Valley that caught an affluenza bug

The Silcon Boys By David A Kaplan (William Morrow, #27) The Nudist On The Late Shift By Po Bronson (Secker and Warburg, #10) How can Silicon Glen become more like Silicon Valley? It's a question I hear asked not just in Scotland; all the Silicon Valley wannabes - and there are many around the world - ask it all the time.

There are many reasons the comparisons between the two places break down, but one that is rarely considered is the history and culture that has made Silicon Valley a phenomenon. Both of the above books will help the interested observer understand that phenomenon better.

David Kaplan writes a compelling history of the Valley. He draws parallels with the gold rush, and starts - as all good histories of the valley should - with Hewlett Packard and Fairchild, the progenitors of many of today's companies.

Throughout Kaplan's book you will get to meet most of the usual suspects; Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, Nolan Bushnell and so on. In fact Kaplan, a senior writer for Newsweek, is actually perpetrating one of that magazine's stylistic bad habits - deciding that his writing will be more credible if he can squeeze in references to, or quotes from, as many people as possible.

Kaplan is certainly not scared to take an irreverent view of some of the Titans of high-tech, and his observations are often funny. But he also manages to get hung up on the wealth of the place, returning again and again to the enormous riches of his interviewees. Doesn't he understand that it's just the way things are in the Valley?

He does, however, turn in a very good chapter on the development of venture capitalism. There is also a strong section on the rise and fall of Netscape: read this if you want to understand why Microsoft has so few friends. But the problem with Kaplan's history is that it is a little well, historical. He deals with events up until and through 1998 - but measured by the incessant tick of Valley-time, that's quite a while ago.

Kaplan is a New Yorker who spent time in the Valley: Po Bronson went to Stanford, lives in San Francisco, and writes for Wired magazine. Indeed, any regular Wired readers out there will recognise some of the characters in The Nudist On The Late Shift. The title, incidentally, refers to one of the great urban legends in the Valley; if you want to know if it's true, you'll have to read the book.

Bronson understands the rate of evolution in this strange part of the world, the way that technology accelerates at an unstoppable pace. He also captures the core Valley belief that this is where you need to be if you want to change the world. It is a belief so strongly held that, despite a lowering quality of life, extortionate house prices, massive traffic jams and falling educational standards, people continue to pour in - not just from the rest of the United States but from all over the world.

Neither Kaplan nor Bronson is trying to write an analytical text, and both of them admit to concerns about Silicon Valley in the future. Kaplan concludes that "the workaholic pace robotizes people - they have to get rich. Call it affluenza. No time for fun, no time for family, no perspective on life outside the bubble." Bronson similarly reflects that ''few of the people who work there are really enjoying themselves".

Silicon Glen is in no danger of approaching the culture and values of Silicon Valley just yet. But Bronson is right. The Valley has evolved to where it is under its own distinct laws and customs - and as Scotland plunges down the path of the knowledge economy, we need to continue to reflect on the balance and quality in people's lives. These two books are fun to read - but they will also help us reflect on what we may be wishing for when we look wistfully upon Silicon Valley.

Copyright 1999
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