That's right, with all the crazy purchases, consolidation and boost in VC capital in the tech sector, a lot of folks are wondering if the boom is back. Of course, at SFist, this can only mean one thing -- a wave of BizDev and Marketing types who know nothing about tech flooding the city in another gold-rush disaster. Yeesh. Hopefully this time, the nerds can keep ahold of the reins, and keep pushing the core values of free information and internet community. We know -- likely story.

Case in point? The Webby Awards, put on by the The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, are back in meatspace after a two year hiatus, and like a sewer alligator, they've surfaced on the streets of Manhattan. SFist is happy that another debacle like the 2000 awards -- with a red carpet and fake papparazzi -- is not planned for this year, but if you thought the hype around the Dot Com boom was bad, imagine preening New Yorkers calling their town Silicon Alley.

Let's see -- where were all those brokers pumping and dumping tech stocks based at the turn of the century? Which city hosted all the banks that rolled out IPO after IPO? Where is the heart of the hype machine located? We're glad that Mayor Bloomberg, who made his money on his Bloomberg news service for financiers, managed to do what Giuliani couldn't. But were happy that they'll be dazzled by the comedic stylings of Rob Corddry out there instead of inflating the egos of our nerds out here.