Tech Fields Face Upheaval In '06 As Jobs, Certain Spending Decline; Gartner Peaking Ahead; But fast-emerging trends also bring opportunities in health software, more.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)(Q & A)

Byline: KEN SPENCER BROWN

If you thought the technology sector was settling into a humdrum pattern of slow growth and stabilization, think again. The industry could be in for a bumpy ride.

"Upheaval" is the watchword for 2006, says Daryl Plummer, a top analyst at the research firm Gartner.

His firm's forecast for the coming year predicts:

** Fewer jobs for tech specialists, a profession that will shrink through 2010.

** A rise in health care software spending, which will jump 50% by 2013 and cut medical error deaths by half.

** Less spending on new, experimental technologies, because of rising securities compliance costs.

Those shifts spell trouble for some tech companies, but they …