G. Fieendish

Sorry, ICE breaker, or intrusion program. It basically treats the firewall as a magic card, with itself the blue, or Bl/Wh. Imagine a sledge hammer, though most of my hackers use an ICE pick, which puts a hole in it, which is lower ProFile, and doable with the way firewalls, or at least filters types work. If you send in a Trojan, piggybacked on a normally accepted packet, or disguised as one, it can then target the firewall, either with a catastrophic failure to bring it down, or a little extra band in it's block spectrum to allow you, or other programs to slip through undetected.

 

If you want to visualize this for a vercher, or edited for your friends, and fans on the net, you slip a white needled syringe from the folds of your cloak, and gently brush it through the licking flames of the wall. Drawing in a little of the incandescence, the blank featureless line starts glowing, and rippling with the same colors, until flames lick from it, sinking into the surface. Withdrawing, it cools in your hand, and the blade settles down to a cool blue with frost condensing under it, while a small spot cools the the same spot on the wall. Reaching in with your fingertips, you gently pull the opening wide enough to pass through, then shut behind you.

 

Or mighty Astaroth (© Namco/Bandai) brings the hammer side of his mighty axe down on the wall, crushing it with a single blow, and steps confidently through the wreckage...

I would argue that Astaroth (© Namco/Bandai) would be somewhat on the noisier side of Icebreaking, myself...

(As for Soul Calibur characters as Icebreaker analogues, how about Tira (© Namco/Bandai) placing her "Hula Hoop of Doom" against the wall, said ring merging with the wall, creating a "Portable Hole", & then stepping through the created opening, in a "Toon-esque" type of way...).

A terabyte is only effectively infinite if you're talking about modern sized programs, and files. With each level of memory advancement comes a corresponding level of bit-depth, for instance HD video. In CP2020, and beyond, we're talking about briefcase A.Is, and Renos. How much memory does that take? By the same logic, when processor, and interface speeds reach the Terahertz range, everything will be effectively instantaneous, does that mean we remove that stat as well? Might as well rule that when you get up to 20 Ref, you don't need to roll initiative any more, you automatically win!

I agree with you over this point, given the amount of bloat that turn up in programs, though I suspect a Cyberpunk chip using digital camera/domestic camcorder circa 2025, (which I would argue the various format digital media cards existing now, would be classed as) would use Super Hi-Vision as it's video format, (think 8192 lines resolution equivalent), with accompanying 22 Channel surround sound with a 3d "addon" as a option, would take up the equivalent of 1 MU...

Slots = are equivalent to USB ports, allowing peripherals to be plugged into the system.

 

I think you misread something, the slot system is for peripherals, not software

 

I'm actually of the opinion that memory capacity is getting so massive that a Memory Capacity stat is actually unnecessary or even unrealistic. I managed to convince Malek of that just long enough for us to take out MU entirely

Agreed, as they're talking about 1Tb SD cards (abeit in the XC, a/k/a eXtreme Capacity rating) being readily available, in the next couple of years, depending on just when exactly Microsoft replaces FAT/NTFS in either Windows 8 or 9...

(Win 8 is reportedly out sometime next year/early 2012, while Windows 9 is possibly out in 2015...).

Re:Tsunami Bomb

Although It could be a mass driver delivered rock, I suspect that said bomb, or more likely bombs ,would be nuclear devices placed on the seabed, by some sort of minelayer...

The bombs are set to go off all together, & are spaced in such a manner, that a tidal wave is generated as a result of the blast wave being amplified by the water...

Smokeless Cigarettes Are So 20th Century

 

It's ironic, but the thing that might actually kill the tobacco industry is the need of arable land for food and fuel (CHOOH2) production. If you can get a higher price for acre for these commodities, why grow tobacco. There may of course still be some growers, making tobacco products more of a luxury item rather than something for the every man. There will of course still be a need to fill this oral fixation. Before you go reaching for a smokeless cigarette, consider picking up some SurgeStix.

 

Replace that nicotine craving with a caffeine high. Instead of lighting a Surge stick, you bend it like a glow stick (till you hear a snap). This releases a caffeine solution, which is absorbed by the "filter', which vaporizes the Caffeine, allowing it to be inhaled. With about 10 "tokes" per SurgeStix, you'll be inhaling about 180mg of caffeine into your lungs. From the lungs, it can be absorbed directly into the blood stream. The absorption rate is much faster than if you were drink the equivalent amount of caffeine. There is also less mess involved and for those who lack a reliable source of drinkable water or access to coffee or coffee substitutes, it provides a safe and relatively inexpensive alternative.

