A litany of facts and figures (many collected in a recent Seattle Times article) suggest that unlike many other metro regions, Silicon Valley's tech sector is thriving as the new year begins. Consider:

• Revenues to huge Valley players such as Hewlett-Packard and Cisco Systems are up due to the expansion of global markets.
• Software, chip, and Internet companies (like Google) are experiencing strong growth.
• The third quarter saw $2.48 billion in venture capital spent on more than 260 companies.
• Despite the cost of living, the importance of proximity keeps new companies arriving.
• Medical devices, nanotech, and "cleantech" are all growth industries.

Silicon Valley's labor shortage is reflected in the quarterly Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, which covers all industries in the area. From January to March, it found, a strong 47 percent of the companies interviewed plan to hire more employees, said Linda Crane, a Manpower spokesperson. At the same time, recruiter Robert Half Technology's IT Hiring Index indicates that 15 percent of San Francisco CIOs plan to hire new staff in the first quarter. (The survey doesn't break out Silicon Valley separately.) That's a respectable number.

On Dice, the second half of 2007 was relatively slow for Silicon Valley job listings. In the fourth quarter they dropped 9 percent, to a current total of just under 6,000 available. Meanwhile, the new Dice salary survey shows Valley IT workers are the best paid in the nation, with an average salary of $93,876, a full $10,400 ahead of second-place Boston - and almost $20,000 ahead of the national average. Valley salaries rose an average 3.95 percent last year. The 2008 Robert Half Technology Salary Guide sees strong demand for Web developers, business intelligence analysts and network security administrators.

Other in-demand experts include software engineers, QA engineers, and project managers, according to Sean Norris, the branch manager for IT recruiter Sapphire Technologies, who covers both San Francisco and the Valley. "We're also seeing a recent change where we're placing more Web-oriented professionals into the interactive marketing arena. Job titles in this area include information architect, user experience designer, and Web production manager." Norris calls interactive marketing a "bright spot for 2008. These types of jobs are certainly not the ones that will be outsourced."

The bottom line is jobs are available in the Valley... as long as you can afford to live close enough to commute.