Trevor Blake: Smart Toaster
Recently I purchased a new file cabinet to hold my writing. What had been divided in many boxes, folders, envelopes and shelves is now in one place in chronological order. Putting it all together reminded me of many things I’ve written and forgotten, and the life I was living when I wrote them.
Among these papers were notes for a science fiction role playing game setting I wrote at the age of 24 in 1990. The setting was partially what I thought the next twenty years would be like and partially a dramatic invention to move the narrative forward. Here are some of those notes from twenty years ago.
A person who is a very proficient technician. This person is hired by some of the top corporations to solve software problems. They could be hired on to any of these corps at a high fee, but instead they are contacted via a net equivalent of a mail drop, do their work from afar, and post their fee which is then deposited in a special account. Sometimes the problem software is left at the drop then picked up later, sometimes access is given to the problem spot for the technician to get to. This person operates in this way to be able to work with the systems they find challenging without running the risk of being “owned” by the corp. If they worked in the open they would be committed to a limited environment and almost certainly not allowed to retire.
There are many ways this person could be brought into a game. The characters could see them slipping through the net in places other have found impossible to pass (yet this person appears to be a low-power individual… their net image isn’t particularly well armed.). They could get curious & follow them around. The characters could be hired to discover who this person is by a corp who wants to “hire” them. The characters could see (accidentally) the passage open to this person and run down it themselves. It would never be the case that this person would contact the characters.
Once the characters meet this person (which should be extremely difficult, even as an accident – remember, they’ve been evading the corps for a while now) they will be faced with the choice of keeping their identity secret and preserving their freedom (with the possibility the person will reward them) or of selling this information to one (or more) corps for a substantial amount. The second choice could result in acquisition of a powerful enemy but also the support of the corp (for a while at least).
A variation on this idea might be that there are two of these people, in different places, who may have never even met. This would allow for each variation on this idea to be carried out, or the same one carried out twice. If there are two they could cover each other too. If there are two they need not appear as two… if the characters are looking for one person and they discover the handle they are looking for is more than one person that would be a big shock.
An Autoduel subsection? Good chance for pure mayhem & violence. Could be optional, a thing observed but not participated in.
Telephone Operator, Shadow in Vain, Replicas.
Eventually the US Government is going to have enough pressure from the corps (and troubles of its won) to regulate ownership of all but the most simple of computers and much software as well. Computers able to link with other computers (ie: most) must be registered by manufacturer, serial number, owner, place and date of purchase. This applies to Complexity 2 computers. Each Complexity level of a computer requires a special permit to own. The higher the Complexity, the more rigorous the requirements for ownership and expense of the permit. Cyberdecks have been completely outlawed for the general public. However, several industrious Cyberdeck corps have gotten around these laws by incorporating Cyberdeck technology into items with functions other than netrunning. One is the Home Flight Simulator, which is indeed a flight simulator but also can be used for the Net. The Net Environment is expressed in flight related terms, be it WWI triple wings or intergalactic space ships. Another kind of Cyberdeck is built into a special automobile. It is a car, and a good one, but it has driving simulations that are net-accessible. The third type of cheat-Cyberdeck is the Home Studio, a musical environment. The last is the Model Home, a home management deck that controls temp, lights, etc. This also lets you speculate about adding new “rooms,” etc. This last kind is also called the Smart Toaster. In descending order of cost and power, the sneaky Cyberdecks are Flight Simulator, Car, Music and Smart Toaster. The Flight Simulator might actually be in an air/space ship of some sort, but would more likely be in the relaxation lounge of a big corp or wealthy netrunner. None of these Cyberdecks can interact well (which creates some problems with the rules) if at all. Speaking of interfacing, I see it pretty obvious not all computers will interface. Many will, but plenty of low Complexity but indispensable ones will not without a special adapter.
What will be the mode of self-expression for people who choose not to be “naturals,” who never go outside or exercise or eat anything but pills, who know they live in a totally climate controlled environment? [...] Perhaps changes to digestion and certain neurodrives (hunger-related, like a kill joy?). This will be very appropriate to people in space or under sea, but some city dwellers may chose this too.