 

 

Coffee Syringe

 

Although this device currently doesn't exist, I would love to see some one come up with this design. It is an update of the coffee press, incorporating a coffee pouch designed to cut down on the mess. Pouches are to coffee, what tea bags are to tea. Most systems that use the pouch are incorporated into expensive systems that force the water through the coffee, helping to draw out its aromas and flavors. Unlike tea leaves, coffee grains release little flavor unless they come into contact with water that is not only hot but also agitated.

 

These machines are in essence doing mechanically, what can be accomplished by hand with a coffee press. The only problem with presses, is that you typically have to stir the coffee...in order to agitate the water, adding just another utensil to wash or to add contamination to your cup of coffee. The syringe would be made from a heat resistant plastic, which could be handled without the need for a glove. The plunger mechanism would have a long rod attached to it, that is threaded at one end. This thread would allow the plunger mechanism to be secured to the cylinder, assuring that it did not accidentally disengage during use. On the central rod, would be a slider, which secures the coffee pouch...which is more like a doughnut, since it needs to have a central hole to allow the rod to pass through it.

 

To use, one would insert a coffee "doughnut" into the slider, then place it on the rod. The threaded end of the rod would then be screwed into the based of the cylinder. Depress the plunger to drive the air out of the cylinder. Hot water from a pot or other source is then drawn into the cylinder. The cylinder can then be shaken to agitate the water. The slider will move back and forth up the rod, providing additional agitation and causing the coffee to release further flavor and aroma into the liquid. After sufficient agitation, the plunger is depressed to evacuate the coffee from the cylinder into a cup or other receptacle.

 

The plunger is then unscrewed, allowing removal of the slider and the used coffee pouch, which can then be discarded. The above description is meant for a single cup of coffee, but you could potentially make larger designs for multiple cups of coffee or coffee substitute. You probably won't see it in high end restaurants, but for those "roughing it", it does provide a simplified way to brew a cup of coffee. A cap for the syrine end, where the liquid comes out could be included to not only prevent accidental spills (while shaking or otherwise), it would also provide a flat surface or stand. The would allow the syringe to stand upright. this may not be needed for a single serving "pot", but could be useful for versions that hold multiple cups.

This device actually exists...

Said device is called the Handpresso Wild, & needless to say, is used to make espresso coffee in "The Wild" so to speak. It costs some £80 (in the U.K), & was favourbly reviewed in the U.K consumer programme, The Gadget Show in their review of kitchen gadgets...

We've discussed what's on the plate, but maybe we should also look at how it's packaged. Take for instance a current campaign to reduce plastic water bottle waste in landfills...Refill not Landfill. The campaign is pushing reusable bottles and home water purification systems as an alternative. I wondered though if there might be a way to reduce packaging, allowing the bottler to spin their own PR campaign. I recently came across some collapsible water bottles that reminded me the juice pouches that you see for such beverages as Capri Sun....either that or IV Bags. The advantage is that these had an integral spout that could be resealed.

 

When I worked in food service, there were several that we used (soda syrups, condiments, sauces, etc) which came as bag in a box. Such packaging was more cost effective than can or bottles (glass or plastic) and allowed the package to be rolled up, like a toothpaste tube) as the product was used. This provided not only an easily viewable measure of how much of a product was left, but also allowed you to maximize the amount of product in the container (with less mess)...no needing to go in with a spatula to get that last bit out of the mayonnaise jar or continually shake the ketchup to coax the last few table spoons out of the bottle.

 

You also have convenience foods that can be cooked in their own package, which can then be used as a container to hold the food. The most obvious of these is of course microwave popcorn, but with MREs, you can cook a whole meal in a bag. Such packaging has made its way into the super market as microwaveable pouches of rice that cook in 90 seconds or a slew of other packets that you just need to add hot water to, reseal, wait 2 minutes, reopen, stir and begin eating. One nice thing about the bag of rice is that the design of the bag is made in such a way that it stands upright by itself, but can be folded flat when empty.

