Douglas Rushkoff is an author -- who moonlights as a social theorist, television producer, journalist, and software developer. He's probably best known for his book, Cyberia: Life in the Trenches of Hyperspace, (Harper SanFrancisco 1994) a celebration and exploration of the original, fledgling cyber and rave communities. His bestseller Media Virus! Hidden Agendas in Popular Culture (Ballantine, October 1994) is a slightly wily deconstruction of the American mediaspace and the memes passing through it. His latest book, Playing the Future (HarperCollins, June 1996) explores the culture of the "screenagers" for their insights on thriving in an increasingly chaotic age. He edited The GenX Reader (Ballantine 1994), a collection of writings by the elusive, media-wary "slacker" generation. He wrote his first book, Free Rides (Dell, reprinted as Stoned Free by Loompanics),