NO MORE LAKE WOEBEGONE

The western and southern suburbs of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area are, despite the burst Internet bubble, still sprouting tech startups. Multimedia, e-business software, videoconferencing, Web integration — you name it, it's probably made in Bloomington or Eden Prairie. In fact, the American Electronics Association's Cyberstates Report ranks Minnesota seventh in high-tech manufacturing employment in the nation. It's a long way from Garrison Keillor's “Prairie Home Companion.”<