1990s Logging on to the Net

TIM KOOGLE OF YAHOO! and Steve Case of AOL joined Bill Gates in the pantheon of wonder-boy executives as the Internet took wing. And Lou Gerstner at IBM and Michael Armstrong at AT&T breathed new life into American classics.

Out in the marketplace, baby boomers had to move over as Generations X and Y appeared. Something called "virtual reality" made a cover bow in 1992, as did discount broker Charles Schwab in 1994. "IPO capitalism" blossomed. But there was also scandal--mob influence on Wall Street and sexual harassment in high places (1996's "Abuse of Power").

NAFTA came on the scene, controversially, and so did hot money, racing around the world as globalization gained speed. Job security became an issue for many. And the cover question of the decade might have been: "Is Greed Good?"