This characterization sounds hauntingly familiar:

Coupland’s earlier books, like 1995’s Microserfs, tell the stories of smart, committed young people working their guts out because they believe in the transformative power of technology, because their pure passion for technology unites them.

These young people are exploited and have personal problems, but they overcome them by supporting one another — finding ways outside of "enterprise IT" to use technology to make their lives better. They become entrepreneurs, activists, or artists, finding ways to create change where none had existed before.

 - Cory Doctorow from his review of  Coupland’s new book "JPod"

but didn’t realize it’s so passé.  1995?  I need a new schtick.