it has a rounded plastic molding, just like masculine printers. And reading the blurb, it even has cartridges, just like a masculine printer. The only difference I could see was that it had a handle.
I'm so glad I don't work for a company that divides up projects according to gender. "Oooh, better not give Holly the printer driver project, she's a woman! Put her on the team designing printer handles instead..."
Don't blame me, I didn't vote for either of them!
...But I did think "Oh god, here come the PMS jokes".
First Volvo proposes a car with the hood welded shut, and that rarely needs an oil change. Now Epson proposes a printer that is "easier for women to use". Why don't they just say "breasts lower IQ's" or "that's okay little lady, we know you can't read an owners manual".
The marketing, not the product, is what they are designing for women.
One cartridge for 6 ink colors. Great. Now when she runs out of blue ink she just throws away the whole cartridge and buys a $new$ one.
Actually, that's more of a male feature than a female feature. My wife's all big on conservation and recycling and stuff. I just chuck it all in the trash.
On the other hand, I'm the cheap one.
-----------------------
To understand recursion, one must first understand recursion.
All these dumb comments about "women's special needs" misses the point. The goal is to make something that's easy to use and not require a lot of fooling with to make it work as desired. Why not ask the opposite question: what's a "typical guy's printer"? If you make some overly broad sexist generalizations you would get: (1) doesn't connect with anything but a PC (who cares how hard it is to print photos from a camera, as long as there's some way to do it), (2) ugly (it's supposed to be functional not pretty), and (3) not ergonomic (we have big muscles for a reason - picking up awkwardly shaped boxes!).
Now that I think about it, the printer and its basic approach reminds me of something closer to home - the iMac and all its iPeripherals. The designers of the iMac weren't afraid to make something easy to use and nice looking. Does that make it a "women's computer"? Let all the female graphic designers and interior decorators have their cute Apples with the colors and rounded edges, and give us manly hackers our plain beige boxes with Linux and Windows, or black angular laptops that weigh 10 pounds! And our hard to use and ugly printers so we can reaffirm our testosterone!
so they can dispense with reading the instructions?
Not goin' there....
...I may be looking at this from a man's perspective, but most printers are simple, non-complex machines with 1-5 buttons on average and a very straightforward manual and installation-procedure. The software to run it, however, is the one that preplexes most new and inexperienced users. That this would be a gender-issue is another ridiculous statement. It may very well be that some people prefer more style in their machinery at home, in which case the printer in question may have some appeal, but please don't tell me that it is more user-or genderfriendly.
Anyone have a mirror with a readable font?
Of course all the printers so far have been male! The parallel port on the back of the computer is female, so it wouldn't work any other way! I guess this printer could work with a dongle, though.
Don't label something "offtopic" unless you know the topic well enough to tell what's on topic.
Aparently Apple is releasing a new imac, specifically desinged for the ladies. Dont worry guys, there is one for us aswell. Here is the article
looking from a male point of view on this in the defense of women.. isnt this somewhat sexist?
even though it was done by women, isnt that very general to say?
because they prolly got the most computer illiterate women they could find, and have them make a model that represents all women..
this is much like volvo's car for women... that boils down to an almost useless, and even more annoying car.
if my mom can do basic repairs on a ca, I dont think they need to block access so women dont bother their pretty heads over it.. and this.. bah.. it's another stupid marketing gimmick IMHO
WHAT THE FUCK are you talking about, you young whelp?!!!!
STOP PRESSES: TECH ENTHSUIAST MAKES GENERAL STATEMENT OF FACT; OPPONENT OFFERS SINGLE EXCEPTION.
Seriously, do you want to see a list of the hundred other (male) figures at this time in the field? The grandparent is right on.
G-Force music visualization
There's no doubt that men are predominant in the technology field, but you really shouldn't just base your assumtions on those that got enough publicity to be remembered. There are thousends of unnamed people who have helped in the tech field (both male and female).
Silly rabbit
womyn don't do shit
I'd say stupid more than insulting. I'm female (and quite at home with equipment much more complex than a printer) and I figured out a long time ago I could get cheaper socks, shoes, etc. if I didn't buy the "pink" ones. I hate pink. (Marketers hate *me*.) I saw some idiotic "women friendly" hammers at a hardware store once. Yes, you guessed it. Pink handles. woo. That makes *all* the difference.
