That's a good post, but I think that I went down a different set of windy little paths. My worlds (graphics and video products) had tons of companies disappear

That's a good post, but I think that I went down a different set of windy little paths. My worlds (graphics and video products) had tons of companies disappear, and the ones still standing matured to the point of offshore manufacture, maintenance, decreasing margins. It hasn't all disappeared but I think that a lot of the fun is gone. I'm older than you, never bothered with internet technologies and languages, and feel a bit of ennui about the whole deal. My guess is that a world that only consisted of workstation software and embedded systems, slightly fleshed out with an internet made up of Amazon, email, USENET (and cars without video games on the dash) is just the fantasy of a Luddite. My temptation is to take on increasingly archaic skills. Rebuilding a carburetor or playing a musical instrument is already in the pallet, so maybe bookbinding or blacksmithing should be on the horizon.