when i started reading science fiction (which was comparatively late in life: my mid-20′s) i tore through William Gibson‘s catalog, rapt with the idea of Cyberspace.

there was one part that was baffling for me – who would submerge themselves for hours or days at a time in this other world, neglecting their real space and real relationships and even their real selves?

i formulated that in a reality of extreme resource constraints and dismal opportunities, a way of life and a way of living had been created which divorces one from the corporeal. other writers more talented than I have waxed about this, so i’ll spare you my pale attempt.

in hindsight, however, my disbelief was at least partially hypocritical. at the same time, i was using IRC for just about every waking hour of the day. i had built a power structure of autonomous robots to “do my bidding” as it were, and staked out property (channels) and defended it. formed alliances and enemies (more of the later, it would turn out) and conduct warfare, as much as “battle” can be made by nary-sentient rule-based scripts.

so, looking back – why didn’t i make this parallel? perhaps first, as a quip, their interfaces sounded far superior to ours. there’s only so much “immersion” one receives from text.

also, there were (few) real-world consequences. this keeps the perspective more of a hobby than a vocation; rather than getting my social contact down the hall of the dorm, or over the cubicle wall, i was getting it in a command window while doing other things.

are we there yet?

in as much as we can build online personalities or reputations, i don’t think we’re quite living in Gibson’s vision of Cyberspace, for, among others, the above listed distinctions.

In addition, there’s one thing he never really addressed (at least, not in my memory): where did Cyberspace come from? it’s portrayed as if it’s available as any other public utility, and there is equal opportunity to participate. we know in the web2.0 world, that free/public resources go quite far, but only so far. any immersive experience to be had online costs you, whether it be MMORPGs, or a more freeform environment like Second Life.

also, platform homologation, from providers and participants in a Capitalist society, is all but a beautiful dream. it’s as if Cyberspace could only be the product of a widespread Command system, where a central organization (government) dictated what platforms and protocols and languages would interface (think “closed, public source” rather than “open source.”). Cyberspace may never be born from our age of Intellectual Property Rights and Licensing.

or could it?

does the example of open, common languages like HTML provide precedent for future code and protocols that provide rich, almost limitless interaction? what are the dimensions of that protocol support in how they apply to the Cyberspace model (geography, movement, perspective, communication, affiliation)?

will it begin from the ground up, or as a revolt against the constraints of IP and Licensing? in short – is it possible to hack* Linden Labs and have Second Life “escape” onto the internet, to become an entity that exists outside of corporate control?

these are questions i may tackle in the future, or perhaps you will!

* please note the author is not intending to solicit or encourage this activity; merely to examine the possible ramifications if such an event occurred

Posted on April 17th, 2007 by mike
Filed under: future, web