I mean its got a handle and looks like a purse. A printer for women = another purse.
Actually, I can't say that I'm surprised by this.
I will never live for sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine.
The printer software contains complex algorithms that use fuzzy logic to produce new original errors messages every week ...
Fiercely efficient, metallic exterior, won't let you cancel a job until it has completed 'zee order'
Dude, your time machine dropped you in the year 2004 not 1954!!! Calibrate your discombobulator so you don't end up in an era of evolved thinking and equality! ... or just wake the hell up bozo.
Looks totally cool, flings out the paper at high speed in a random but creative direction, rusts pretty much straight away
What, is it a bit more... wobbly... than other printers?
This could be the Rez of the printer world!
Returned Peace Corps IT Volunteer
doesn't print between the hours of 9am and midnight
A printer designed mainly for women? I wonder how it would differ from a man printer? Maybe it only prints after you throw a hissy fit, kick the printer with a healed shoe, and yell "stupid machine!" Just a thought... Oh wait no... I know what it must do. It obviously must print documents without a user having to tell it to ahead of time. Could there be a secret compartment for tampons somewhere in this contraption? Hopefully the printer was designed to be too feminist... you might have to worry about it kneeing you in the balls everytime there is a paper jam!
When will companies stop playing with slogans and focus on making technology products that are easy to use for all humans? And make them reliable, secure, etc. while they're at it.
Oh, I forgot: that's too hard, takes too many resources, and costs too much money to even think about attempting. Bummer.
Bah - the Laserjet II was for wimps! Give me an old Imagen printer with the liquid toner that they used before the new dry toners came out! It was based on a mid-80s Canon copier mechanism, and the toner looked like used motor oil, but was really more like kerosene with carbon black dissolved in it. If the gauge shows that you're a quart low, you fill it up, after first making sure it wasn't just gunked up and lying about how full it was (the stuff's really nasty to clean up if it overflows.) Then you get to clean your hands like a Real Mechanic if you dripped any. And you get aromatic 240-dpi fuzzy pictures out of it, after having fun negotiating with the protocols.
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
.. it has no access hatches or openings of any kind and the only person who can service, or change the toner or ink, or open it in any way is an Epson technician.
---- "Excuse me. Where's the children's gun section?"
But it didn't say whether paying 20000 yen let you avoid replacing ink cartridges every not-very-many pages, or whether the high price just means you can print more pages before you've spent more on overpriced ink than you spent on the printer, or even brag about how you can replace the cartridge without breaking a fingernail.
And it doesn't say whether plugging the USB interface into your PC Just Works or requires installing drivers that don't get along with your version of Windows and have badly-translated instructions (We get signal! Somebody set up us the printer! It's you! How are you, lady! All your ink are belong to us!)
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
Someone linked to the previous /. article on the volvo designed by women. I have to say that either those teams worked in an entirely sexist environment seeking to dumb techonlogy down for the 'ideal woman' they had in mind (a helpless princess who doesn't care how things work), or else women really think of themselves as helpless princesses who don't care how things work. (Or maybe they really are helpless princesses who don't care about how things work (Or maybe they think they are helpless princesses, and don't know how things work. (or...)))
I wonder how an ultra-feminist man-hater would react to these 'inventions?' To me, it's terribly insulting or proof in the pudding. I can't decide.
AC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3528757.stm
The point is that the sociopolitical superstructure has been setup (by men) in such a way to keep technology out of the hands of womyn! The reason more womyn aren't in technology and science isn't because they lack the basic interest, drive, or capacity, but because MEN are controlling WOMEN in such a way that their inborn technology-loving feelings can't be expressed in this WOMYN-HATING so-called culture in which we live!
For example, where are the interesting video games? Counter Strike is stupid and violent! If there aren't any good video games for young girls, ones they are interested in, then they won't play the computer. Clearly, this is another area where men are OPPRESSING womyn!! Why won't MEN program girl-friendly games? Barbies Fun Land doesn't count! It's just restating the PATRIARCHAL ROLES pushed onto INNOCENT little girls so they can be more easily RAPED by MEN!!!
