But the boom appears to be bypassing large segments of the region's population, raising concerns that the so-called capital of the new economy is also becoming the poster child for the digital divide. In previous years, the Index has highlighted problems with job growth, congestion, housing and the environment. This year's edition expanded the focus. Its report suggests that the large and fast-growing Hispanic community is being left behind. Silicon Valley's development is a matter of more than academic interest.
Many economists contend that the changes in the region are precursors for the nation's economy.
And while the issue of a growing gap between the technically trained and the unskilled has lately garnered attention in Washington D.C., the latest index shows that the Internet boom may be exacerbating the problem in Silicon Valley. And while the top fifth's income was up from 1992, the bottom fifth's income actually was down slightly from six years earlier. Also, the data does not measure mobility - whether any of the people who were in the bottom 20 percent in 1992 had moved into the top 20 percent by 1998. Furthermore, the Index defines Silicon Valley as Santa Clara County, which includes San Jose, and the southern parts of neighboring San Mateo and Alameda Counties. It thus excludes San Francisco and other parts of the Bay Area that have experienced greater Net-related job growth in recent months than has the region defined by Joint Venture.