Most places (conferences, special events etc) that give out t-shirts tend to give out XL Men's t-shirts. Maybe there will be large or medium shirts as well but they will still almost always be men's shirts. Women, as some of you may have noticed, are not built the same way that men are. Large t-shirts cut for men are not that flattering to women. I've noticed that more than a few women at tech conferences are starting to complain about this situation. Kathy Sierra's blog has a great post on the subject that includes pictures so that of you who are as limited in imagination as I can see the difference between men's and woman's t-shirts on a woman.

It's about time that companies really take notice of people and what their real needs and wants are. The world, even the world of hi-tech, is not just men and neither should conference t-shirts. Part of the problem with recruiting and retaining women in hi-tech may very well be how they are treated my the men in the field. They are taken for granted and told to accept the same things (clothing in this case) that ignore their differences. Different is not better or worse but it is different and those differences should be valued and different needs should be met.