With respect, it is not about obsessing on words.
Male privilege is so ingrained - particularly in the tech world - that we honestly, and with good intent, think that words like "guy" are neutral.
In the interest of establishing some empathy, think for a moment how you would feel if people normally referred to you as "gal" or "girl" or a group to which you belonged as "gals". If you heard that someone was looking to hire a gal, would you think it included you? (The plural form *is* sometimes considered gender-neutral, but personally I have to work to think of it that way; and the singular clearly refers to a male.)
Almost everyone I know in the tech field, including *everyone* I've met in the ESUG community considers ours to be a gender neutral discipline, and bemoans the fact that things aren't more balanced. Unfortunately, that doesn't always translate to inclusivity (including language).
Unfortunately, English doesn't have a single sylable, gender neutral, noun for groups of individuals. French has "gens", but the best that English can do is "people". For individuals, it's worse as neither language does better than "person" (which interestingly is feminine in French - "la personne").
I'm sure many consider this discussion to be irrelevant ��and off-topic and "just want to get back to programming".�� Me too, but I want lots of female colleagues, and colleagues from other races, countries, and backgrounds, so I'm willing to make all the efforts I can to make that happen��- including language, grad-student supervision, undergrad mentoring, co-authoring papers, and funding.
Thanks, ��../Dave