Daniel M. Upton <75442.1331@compuserve.com> asks:
> Did any of the races of the First Ones predate the rise of life
> on Earth? Were there any space traveling races in our galaxy as
> long ago as 1 billion years?

Well, to some degree you're limited by the amount of time it
takes to evolve life per se, then into intelligent life, then into
spacefaring life. You need time after the Big Bang for planets to be
formed, cool, develop environments capable of supporting life...then
the long haul begins.

So yes, on the one hand, you've got races that are millions of
years older than humans, who were prowling around while we were still
furred, fanged, and slamming bones together. But they're not as old as
the universe, because they can't be.

jms