[pfarrell]

Are you sure you are looking at the right companies? I recently moved to San Francisco to be part of the concentration of people and businesses who use technology to drive their products. It's not just marketing, but a very real thing. There is certain shift in attitude where, generally speaking, no one needs convincing that tech is important. I was able to find this in my hometown, in the American Midwest. There were fewer people who "got it", but we had companies that had the same "west coast attitude".

Make sure you work for a company where software is the thing they sell. The farther you are from the money, the more you are perceived as a cost center. If you are a programmer, find a job with a SaaS company that is making money. Even if it's not the proverbial "startup", you will see this shift in attitude. You won't look back.