Cyberspace

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NoXion
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Cyberspace

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Cyberspace

Virtual worlds within worlds


What is it?

Cyberspace is the common name for the vast collection of interconnected data networks, virtual worlds, open simulations, and regional networks that are spread over Terran civilisation. Its beginnings can be traced to the Intra-Solar Net (ISN) and the subsequent InterStellar Data Network (ISDN). The ISN itself is alleged to have grown out of an even older network that is said to have spanned Earth in ancient times. With the expansion Terran civilisation into the stars combined, with the introduction of interstellar datapackets and comms lasers, the ISN grew and became the ISDN, a lightspeed/near lightspeed network that was the fastest method of communication at the time - being able to outrace even the fastest starships, it was the backbone of civilisation and what held Terran civilisation together. With the invention of wormhole technology, communication between worlds became much quicker - between worlds connected by wormholes, that is. Since wormholes had to be sent at sublight velocities to their target destinations, for the longest time the ISDN was still an essential part of early Terran civilisation. The ISDN was only truly rendered obsolete with the invention of tachyonic communications, although small independant comms laser and datapacket networks are used by peripheral communities. With the growth of the Wormhole Network was the ascendance of nascent Cyberspace - with instantaneous communications between worlds, networks were now unlimited in their size and complexity. Megastructure-based computing structures could have acceptable lag times, meaning that wormholes initiated a truly massive boost in available computing power, with the effect that extremely detailed virtual worlds, connected with very high bandwiths, arose very quickly. Cyberspace has been experiencing accelerated growth ever since, only slightly constrained by the physical limitations of network growth.


Physical Structure

Cyberspace is now a huge, sprawling multinetwork spanning over a hundred thousand lightyears. It's components consist of many different data nodes[Computer Types] arranged in clusters which can span anything from a single planet to a star cluster, connected by a variety of means[Interstellar Communications]. A significant number of individual ships and Terrans are also integrally connected, especially in the Crucible. The recent discovery of hyperspace and the increasing use of Omega Nodes have lead some to speculate that Cyberspace is on the verge of becoming a universe in it's own right.


Virtual Structure

Cyberspace's virtual structure resembles it's physical structure, only many orders of magnitude larger - billions of trillions of highly detailed virtual worlds and universes, most of them indistinguishable from reality, others more abstract but just as detailed and yet more that resemble nothing like any place or location in the real universe. Unlike real universes, communication between these virchverses is easy and extremely common, although software conflicts can lead to interesting problems. Most virchverses tend to be populated with beings just as complex as their real life (IRL) counterparts, whether they are uploaded personalities, copies of IRL personalities or beings who have only ever existed in a virchverse. Other virchverses are playgrounds for a single sapient being, AI experiments, and "open simulations" - virchverses which sapients are invited to enter and interact with, either as part of an experiment or as the virtual equivalent of theme parks, roleplay universes, multiplayer games etc etc.


Virch-IRL interactions

Cyberspace and normal space are closely interconnected (as opposed to Hyperspace, which has only recently been discovered and correspondingly there are only a few traversable Hypergates). In some areas that make heavy use of Virch-IRL interfaces, the line of seperation between Cyberspace and IRL/normal space can appear very blurry indeed. There are many different types of Virch-IRL (sometimes said "virch-earl") interactions, including but not limited to the following:

Direct Neural Interfaces - Cybernetic components that allow organic beings to fully experience Cyberspace without sacrificing their physical bodies.

Projections - Cyberspace entities can communicate with IRL by being projected in the form of a 3-dimensional hologram. A less CPU-intensive 2-dimensional variant known as a sprite can be used for when processing power is at a premium. A hologram with forcefields to allow physical manipulation of IRL is known as a solidgram. Projections can also be used as a form of telepresence.

Bodyjacking - The forcible and usually temporary takeover of IRL entities by Cyberspace entities. Not all bodyjacking is malicious; it may be done by a Cyberspace entity without the time to fabricate an IRL body, or it may done by a gaurdian AI to prevent IRL entities from harming themselves or others.

Waldo - A physical construct built specifically for the purpose of allowing Cyberspace entities to interact IRL. A waldo can take many forms, from a bank of utility fog though to bugbots and mechanoid-like constructs to vehicles and starships.

Wonderland - A location that uses a wide variety of technologies to deliberately meld Cyberspace and IRL. To this end, advanced mesotech fogbanks/goobots, forcefields, artificial gravity fields, and metamorphic technologies are used to bring Cyberspace environments to IRL, while any bionts entering a wonderland are infected with benign microtech that provides a DNI link with a central simulation program. For artificial beings, additional illusions are provided by magnetic fields and a system based on an advanced electronic warfare suite.

Uploading - some Transhuman individuals choose to live their lives in a virchverse, or otherwise choose to exist wholly in Cyberspace.

Downloading - sometimes a Transhuman may tire of living in Cyberspace, and opts to return to IRL, or a virchverse entity may desire existence IRL.

Transloading - This is the practice of using Cyberspace as a means of travel. Devices known as "Transgates" save the state of whatever enters the gate and transfers the saved state through Cyberspace to the Transgate at the traveller's desired destination, where it is reconstituted. The traveller may or may not experience time passing during travel. Some Transgates are located in space and are large enough to transfer entire starships and their contents.
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