With the stock market in a free fall, particularly for technology issues, what entrepreneurs need more than ever is advice on what works and what doesn't. This year's annual conference of the Cornell Society of Engineers (CSE) April 5-7 on the Cornell University campus will attempt to produce some answers, with the theme of "Creating Successful Technology-Based Businesses."

Topics to be discussed include funding of venture-backed start-ups, the end of the Internet era and the latest view from Silicon Valley. Among the speakers will be Cabot Corp. executive Samuel W. Bodman, a Cornell graduate who has been picked by President George W. Bush to be U.S. deputy secretary of commerce.

Sessions are open to the public. Individual sessions are free, but there will be a fee to attend the entire conference. Advance registration is appreciated.

The conference's opening speaker is David Welch (Cornell Ph.D. '85, electrical engineering), chief technical officer of SDL Inc., the Silicon Valley pioneer in semiconductor laser and optoelectronic technology. His talk, "The emergence of the Þber optic communication system," will be April 5 at 4:30 p.m. in B17 Upson Hall. It will be part of the graduate Engineering Manufacturing Seminars.

Cornell President Hunter Rawlings will welcome conference speakers April 6 at 8:45 a.m. in Barnes Hall. The day's speakers will include James Ricotta ('81 electrical engineering), chief executive of SightPath, on "Founding and funding a venture-backed start-up"; Bodman ('60 chemical engineering), who recently stepped down as chief executive of Cabot and will relinquish his chairmanship in May, on "Engaging the entrepreneurial spirit in a traditional organization"; and Dan Simpkins ('80 electrical engineering), founder of Salix Technologies. Also on April 6, at 1 p.m. in Sage B08, attendees can watch, remotely, John Nesheim ('67 MBA) president of Strategic Enterprise Consulting, giving a talk titled "The Internet era is over: what should we do about that?" broadcast from Stanford University. The talk also will be broadcast to alumni at the Cornell Club in Manhattan. There is limited seating available to watch the talk in Sage Hall.

Panel sessions on April 7, starting at 9:15 a.m. in 101 Phillips Hall, will be preceded by a "state of the college" talk by John Hopcroft, the Joseph Silbert Dean of the College of Engineering. Speakers in the morning sessions will include Leila Heckman Robinson ('68 M.S.), managing director at Smith Barney, and Philip Young ('62 M.E.), general partner at US Venture Partners, on "A view from Silicon Valley in the post-bubble environment."

Special events during the conference will include a "Showcase of Technology" in B17 Upson Hall April 6 at 2:30 p.m. Students, alumni and faculty will present their ideas and inventions, followed by a reception.

Registration information is available online at http://www.alumni.cornell.edu/cseconf . The conference is free for students and faculty, but a registration fee is required of alumni and others who plan to participate in the meals and the entire conference. For further information, contact the CSE office on campus at (607) 255-9920 or at engr_cse@cornell.edu .