SUPERPUNK : The Net


The Net is a virtual reality accessed via cyberdecks or psionic powers. Within the Net people and things are represented by icons which depending on personal preference may or may not resemble their real appearance. All normal human senses, including touch, taste and smell are represented within the Net.

The Net is divided into two parts - the ReichNet, which covers the German-controlled areas of the world, and what has become known as NipponNet, its Japanese equivalent. Although belonging to the Earths two different governments these Nets use the same protocols, for convenience. However, it is only possible to communicate between the two Nets in a few specific locations, and all such traffic is heavily monitored.

All programs used within the Net have the capacity to repair themselves. This became a universal feature of software after the infestations of computers across the world by multiple virus programs during and after the late 2000's.

The Ihara-Grubb algorithms are a set of mathematical operations developed by Japanese researchers and later adopted by the Germans which give the Net a psuedo-physical structure in which the locations of things in the Net are related to their relative positions in the real world, giving a geography which represents real world locations in much the same way as an underground map.

The Net appears to be a limitless silver-grey space in which hang the unmoving icons of businesses and other organisations, linked by silver lines of light representing lines of communication. The thickness and brightness of a line represents the amount of traffic it carries. Where lines meet in the real world (at exchanges etc.) they also meet in the net, with icons of differing types representing the different exchanges. Along the lines of the Net move the icons representing Users and data transmissions, their size representing the amount of information they carry, from almost microscopic data packages to huge ministerial databases, and their colours representing the sort of communication being carried out (black for unknown, i.e. scrambled or encrypted in some way; red for data transmissions; blue for inter-computer links; green for person-to-person links; shades created from mixes of these colours indicate multiple types of traffic, with white indicating all types of traffic going on in equal proportions).

When the User first enters the Net, a multitude of tracer programs spread out and identify the local structure of the net (a feature common to all Users, and so ubiquitous as to be untraceable). For this reason the details of the Net fade off into the distance as though into silver-grey fog, as the tracer programs are eventually halted by security programs at exchanges. Depending upon the Nets local structure and security the range of vision may vary from very long to very short in different places or even in different directions. Once the local system has been mapped by tracers the line required by the User is marked with a glowing red overlay.

Users entering the Net have their own entry line if they are using a cyberdeck, which can be traced back to them unless precautions are taken and through which they must enter and leave. If the Net is entered using psionics, however, then the psi can enter and leave at any point on any line and so is much harder to trace. Most links occur at 'ground' level and so can be entered relatively easily by anyone, although they usually have security programs where they enter confidential areas. However, an organisations high-security communications lines will usually be high off the 'ground', often screened by security programs so as to be invisible and accessible only by climbing 'up' through the lower levels of the organisations computer systems or gaining physical access to a Net terminal with access to that level.

In cities, where there are a large density of Net locations, Net space is occupied by a large number of lines and icons, but between cities there are large spaces (although relatively much smaller than in real space) occupied only by the Long Distance Lines (LDL's) which link city to city. These lines generally leave a given cities main exchange at a 'lower' level than in-city lines and in general the security precautions on them are more stringent than those on exchanges for purely in-city traffic.

Rumours continually circulate among people who run the Net of strange things which exist in the vast unoccupied sections of the Net between cities, and while none of these rumours have ever been confirmed it is theoretically possible that shielded 'invisible' lines allowing covert Net access could enter the main Net lines at many points.

An organisations computer systems are entered by entering their icon in the Net. However, once inside the environment changes from the normal Net environment, which is generated by the Users psionics or cyberdeck independent of the Net, to whatever the organisation desires (although the normal Net environment is used by some companies, for convenience or simplicity). Often this consists of sub-icons, again connected by silver lines, representing the various parts of the organisation, but in some cases a full simulated environment is provided, with computer-generated servants to assist visitors and deal with intruders.

The security of the ReichNet is overseen by a special branch of the SS which had full powers to prevent abuse of the ReichNet, both in the real world and in the Net itself. They consist of Users armed with the best in attack and capture programs who patrol the ReichNet and attempt to stop illegal use of and access to it. Like the rest of the SS they also have powers of entry, arrest and detention in the real world.


Guide to Icons of the Net

Obviously not a full listing of all the icons which might be seen, but a sample of the more ... important ones.


The governmental areas of the Net are guarded by very powerful computer security systems, which are capable of detecting even programs screened so as to be invisible. Detection of an invisible program triggers the appearance of a cute puppy icon which follows the invisible program around while barking loudly. The outer line of actual defence programs consists of black demons which attack intruders with silver lightening. Other defence programs consist of balls of glowing light which move along Net lines and attack intruders.


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