About 40% of the Swiss population is employed in what the government calls Industry, Trade and Handicraft, which is also considered the secondary sector. Industry, Trade and Handicraft includes the Maschinen- und Metallindustrie ("machine and metal industry"), Uhrenindustrie ("watch industry") and the Textilindustrie ("textile industry"), as well as high technology. Much of the products of this sector go off to foreign countries, which benefits Switzerland because of the relative strength of the Swiss Franc. The strength of the Franc and Swiss exports are balanced out, however, by the fact that Switzerland does not belong to the European Union.

Switzerland has entered into the Internet age with both barrels blazing. Already, such intricate and specific sites as Swiss Genealogy on the Internet and Macintouch (macintouch .ch) draw thousands of hits a month. In fact, Switzerland is host to about 19 magazines, many of which are devoted to gaming (Gameplex, Gaming News Network-Switzerland) and, of course, Macs (MacWorld Switzerland). Another interesting English web site devoted to Macs and Mac enthusiasts is the Apple Users Club (auc.ch). This site features cartoons, archived stories, bookmarks and hot links. Perhaps one of the best German language sites in Switzerland for the Mac enthusiast, The Macintosh Users Group (mus.ch) is exceptional. The Macintosh Users Group has online shopping, news groups, up to the minute news, program tips and even meetings.

Switzerland's technology sector has had problems recently that echo the issues that the United States faced at its beginning. Telephony, for example, was de-monopolized only a few years ago. Readers from the United States may remember the great debates of Bell and the baby Bells. Before de-monopolization, Swiss telephony and telecommunication services were provided by the government through the Post, Telefon, Telegram, or the Postal services, Telephony, Telegraphy. The PTT was divided into the two distinct organizations: Post, or the postal service, and Swisscom, or the telecommunication services. While the government holds the majority of the shares, it is a public limited company.

The government has embraced technology in a manner that is rare for nation-states. Switzerland's Center for Technology Assessment (TA-SWISS) is attached to the Swiss Science and Technology Council, which advises the federal government. TA-SWISS "provides comprehensive information on the chances and risks of new technological achievements," according to their site. One of TA-SWISS' benefits to solving problems is their interdisciplinary basis. This generalist approach allows the future uses of an emergent technology to be viewed from different perspectives. As TA-SWISS' web site puts it: "Questions on the impact of a technology on the environment, business, politics, human health etc. are taken up just as are those questions on the ethical implications of technical change."