 

So, getting back to the water example, could such a pouch be used to replace water bottles or soda bottles and cans; maybe even alcoholic beverages? Of course the purists and wine snobs will of course look down on bag in a box wine, but in a way, you can just think of it as a modern update of the wine skin.

Apparently, Wine is being sold in some Belgian Supermarkets (the Tandem chain), in 250Millilitre TetraPak plastic laminated cardboard containers, & according to a report in the Independent newspaper, a wine importer is considering a 1.5 litre mylar pouch, for their wines...

Incedentally "Bag In A box" wine has existed for quite some time in Europe, in the form of wineboxes, & some isotonic sports drinks are sold in pouch form....

Once again I shall resurect this thread. Has anyone read and if so what are your opinions onthe following:

 

Metrophage by Richard Kadrey

 

Little Latin Larry by Pat Cadigan

 

Thanks for any replies

I read Metrophage, a couple of years ago & found it o.k...

As a source of Cyberpunk images, it's quite good (The production crew & actors turning up at the former World's Fair expo site, which by the timeframe Metrophage is set in, is now a squat for hundreds of people in order to make a pop video, with the result the "extras with very realistic makeup", i.e the squatters, keep swiping stuff from the crew, & the other one I distinctly remember, was when our protagonist has to enter the "city centre", sees 2 (?) Swedish technicians walking down the street, shirtless in order to show off their transparent chests, & the dyed muscle groups underneath, and he's thinking "poseurs"....).

The revelation of one of the main protagonists, that he's the lead's father, is a bit too much "empire strikes back" to my taste, though...

This is a wild idea and feel free to tell me its shite, but so far if we go with what Van Atta is saying about the MidEast conflict, which primarily limits Nuclear action to Pakistan and a few Indian Cities, (Which is probably better since it leaves us an actual sourcebook to work with rather than: Everyone is a shadow of dust in a carpet of glass) we can still justify Libya being totally wasted in the fashion we already have....

 

Possible Reason for Libya getting nuked (yes the whole fucking country): Reprogramming to a "safe" location by Mossad squads inside Iran during the height of the nuclear conflict. If any kind of nuking went down by Muslim countries and was followed through, we can assume those happy little Jews in Israel were target #1. If Iran developed (or was sold), Nukes and used the Pakistan/India conflict as excuse to get their hated enemy out of the way, then maybe Mossad threw a surprise attack and probably a suicide mission, to reprogram those missiles and get them out of the way. Libya could be a good target, because it'd be visbile from almost all of Europe as its mushroomed, not too mention its mostly wasteland with only wandering tribes and the effects would be felt in mainland EU, forcing European action in the region so that any further atomic weapons play would be shut down fast.

Alternately, Israel "massively retaliates" using it's "non existant" nuclear weapons, & as their main long range weapon, the Jericho 2 IRBM, in this instance, was Mirved with high yield warheads, the weapons that were dispersed in the Negev Desert & survived the first strike, did a lot of damage to countries such as Syria, Libya & Saudi Arabia....

My handle is derived from the 1960's British comic strip character, Grimley Fiendish A/K/A "The Rottenest Crook on Earth"....

His plans for criminal activities, amoungst others, included kidnapping the M1 Motorway & holding it for ransom, & breeding the Police eating melon....

Natrually, his plans misfired in hilarious, & catastrophic ways....

(The Damned did a song about Mr.Fieendish, & his mishaps as the B-side of Eloise in 1986, though he was never painted green...) .

I first used it, when I was a Member of the short lived VWE London franchise, based in the Trocadero mall's basement, in the early 90's....

By the way, CitizenX, Mr.X was a song (Track 6, I think) on the Ultravox album Vienna,

(their first for Chrysalis Records) which predates the comic book mentioned by 4 years....

(1980 for the song, 1984 for the comic book...)

One proposed nanotech device, according to a news item in New Scientist, involves using 30 nanometre portions of the Tobacco Mosiac Virus, & coating them with platinum nanoparticles, to act as a transistor element....

The delevopers hope to construct a working prototype Flash RAM memory chip, using this technology, within 4 years....

Re:Polish Armed Forces

The Patria AMV's, the upgraded SKOT/OT64 design then...?

(BTW, someone has put a ATS-59 Tracked Artillery Tractor up for sale in the classified ad sections of both major British Military Vehicle Magazines. According to the ad, it has done 318 Km from new & can be yours for €23,500...)