92615_RAA_LooseCannon_Text_R1_PROOF

tern tattoos up his calf and a "Command" symbol on his upper left arm. You've seen that symbol on a Macintosh keyboard; it's like four "D"s on each point of a square. He wears cut-off jeans, padded leather Converse high tops he calls his "Major Matts," and often rides around shirtless. When the fog rolls in, he'll sport a T-shirt with the sleeves ripped off, a flannel shirt, or a leather jacket under his messenger pack. Having moved to San Francisco from the East Coast, Wilson's left home and hearth behind. He's on his own in the Big City, and is saddled with a post-adolescent's separation anxiety. His parents and college pals are all a continent away, and he finds he's got to redefine himself in his new sur roundings. With only a thin resume and a B. A. in English, Estaban gets the first job he can -- that of bike messenger. His bike route has him deliv ering packages to all the Multimedia Gulch start-ups, so he's in the know about computers, graphic design, the Internet, and all of the technology; all his friends are geeks and tech-heads. In fact, he's the only bike mes senger trusted by... Jon Fox: Owner and CEO of There There, Inc. The company works on cut ting-edge Internet and access-oriented software, and is based in a ware house on Second and Brannan, overlooking the San Francisco Bay and Multimedia Gulch. Jon Fox is a cool, ex-bar bouncer verion of Bill Gates. A mid-thirties hipster-genius with an '80s ponytail, Oakland resident Fox named his company ironically. Sick of hearing the lament, "Oakland: there's no there, there," Fox set out to disprove the statement. In downtown San Francisco, in Multimedia Gulch, there is a There There. In addition to giving a physical identity and form to his nebulous idea of his company, Fox also liked the soothing aspect of the name, reassuring venture capital ists and other investors by the comforting nature of the sound. There There employs some computer-programming whizzes, who collectively go by the name of... The Mathemagicians: a loose association of idiosyncratic ne'er-do-wells who come together every day to work on the most arcane bits of code and software, all under the tutelage, supervision, and patience of Jon Fox. These programmers work on cutting-edge, industry-advancing stuff that won't even make a Wired cover story for another two years. They are: Jimmy JPEG: a reclusive Netrunner with a sardonic wit; a caffeine fiend and cough syrup addict, Jimmy is a squat but solidly built farm kid from the Midwest. About 5' 6", 175 pounds, the blond-haired, 28-year-old Jimmy is eager to please. He sports a closely trimmed haircut and a bit of a goatee, like everyone else of his social standing and economic stripe. He's responsible for There There's Internet presence and content provision.

Les: a former paralegal and present biker chick, tattooed PR whiz, and

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