And why do computers have to use such boring 1s and 0s? This is part of the Male-Centric epistemological worldview that cuts womyn right out! All womyn know from experience that not everything can be put into 1s and 0s, so why are computers built this way? To OPPRESS WOMYN!!! They don't want us to find out how interesting computers are. They want us to become bored while MEN STEAL all our RIGHTS!
Men do this to us womyn so we can't compete in the workplace. By keeping us out of science and technology, men are keeping our WAGES LOW. They are perpetuating the CYCLE OF ABUSE on all womyn kind!!!
AHHH!!! LEAVE ME ALONE!!!! I AM BEING RAPED BY YOUR BEADY EYES AND SWEATY GEEK HANDS!!!!
In Disgust!
feminista
whereas a man might research his purchase beforehand just to avoid looking clueless in the store.
Or, as with cars and stereo equipment, a man does research to know what he wants and/or to find the best there is so as to always outdo the neighbor, or brother, or father, or whatever. A woman just wants the thing to work.
this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom. -- Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
I just wish they'd make a printer that would last longer than 5 months before refusing to work entirely.
anata sekai o kakumei surush ga nai deshou? Anata no susumu michi wa yoi shite arimasu.
It only makes sense to design and build a product that appeals to them. Regardless of what you may think is important in a printer, what matters in the end (for Canon, anyway) is how many they can sell. Appealing to women is the quickest way to sell something in Japan.
Method 1: command-c and command-v, as available in every OS in existence.
Method 2: Highlight text. Click and hold on highlighted area. Pause a moment. Drag and drop text. (In terminal.app, is almost identical to middle-click, except you drag a little)
Method 3: Highlight text. Right-click->Copy. Right-click->Paste.
Dunn't seem so difficult to me...
But I feel obliged to politely point out that we're still earning (on average) only 92 cents on the dollar compared to men.
Well, would you expect to be paid more than the next employee, if you worked an average of 10 hours more per week, 400 per year, had 25% more job experience and put in 90% of the overtime hours? How about if you were over nine times as likely to be seriously hurt or injured on the job? Feminists complain about how the "glass ceiling" keeps them from the highest paying jobs (a myth), but you don't see too many demanding to be landfill divers (second one down).
And if anyone says women don't earn as much as men in high-tech fields because we're not as good
No, men get paid more because they work more. If women were really paid that much less for the same work, why don't companies fire all their male employees, replace them with women and drive their compeditors out of business? A couple of nice editorials on the subject, here and here.
I will personally punch them in the face.
Ah, another of my favorite double standards. Violence against women by men is a cultural taboo in this country right up there with priests having sex with little boys, but female violence against men is no big deal, deserved, or even funny. I'm not saying you have that attitude, I'm just talking about how gender violence is perceived today.
Finally, one more reason why guys make more than women: because we don't have any choice if we want to date you. Money is the easiest sign of success, and women want their men to be successful. I'm not accusing the entire female gender of gold digging; its not about money. Its just that the man has to be more successful in his profession than the woman is in hers. How many senior, female bank managers marry guys who are full time bus drivers?
this is simply the most retarded thing I've read today.... and I read a LOT of retarded things.
chown -R us
Marketing is about playing off stereotypes and prejudices commonly accepted in a given society. It plays off fear and descrimination. Like when when the negro/hairy hick is scared off in the home alarm commercial. Yay!
I got a vacuum cleaner yesterday, and what I learned from the pictures on the box:
1.- The bagless design is so simple, a middle-aged man in a dress shirt can clean it!
2.- It's so light, a middle-aged woman can carry it down a flight of steps!
It's a gender-role busting mega machine, my vacuum cleaner is!
Please stop stalking me, bro.
Does this mean the printer is werded shut and must be taken to a genuine Epson dealership to have the toner changed?
Mal-2
How is the Riemann zeta function like Trump rallies? Both have an endless number of trivial zeros.
One question: Is the hood welded shut ( a la Volvo)?
Profanity - The sign of a small mind trying to express itself.
