Hello, my name is Jen. I decided to write an article on the role 
that females play on irc, and the overall personna that is created 
based solely on their gender. The basis for this article was made 
on assumptions created by a survey taken, questioning close to 30 
active irc users. 

Most questioned were people of #b4b0, or friends of mine (see list of 
nicks below).  The questions i asked, consisted mainly of "what do you 
think of females on irc", and to the girls, i asked mainly "do you feel 
as though you're treated differently, for the sole reason of being female". 
The feedback I received, varied a little, but the overall conclusion 
resulted in, 'yes, females are treated differently'.  Although, the ways 
that the females were differentiated, varied from guys either being harsh 
or overly nice. Their intensions were also questioned in the survey, and 
I'd have to say that overall the guys with which we associate are warm-hearted 
and sincere, but occasionally lacking entertainment or suffering from boredom.

I wasn't surprised to find that a lot of the guys question the authenticity 
of the information that a girl offers (eg. pictures, personal information, 
sexual oriented information, gender, etc.) Not many of the guys made a decision 
that just because a girl is on irc, means that she is either lifeless or unworthy. 
However, there was a comment made, that basically noted "the reason for a girl 
to be on irc is to get attention, so she will do whatever is asked of her, 
including cybersex or phonesex, to accomplish a sort of acceptance, or 
acknowledgement". 

Girls be proud of these guys though, and appreciate the hard work and effort 
of their endeavors, because they're willing to share their knowledge and teach 
you. All of the guys in the survey denied that they would not coach or teach 
someone just because they are female. There is no reason why we shouldn't 
have interest in what the guys are passionate about, or what they excel in, 
if we're going to spend so much time with them, or in their presence. I would 
also guess that, we might be respected more, if we did make at least the effort 
to learn about the things that they participate in. 

I asked the girls if they were upset or frustrated by the expectations made 
by guys online. The comparisons, expectations, standards, we all know these 
obstacles can at times be upsetting or disppointing. After surveying the girls, 
i was surprised to find that most of them didn't really care what the guys thought 
about them. Seeming pretty confident (unfortunately, i am lacking in this 
attribute, so my perspective is different from some of the girls), a lot of 
them seemed to make the decision that, if they're not seen as being good enough, 
than the person judging was obviously the inferrior one. 

The basic conclusion, and request from this article, comes down to, appreciate 
and respect each other equally. Be there for people, for the reason of making 
a difference, not for the expectation of receiving some kind of "favor" in 
return. Don't make assumptions about someone, nor create pretenses to be 
appreciated. If you have to have a nude picture with a saying "bozo owns me" 
accross your chest, than obviously there is lack for respect, acknowledgement, 
and appreciation for the person you are, and for your expression.  It's commonly 
said that you can't really know someone from irc on a personal level, but i 
disagree. Intimacy and friendship is very apparent online. Appreciate the people 
that you spend hours with, without being so harsh and insulting without reason. 

Oh, last thing...everyone denies their cybering experience, so why do us girls 
recieve constant requests? ;P

Special thanks to everyone that participated in the survey, and especially to #b4b0.
(tip, tgb, dono, pr0phet, polder, jsbach, mosthated, angieb, mynd, icesk, misfit, 
eckis, kyle, borgie, justin, n0k1a, KKR, schemerz, sistym, opcode, ch1ckie, r1ngy, 
hitman, mya)

~lusta

For the results of the survey, actual questions and answers asked, check out: 
http://www.lusta.org/survey.html
