The Mercury News’ Scott Herhold says Valley A-listers have come a long way since the days of Bill Hewlett, who listed himself in the phone book. At the top of his reasons: money. “The Justin Timberlake character in ‘The Social Network’ said it: ‘A million dollars isn't cool. You know what's cool? A billion dollars.’” An excerpt: Unlike Hewlett or Packard, the new paladins of the valley can make their billions in five or six years. That would give anyone an exaggerated sense of self-importance. And the media eagerly inflates the triumph.
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When Google launched its new social network, Google+, you could quickly see that Mark Zuckerberg was at the top in the size of his circle. Google's Sergey Brin and Larry Page were Nos. 2 and 3.
It's as if the most popular kids in high school -- jocks and cheerleaders in my day, but geeks today -- had a foolproof way of telling everyone how popular they are.
