Silicon dreams: 11 cities that want to be the next Palo Alto

Call in Silicon Envy -- All over the world, wherever software programmers have big enough dreams and an adequate supply of caffeine, tech-communities have tried to imitate the success of California's Silicon Valley. In some cases, such as New York's Silicon Alley, a critical mass of startups has indeed made its mark in cyberspace. Others, well, no so much. While Palo Alto will remain the center of the tech universe for the foreseeable future, here are a few of the serious, and not-so-serious, contenders for the silicon throne.

Credit: AFP