Why is it that when people hear "designed for/by women" they think "I will be a pussy if I use it", and immediately belittle and deride the object in question? Maybe the fairer sex can shed some new light on printers and cars, amongst other things. Women tend to look at things from a different angle. They are more practical than most men. I am a practical person, as I am sure most geeks are. I would rather have a good printer designed by/for a woman than a P.O.S.
I hate sigs.
What you're seeing is that programmers are just smart enough to realize that they don't *WANT* dates.
Yeah, that's it.
paintball
The reality is, these people assume CUSTOMERS don't know anything, an assumption that is certainly valid. Women just ASSUME that their gender is responsible for this assumption, failing to realize that it's their species.
paintball
You want just the specs, nothing else and certainly no marketing aimed specifically at a you. That's pretty funny and self-centered because products sold that way ARE using marketing aimed at a technical sub-group. Those bullet-pointed spec sheets are written specifically for your market segment and what is more, they clearly work because you prefer them.
Enough about the fucking handle. Yeah, it seems like a silly idea, but so did the handle on my GambeCube...which i now find insanely useful for transport between the upstairs and downstairs (big) TV. While I can't immediately come up with an analogue to what problem this handle solves, it surely costs an insignifigant amount which is easily trumped the first time you use the goddamn handle.
I for one found it disgustingly funny! MOD: You are an idiot.
Does anyone else think it looks like a Cyberman from Dr Who.
Saying Apple is better than MS is like saying Botulism is better than rabies.
Honestly, the only time I open the bonnet on my car is when I want to fill up washer fluid," said Tatiana Butovitsch Temm. "Do we need to have a one metre square hatch for that or could we do it in another way? "So we shifted the filling station for washer fluid to the side of the car, next to where you fill up fuel, and we closed the bonnet for good."
WTF that's a nightmare car there's an engine in there for a start how do you get the oil into the engine? Change spark plugs etc and is it really a good idea to put the filler for water next to the fuel?
Volvo aren't going to produce the car but some features may appear on other Volvos most likely the seat covers
Like the Volvo the printer is a marketing scheme more than anything to try and attract woman to there brand and it's a bit fake as most design projects will have woman on the team as there are very few all male design teams.
an all-female project team created within Epson specifically for making a printer 'easy for women to use
As my girlfriend said about the Volvo team "patronizing bitches they make us seem dumber than men"
Saying Apple is better than MS is like saying Botulism is better than rabies.
Five will get you ten that when it starts printing, it keeps printing and printing and printing, sounding like "meemeemeemeemeemeemeeemee".
Obligatory Seinfeld reference
Alexandre http://enkerli.wordpress.com/
Aren't "one button" printers simple enough already??
I just an nearly UNABLE to operate the One Button stuff, because all the maintenance operations and error messages taht were once supposed to be flashed and selected through the printers' pannel are now made trough a Proprietary piece of software designed and locked to a single O.S. platform on a single kind of hardware.
What are these now? one will be unable to open them to pick out jammed sheets, just like the Volvo car from the other day?
-><- no
Don't worry... If she timed everything right you'll probably have to move the furniture in 2-3 months so you can repaint/wallpaper the entire room... with a border... or wood moulding... or arrrrrrghhhh.
--
dman123 forever!
Filtering out the -1s and 0s since 1999.
Beyond that it's simply clicking the godamned print button in the application.
00101010
Because the "You just plug it in and print" thing that current "male-oriented" printers do is TOO hard.
Oh, and "math is hard", "let's go shopping."
--
"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
And remember, (+1, Funnay) does nothing for karma!
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Why do car sellers behave this way? I'll tell you why. Because that is how they sell more cars. They're trying to establish a rapport with the customer, and women tend to care more about car color than features. Don't believe me? Well, buying a new car is an exciting experience, and of course my wife told everyone she knew about it. She told her parents. Grandparents. Friends. Pretty much anyone who would listen (hey, she has to have some stereotypical female traits, right?) Without fail, the conversations with the women (her mother, grandmother, female friends, coworkers) went something like:
Wife: I bought a new car yesterday!
Female: Oh, that's so exciting! What color is it?
