&gt; Where were the &quot;women in tech&quot; back when computer programming was some &quot;weird&quot; hobby of the outcast nerds?<p>Programming was originally an exclusively female profession because it was seen as lowly-paid &quot;women&#x27;s work&quot;. Later it became a male profession.<p>But you&#x27;re talking about the non-professional setting. Well, that started with the home computer revolution. There were few teenage girls programming at home because the means of doing so - home computers - were marketed almost exclusively to boys. Alas, parents seem to avoid buying boys &#x27;girl toys&#x27; and vice-versa.