New York City has been nuked to rubble by terrorists. NYC would be a force to really shape this game, but I’m taking the easy way out by saying its just not here any more. Which in turn allows for the story development before (who & why nuked) and after (where are the NYers to go? Both as a people and as a cultural icon?). Combustion engines will almost certainly be gone. Battery powered cars & buses will be the new main mode of transport. This will certainly effect the politics of the OPEC nations. They will have been over run long ago by superpowers. Gas engines will be outlawed in cities once battery cars are common. Only in the country will you find them in use as farm tools. Old car collectors will develop cultures similar to motorcycle clubs, a legitimate hobby with social stigma.
Cloning [will not be prevalent] except as a means to produce certain foods. Big vats of self-replicating protein soy-glorp will feed many people. [...] Super artificial hearts.
Corps are going to outright own more towns. Some will be like miner towns (essentially a fiefdom) while others will be like Oak Ridge [Tennessee]. The US Government will still exist but will include libertarians & even socialist & communist members at high levels. Electronic at-home voting is tried one year – a netrunner elects a total nobody as president as a joke. The whole election has to be re-done, creating a 4 month period with essentially no government. During this time there are big shake-ups in structure. The corps come out strong, the military & police grant themselves new powers, some attempts at secession are made (perhaps one or two tiny ones succeed). This even plus the NYC nuking are two big factors culturally that shape the US. The NYC nuking results in martial law for a while, which erupts into something of a civil war.
Terrorism hits the US in a big way?
All sorts of marriages are recognized. A future Pope makes some stupid remark and the Catholic Church splits again. A US Papacy is established. Holy wars? Roman Catholics vs. New Catholics.
New drugs that give shared (if simple) experiences developed. Example: hallucination of telepathy (real or not). Age limit on alcohol removed. Lots of horrible new drugs. Tracing the potential telepathy drug from scientist to corp to government to black market could be a story line. If it is a telepathy drug this could provide a happy ending or at least a radical change the characters could be involved in.
AIDS kills half or less world population before vaccine developed. This is optional, and doesn’t even cure people. It just makes it non-fatal.
The Rifkin Act wrapped up genetic research in so much red tape it came to a halt. The Rifkin Act requires most genetic research to be made a public affair: the total ramifications of all experiments must be reviewed by politicians, citizen groups, medical groups, ecologists, etc. This slows down research. A theory must be worked out in full on paper, reviewed, and if it is approved and changed it must be re-reviewed. Certain diseases are cured, some birth defects vanish (from the West), soy vats feed much of the world. But no clones or organ banks.
All this BS about leaving an electronic trail – it’s just moving technology backwards while putting in in tomorrow’s clothes. The present is paper shuffling, a step ahead of wagon ruts in the ground. This electronic trail stuff puts the wagon ruts in the computer that replaces paper shuffling.
I could base my net on my personal postal network, at least in part. At least locate them in cities that correspond to my own access points (Rensselaer, Dallas, San Francisco, etc.).
Pirate telephone networks. Not just worms in existing systems, whole pirate systems. To launch or liberate a satellite might be might be all that is needed. Implications of powerful / rick hacker here – I want to avoid that.
The different types of Cyberdecks are definitely not compatible. Above even the Flight Simulator is the type of Cyberdeck the military has. It uses actual head plugs. The other monitor subvocalizatoin, eye movements, as well as outright control with hands and body. The government Cyberdecks could control robot explorers in sea and space, or a robot fighter. Netrunning capabilities won’t be a main focus, I’d say.
There will be large contaminated areas from nuclear accidents in countries other than superpowers. Maybe the Middle East or South America. Safe soft energy will be common. Solar collectors in space that beam down microwaves to power batteries are an important part of the power system. Credit cards & checks will be the common currency. Government money will exist but will be useful only to the underground economy due to its anonymity. Debit cards will have been attempted & shown to be too easy to monkey with.
