The Y2K problem brought a new era in the internet age. First there was the fear that in the year 2000 computers would crash. It was feared that the date calendar on thecomputer would not comprehend the digits '2000'. This made offsite backup inevitable. It also brought about a revolution of where work could be done. Fear was everywhere. Money was spent abundantly to mitigate this fear.

Office space became redundant, as a laptop is all one needed, to do their job anywhere in the world. As the dot.com bubble burst, accountants were ,told that the new mantra, to value a company was not the 'burn rate' but 'its earnings rate'.

As an accountant, I remember interviewing the chief financial officer of a well-known search engine company. The interview was to decide whether to rent a building, in Silicon Valley to his company, on behalf of my client. His comment to me was that his management had an unlimited budget for tenant improvements, as it would help their 'burn rate' of money. His comment was that this burn rate would increase the market price of their stock. My client's daughter loved the name of the prospective tenant. The market was over-priced with crazy valuations. However, as they respected my advice against accepting the tenant, a financial disaster was avoided by my client. Conservative accountants shrugged their shoulders and waited patiently for the dot.com bust. When this happened, investors lost a lot of money and accountants were told to cut costs and look at real earnings. This opened up the internet highway, and Silicon Valley moved to places overseas, like Bangalore in India, where labor was cheap and the software industry in India took off.

The economics was simple. One could hire a software professional in India for less than $2.50 an hour, while he would normally cost at least $65.00 an hour in the United States of America. The profitability was almost 95% by moving work offshore. Also, it removed the restrictions of the work-visa cap, that restrained companies from hiring qualified professionals. Work went to them, and they did not have to travel to the United States of America. As software work did not require a four wall office, it was a spaceless environment. One could operate 12,000 miles away from their home, or car, or from anywhere, so long as there was interconnectivity. This helped the growth of the wireless technology and improved internet connections worldwide.

Bill Gates was right. His micro-computers did replace the large main-frames. He set the tone for the international highway. I envision a day when man would be connected to his office and produce his day's work with the help of a laptop. He does not have to be physically present at the office. This would eliminate rush hour traffic and car pollution, and the earth would have a safer environment.

In order to get to this stage, everyone will have to have 'Integrity', 'Honesty' and 'Hard Work' . It is a three legged stool - if one is missing, that person will be a financial failure. There are systems in your computer program that monitor every move that you make on your computer. One will have to have accountability and transparency to survive.

Everyone will have to have a web page on their own, which will replace the telephone listing that you have in your local phone book. Telephones will disappear and will be replaced by your laptop computer. Computers will shrink in size. A web page is your address in this internet era. People will communicate to you through your web address. They will be able to video conference with you, as if you are meeting them face to face.

In business, you need three things to be successful. They are a product, market and finance. If you have any two of these ingredients, the third can be rented or bought. Your web page helps you market yourself.

I have tested this phenomenon with a client situation. Without divulging names for privacy purposes, a client of mine had an empty building in Silicon Valley. With the dot.com bust, the tenant went bankrupt. The client had a problem paying a five figure mortgage on a monthly basis. With the help of a software company in India, I was able to create a web page for my client. On account of the expertise of the software professionals in India, a virtual walk-through site was created. One could be in Chicago and visit the web-site on the internet. A prospective tenant could see the whole building without flying out to the Silicon Valley. To make a long story short, a triple 'A' rated tenant approached us and the building was rented. When the second building became vacant, another triple 'A' rated company rented the building for its subsidiary. As both buildings had triple 'A' rated tenants, a capital hedge fund approached my clients with a fancy offer. As Stanford University had a first right of refusal, they ended up owning this property. My client made at least 3 million dollars more on the sales price. A web page does help market you.

In conclusion, being a penny pinching accountant, my advice to you is to get on the web. It will be your journey to your desired destination, in this new internet era. If you do not, you will be left behind as the new mantra is faster, cheaper, and better!