1024x768 Palm Tree Beach | Wallpaper">

Scattered across their white-sand beach were "folders"—clunky yellow rectangles that Greg had dropped there over the years. One was labeled Taxes 2008 . Another was just called New Folder (4) . To the palm trees, these were huge, monolithic monuments. To Greg, they were clutter.

Then, the cursor did something it had never done before. It clicked the "Internet Explorer" icon. A moment later, a window popped up. Greg wasn't looking at spreadsheets anymore. He was looking at one-way flight tickets to Belize. 1024x768 Palm Tree Beach Wallpaper">

The monitor clicked off. The room went dark. But inside the code, the two trees finally felt the wind move. They weren't just a 1024x768 backdrop anymore—they were a memory that had finally convinced someone to go find the real thing. To the palm trees, these were huge, monolithic monuments