And as I'm sure you've already guessed, the men all asked "What kind" instead of "What color". So what does that tell me? That you are an anomoly. So is my wife. But most women care more about color/style/looks than they care about specs/features/durability.
About the best you can do is inform any unskilled salespeople (the ones who, in trying to establish a rapport with you, miss the boat completely and try to give you warm fuzzies) what you consider to be important to your purchase and inform his/her manager if he/she still doesn't get it. Yes, it sucks. Yes, it shouldn't be that way. But you've got to function in society somehow.
Or just ride the bus.
"Avoid employing unlucky people - throw half of the pile of CVs in the bin without reading them." -- David Brent
The real question: How many females-per-minute can this thing print out?
Am I the only one that read the headline and thought (hoped) that it would be a printer that would print out a girlfriend for me?
First off, I am a woman, and I don't really see any use for this printer as opposed to any other printer with the same features. It's definitely not much sleeker and doesn't seem to be easier to use from the description. I personally don't see a need for a "woman's" printer in the first place because most of the women I know - friends and coworkers - are techie enough to use a regular printer anyway. If some women want to buy it because it appeals to them, they're entitled.
/. may be dominated by male geeks, but there are few of us "geeky girls" out here reading the boards. A few of y'alls jokes made me chuckle, I'll admit, but the hostility of a few of you nerds makes me think you're a bunch of lonely, lonely boys. With such an attitude towards the opposite sex, I don't wonder why.
Second, I'm no Femi-Nazi but the woman-bashing on this story is ridiculous. Sure,
it probably will sell brilliantly, but i'm willing to bet that the money they put into R&D for this product could easily have instead stretched out and paid for education so girls don't have to get a "special" printer. a little education can go a long way, and we're just as capable of applying ourselves to CS. i can name you a couple dozen men in this building alone who spend every day asking a girl (me) how to work that email/printer/blinking green/beepy thing.
I suggest going through this reading list. I hope it will help you sort out nature/nurture:
"Nature Via Nurture", by Matt Ridley
"The Red Queen", by Matt Ridley
"The Blank Slate: The Denial of Human Nature", by Steven Pinker
"The Moral Animal", by Robert Wright
I highly recommend "Nature via Nurture" myself - excellent and very enjoyable to read!
Be sure, many scientists are studying these issues, and the results may surprise you...
(Be sure to check the reviews of these books at Amazon.com)
"However, the point is that men and women are socialized all their lives to fit into their gender roles. If given half a chance, would there be more overlap in the reactions?"
I doubt it. The differences appear from a very early age (often despite parental influence).
If women were really interested, they'd be doing it already. They've been pretty good at what they are interested in. Women do very well in ten pin bowling for instance.
In the US seems there are plenty of guys who get picked on because of their various nerdy interests (counterproductive culture). But they still persist.
If women are so easily discouraged from doing something, maybe they're not interested enough and just won't cut it later. Why force them to do something they're not interested in? I mean what next? Have a quota to ensure a higher ratio of male nurses? I'm all for giving people opportunities but I'd pick someone with less knowledge/experience but a lot more interest anytime. I'm willing to be that a programmer who writes stuff like Acme::Bleach in his spare cycles for fun is more likely to be (or end up) a better programmer than someone who's very capable but just not as interested.
CEOs, Leaders and pioneers aren't an easily discouraged bunch. Of course, the same applies for psychos, cranks and other unfortunately not easily discouraged folk (of which it seems there are more "outstanding" males than females).
There is no significant barrier in contributing to opensource projects. Where are the females? I know of a few, but from what I see, the generalizations and stereotypes are valid.
I sometimes joke that if a woman has a compulsion to wash her hands frequently, she'd either hide it or seek professional help (or talk about the problem to a very close friend). Whereas with a guy, there's a not insignificant chance that he'd start a special interest group for like-minded guys and there'll be endless debates on which soap is the best, and bragging about how many times they wash a day.
I mean look at the PC overclockers or the people who buy HiFi cables that claim to be erm unidirectional...
Gee, the toner just does NOT match my paper, hang on, oh maybe an hour while I change to something better? Dear, does this make me look fat?