Return of the Salad Days

Earlier this week the WSJ reported on a new trend among high-tech venture capitalists of preemptive funding. (HT Bizzyblog, Nixguy) In this scenario a cash-strapped young start-up company with a hot technology is spared the indignity of formal dinners, presentations, and pleading. Instead they are surprised by an unannounced influx of several million dollars in investment from some random VC.

It's the American dream, accelerated: One day they are coding their nifty AJAX/Web 2.0 application - and they step away to grab some Taco Bell - and someone clocks them with a bucket of cash as they are getting in their Jetta.

Now Robert Mitchell, correspondent for Computerworld, is making the case that American industry is underserved by experienced technologists, and degree-minded youngsters should consider it a viable career. Overseas outsourcing is limited by communication and culture, and higher-end applications require localized, hand-on experience. And tech changes very, very quickly.

Information is the lifeblood of commerce, and this increases exponentially each year. It may be premature to party, once again, like it's 1998 - but another investment-fueled intermingling of technology and business may be moving into higher gear.