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Mini Computer Capitalists
Impressed by the persuasive technical advice which Trent Eisenberg gave online．computer powerhouse Compaq approached him about a job at the company's headquarters in Houston． But Compaq was forced to withdraw(收回)the offer when an important detail about Eisenherg was discovered：he was just 14．Two years later, Eisenberg now runs his own technical support company, F1 Computer, “I might be interested in getting a job in a few years, after college,” he says．”But this is just right for me now．”
Eisenberg is among an increasing number o| teenagers who are running their own eomputer-related businesses－and, for the most part, being successful at it．”Many kids in suburban homes have grown up operating very powerful computers, so technology is second nature to them in a way that it's not to many adults,” says Gene DeRose, president of a high tech research firm based in New York．
Danny Kalmick, the 14-year-old president of Kalmiek & Co．Computing took his first step toward becoming a neighborhood computer expert at age 11, when he broke down his first PC (a 486/DX2) to inspect its motberboard(主板)．When neighbors called him for comp-er advice a year later, Kalmick saw a husiness opportunity．So he printed up business cards, and took out an ad in a neighborhood telephone book．He now has about 10 regular clients, works 6 to 10 hours a week, and earns $ 20 an hour solving tech problems．
Low prices are usually an advantage in the marketplace, but so is age．Many young business people argue：Kids aren't as frightening to work with as their more senior adults．”We're professional, of course, but we are just kids, and people feel like they can talk with us and ask us whatever they want without being embarrassed,” says Charles Ross, 18, vice president of a Web services company that develops marketing sites for local businesses．Ross runs the firm with his twin brother, James, and their friend Matthew Baylis, 17．”Beside, a lot of our clients tell us that they would rather work with us because we've grown up with the technology and have a solid handle on it．”
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