This pilot fish's company jumps into the Internet with both feet. "We built a corporate Web site and even had our individual branches with their own addresses so customers could see their branch information first," fish reports.

"As a part of this movement, we designed a rubber-backed mouse pad with the corporate and branch Web addresses on it. At our annual meeting, I staffed a booth that handed out these wonderful green and black works of art.

"They were a huge hit, and we ran through the supply in a matter of hours."

So when the next year's annual meeting rolls around, fish knows what to do: add color to the mouse pads, double the order and make even more customers happy.

And most of them are happy when fish hands them the improved mouse pads. But when one older customer stops by the booth and fish offers her a pad, she declines.

"The one you gave me last year didn't work very well," she tells him.

Confused, fish asks why.

"The first time I used it, it melted," she says.

Very confused fish asks how that happened.

Customer explains, "Since this 'house pad' had a rubber back, I knew it would not slip. I placed it on the table and put a pot of boiling soup on it, and it melted to the bottom of the kettle.

"Of course the kettle was not usable again."