Zafiropoulo is brutally realistic, or refreshingly honest, depending on your viewpoint. "This is by far the worst downturn we have been through, and things won't get better until the end of next year, or even later. Who knows?" he said. I like that kind of straight talk, especially from someone who has a vested business interest in trying to give the impression that things are quickly on the mend. Zafiropoulo, as the chairman and CEO of chip-gear maker Ultratech Stepper, would like to see his stock rise after all.

And it will, once everyone's expectations have come down. Guys like Zafiropoulo are making that happen. He goes beyond the triteness of phrases like "cautiously optimistic," and I didn't hear him mention the "visibility" thing once in our two-hour encounter. He did, however, hammer home the importance of balance sheets. "That's what I'm focusing on. People ask about orders, but there aren't many orders. But I've got lots of cash and I'm not in debt, so I'll be OK. We'll survive," he said.

How many other companies are in the same position? Fortunately, plenty are. Unfortunately, it's the ones that aren't-Enron and WorldCom, among others-that have put a beating on the American economy and will likely scare consumers into settling for stocking stuffers this year instead of splashing out on a Sony Playstation, an MP3 player or DVD player, let alone a new PC.

It's clear the tech industry has hit the highest, thickest, widest wall ever. It will take a while to break through. And when we do, things will look different. David Wang, an executive at ASML, thinks the market will mature in about 20 years and manufacturing technology will reach its physical and/or economic limits. That's nothing new, but he stresses that new applications, not fancier technology, will spur growth. He also half-seriously says that he wouldn't recommend this industry if he had a college-aged kid.

Others are quick to disagree. Ten years ago, there was no future for the PC, right? Things may never be the same, but that's good. In 2000, we had excess. Engineers in Taiwan were moonlighting as day traders. Now it's back to basics. That may be boring, but it's also realistic. His peers in the industry may cringe every time he opens his mouth, but Zafiropoulo should stick to his talk-no-crap Boston ways even if he is eventually proven wrong.