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Originally posted by shawnmmcc
Ted - if you haven't read him, he is the acknowledged founder of Cyberpunk. Actually he didn't really found it, there were other stories of that type already, but he took all the elements and put them together into well-written format. His first and most definitive work was Neuromancer, with a well written sort-of-sequal, Mona Lisa Overdrive. I will be your local library carries at least one of them, though you may have to ask them to get it on loan from another branch.
Cyberpunk from the societal standpoint posits that mega-corporations will end up ruling the world, and they will become extra- and supra-governmental entities, essentially writing the rules and dominating the world. Sort of like Blade Runner (the movie, not the book it was based on) meets Cybernetics, the Matrix, and New Age. However, he puts together all the details, including Contractors, trying to get into the Corps to so you have it set (think Japan), and a global marketplace with big corporate players from all over the world, including a heavy fixation with Asia/Japan.
My biggest issue with the Cyberpunk, which I call Cyberbunk genre, is the New Age bit. It seems, like with the Matrix, if you are killed while plugged in you die. It seems you consciousness is really out there on the net. My scenario is that Mr. Hero gets into trouble, the Black Ice (genre term for security) Cyber Samurai/Monster/Trap attacks him - and the neural and heart rate monitors unplug him, and he gets up fine, muttering "Damn it, they nailed me again." Obviously ALOT less dramatic tension. My only issue with this is that it is supposed to be Science Fiction, not Science Fantasy.
Ted - if you haven't read him, he is the acknowledged founder of Cyberpunk. Actually he didn't really found it, there were other stories of that type already, but he took all the elements and put them together into well-written format. His first and most definitive work was Neuromancer, with a well written sort-of-sequal, Mona Lisa Overdrive. I will be your local library carries at least one of them, though you may have to ask them to get it on loan from another branch.
Cyberpunk from the societal standpoint posits that mega-corporations will end up ruling the world, and they will become extra- and supra-governmental entities, essentially writing the rules and dominating the world. Sort of like Blade Runner (the movie, not the book it was based on) meets Cybernetics, the Matrix, and New Age. However, he puts together all the details, including Contractors, trying to get into the Corps to so you have it set (think Japan), and a global marketplace with big corporate players from all over the world, including a heavy fixation with Asia/Japan.
My biggest issue with the Cyberpunk, which I call Cyberbunk genre, is the New Age bit. It seems, like with the Matrix, if you are killed while plugged in you die. It seems you consciousness is really out there on the net. My scenario is that Mr. Hero gets into trouble, the Black Ice (genre term for security) Cyber Samurai/Monster/Trap attacks him - and the neural and heart rate monitors unplug him, and he gets up fine, muttering "Damn it, they nailed me again." Obviously ALOT less dramatic tension. My only issue with this is that it is supposed to be Science Fiction, not Science Fantasy.
But it keeps moving in that direction.
One way to curb this kind of thing, now that the cat is out of the bag, is to start suing. Any time a government gives a sweethart deal like this ($1 per year for 99 years) every business owner in the same field should sue for anti-competitive practices.
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