San Jose maintained its position as the No.1place for high-tech¹ jobs, but other cities with high employment growth were closing the gap. San Jose had 252,900high-tech jobs in the most recent statistics, according to a study released Tuesday by the Nasdaq Stock Market and the American Electronics Association, a high-tech trade association. But Boston was a close second with 234,800high-tech jobs, followed by Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Dallas. Los Angeles, with 160,500high-tech jobs, was ranked sixth in the 1998figures.The "Cybercities" study named San Francisco the second-fastest growing city in high-tech employment, with 65percent growth over a five-year period, trailing only Colorado Springs'77percent growth. The Bay area is "starting to slow a bit relative to other markets," said Mark Albertson, senior vice² president for AeA. The average high-tech annual salary in San Jose was $85,100,putting it second behind Seattle, where workers averaged $129,300.San Francisco high-tech wages were fourth in the nation, at an average of $78,400.In some areas in the country, high-tech wages were as much as 220percent higher than private sector³ wages.