How will the current credit crisis and bank failures affect the tech industry and particularly the availability and quality of venture capital? I'm working for a tech startup, and as a geek many of my friends are doing the same. I've been carefully reading the analysis of the failures of Bear Sterns, AIG, Lehman, et al., and trying to work out how they're going to affect us, particular with regards to venture capital investments. Last time we had an economic "incident", it ended with a (temporary) stoppage in venture capital availability, which led directly to many folks like me losing their jobs. This time, the economic instabilities aren't the tech industry's fault, but it seems the general drying up of the credit markets could have the same effect.

How would one search out willing venture capitalists? A client of mine has a business plan, a good market, and a group of capable people, but just found her source of funding has dried up. If she can find one or more investors who can commit to funding, she believes that she can make it happen. But how would we find such people? (For the curious, this is a non-tech venture.)