How We Divided Up The Tech Universe

For our survey, we segmented the technology industry into 19 different areas, plus academia. We chose these areas based on the kinds of natural distinctions that IEEE Spectrum editors see in our regular reporting of the industry and on the type of experience that job advertisements in different segments demand of engineering candidates. Note that survey respondents were free to choose more than one category when asked what areas their organizations were involved in.

Academia (200)

Prepackaged Software (29) Software that is purchased “as is” from a vendor, such as Microsoft Office, Quicken, Adobe Photoshop

Customized Software (111) Software that is either developed exclusively for a specific customer or customized to meet a customer’s needs—for example, software for databases or for embedded applications

Wireless/Mobile (125) Wi-Fi, WiMax, Bluetooth, RFID, cellphones, GPS

Consumer Internet (41) Search, 
on-demand media, Web applications, VoIP

Enterprise Internet (39) Fiber optics, routers, switches

Entertainment (10) Video games, toys, movies

Consumer Electronics (50) Media players, home networking equipment, domestic robots

Storage (27) Disk drives, network-attached storage, flash storage

Original Equipment Manufacturing (60) Components, subsystems

Semiconductors (82) Fabrication, CPUs, ASICs, FPGAs

Displays (26) LCD, plasma, HDTV

Consumer Computers (17)Desktops, laptops

Enterprise Computers (38) Workstations, servers, server-farm infrastructure, data mining

Security (56) Antivirus, nonaerospace military equipment, biometrics, homeland security

Biomedical (47) Assistive technologies, implants, medical equipment, pharmaceuticals

Energy (104) Generation, nuclear power, fuel cells, batteries

Nanotechnology (28)

Aerospace (74) Military, civilian, space

Transportation (37) Automotive,mass transit