STEVE SIMMONS HIS TERABYTE TRIANGLE BOASTS LOTS OF INTERNET-LINKED POTENTIAL

Ideas bounce from Steve Simmons' mind like it's a trampoline.Some concepts stay aloft, while others crash to the ground.

One of his bigger ideas could turn downtown Spokane into ahigh-tech magnet. But whether the plan will fly remains to be seen.

Simmons originated the "Terabyte Triangle" idea a year agothrough his work as co-director of the software engineeringlaboratory at the Spokane Intercollegiate Research and TechnologyInstitute (SIRTI).The plan invites downtown businesses to hook up toinexpensive, high-speed, high-volume Internet connections. Aterabyte is 1,024 gigabytes of data, about 500 times more data thana typical home computer can handle.The vision is that software companies and start-up technologyenterprises could flock here, enlarging Spokane's high-techpresence and tax base, while providing high-paying jobs. Thetriangle area runs roughly from the Arena to Second, and Browne'sAddition to the Riverpoint campus."Spokane is just about perfect for this, because it's bigenough to have enough companies to do about anything you want,"Simmons said. "It's got a lot of potential."The Terabyte Triangle is just one of the latest in Simmons'lifelong nomadic journey of ideas.One of his first ideas was to start his own elementary schoolnewspaper in Los Angeles. He hired classmates as writers, printedcopies on a ditto machine, and paid his staff with avocados from atree in his back yard.In high school, Simmons became a rock music promoter whoearned $100 a show in high school - serious cash for a 1950steenager.His gimmick was to run boats covered with concert ads alongsouthern California beaches where teens hung out after school. Italso didn't hurt that he had a reputation for playing guitar withbands such as the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean."They (the Beach Boys) were just getting started then,"Simmons said. "It was the '50s. Geez, we had fun."Music was always fun for him, but to challenge his curiosity,Simmons studied what he calls "exotic math" in college. In 1969 hebecame a college math professor at Eastern Washington Universityand in 1984 helped establish EWU's computer sciences department.Math was more esoteric than music, but just as tough tomaster, Simmons says. Combining his dual interests, he works withEWU students on computer enhancement of audio systems. With helpfrom XN Technologies in Cheney, they remove background static fromold analog recordings. The same process is used to lower the staticfrom public address speakers such as those in bus stations.Adding more challenges, Simmons became a downtown Spokanerestaurateur, and, briefly, even a world-famous bartender.That happened in 1981, when, a year after the state's mostfamous volcanic eruption, Simmons concocted a Mount St. Helensdrink of whipped cream and brandy which was designed to erupt intoflames. National media circulated a story in The Spokesman-Reviewabout the drink. The publicity "made me famous for one day,"Simmons said.His varied experiences have prepared him for tough tasks."The background he's had in pure research, together withexperience in practical applications puts him in a good position tohelp people in industry," said Ray Hamel, chair of EWU's computersciences department.Not all of Simmons' practical applications have succeeded. Inthe mid-1970s, he programmed a hand-held calculator into a businesscomputer, but it ran only simple programs.He said his hobbyish tinkering with wires and solderingfrequently ends up in a heap of junk. And he said he didn't foreseethe Internet becoming a big part of everyday life.Even the drinks he's invented have taken countless failuresto get right.But since he started studying the models of San Jose andPortland in 1994, he's convinced that Spokane can develop anepicenter of high technology because it's big enough to have theinfrastructure, yet small enough to effectively coordinate thebusiness community.The Terabyte Triangle idea is still developing. The FernwellBuilding, at 505 W. Riverside, is one of the most notable sitesequipped with high-speed access. The U.S. Bank building, SeafirstFinancial Center, Washington Mutual Building, and new SpokaneRegional Business Center also are wired into the Triangle plan.WWP Fiber, a Washington Water Power Co. subsidiary, hasinstalled more than 1,000 miles of fiber optic cable in the region.Much of it is under downtown streets which would have more thanenough of the necessary bandwidth for high-speed, high-volume localarea networks.Simmons has a list of 30 mostly small start-up companies insoftware development and multimedia that have expressed interest inthe plan.His role with the Terabyte Triangle is as a catalyst. Herecruits firms, answers questions and gives presentations on theconcept.Simmons says he loves to spend free time hiking in Idaho andBritish Columbia.Simmons and his wife of 17 years, Billie Moreland, operatedMoreland's Restaurant downtown until 1992. They closed it, Simmonssaid, because he noticed his lunchtime customer base was moving outof the downtown. That partly inspired his hopes for downtownrevitalization.If the plan succeeds, Simmons, 56, will take satisfaction,not profit. "I've never had any ambitions to become a millionaire,"he said. "I've always liked being a part of teams of people to tryto achieve goals in the real world."