Tech Stocks: The Good, the Neutral and the Ugly

If you've decided that companies like Nortel Networks(NT Quote), Cisco Systems(CSCO Quote), Network Appliance(NTAP Quote) and Broadcom(BRCM Quote) and their stocks are never coming back, the technology sector is easy to figure out these days. Just stay away. Wipe the stocks off your radar screen. Forget they even exist.

For the rest of us, however, the sector remains a difficult puzzle. Which stocks will come back strong and which are down for the count? Which stocks will rebound quickly and which will only slowly stagger off the floor? Which stocks are really cheap and which stocks are merely cheaper than they were?

I've tried to answer those questions more than once in columns this year, giving you my take on individual stocks and on how different types of technology stocks would respond to the Federal Reserve's interest rate cuts. I'm sure you've read or listened to lots of other opinions, too. In fact, by this point in our journey toward the bottom of the bear market that has ruled the technology sector since last March, you've probably heard more opinions than you need -- many contradicting each other. But how do you put them all together? How can you put all the stocks you've heard mentioned on a level playing field and compare them with each other to decide which is best for you, right now? ...