This year there are a LOT of panels and roundtables that will be of interest to women in the industry. I've gone through the conference catalogue to pick out the ones that jumped out at me.

Attracting Women into Game Development: led by Sande Chen and Michelle Sorger, this roundtable is just what it sounds like - an open discussion of how the industry might take steps to correct the gender imbalance. You should show up so you can contribute your ideas. I hope this produces a coherent plan of best practices.

Better Games (and Quality of Life) in 40 Hours a Week: One of the most persistent complaints women have (and a lot of men, too, for that matter) is the "crunch time" and long long hours required by game developers. Can you still make good games withough having to go insane? Hank Howie will tell us how. In fact Quality of Life is going to be a hot topic this year - see the next two, both also important to women and men.

Quality of Life - Best Practices - putting the ideas into action. It's a roundtable, again, so it's important for both industry managers and workers to attend.

And the dialogue expands even further with the Quality of Life Summit. Sometimes, I admit, summits can be frustrating. There are so many people, and although there are good ideas on the table, they don't seem to organize into a real plan for action. But even so the mix of debate is exciting and can give you an idea of where your company should be headed.

Diversity : The Invisible Hurdle: We might all agree that diversity is generally a good goal, but how can it help you better your business and your game design? And how do you include diversity in your studio? I don't know, but Sheri Graner Ray and Joseph Saulter are going to find out. It's a roundtable, too, so go participate!

Casual Games Summit: I know, you're thinking, what does this have to do with women? Well, women happen to be the biggest market for so-called "casual games" - those quick little web-based games you find on, say, Pogo. It's an area that hasn't been paid attention to much yet - even the nomenclature distinguishes it from console games which I suppose are "serious" - but it looks to be a growing market, especially for new gamers.

Counting Women: The Dollars and Cents Behind Female Gamers: Presenters working of brand-new data will tell you exactly what the purchasing power of female gamers is, and where they are.

Sexuality in Games: When is it Appropriate? This just looks fun!

Womens Group Gathering My buddy Heather Kelley's leading it this year. It's just an informal gathering - networking and chatting. Students might find mentors, young developers might get advice, and old friends will just catch up. See you there.