From:	Mike Elkins <MikeE@*********.COM>
Subject:	Phone vs. Matrix (was Re: Off topic discussions...)
Date:	Mon, 7 Apr 1997 10:54:15 -0500

>Actually thinking about it, how does one connect to the matrix anyway?
>You jack in to a point, and hey presto, RTG/LTG later the matrix, but what about
>landline phones, cellphones, they can't access the matrix directly, they use a
>telecom grid, right? Surely not every single coffin motel and roach trap has a
>direct link to the matrix? And would that require generalised access providers
>like we have today for the
>Internet? Hmm, that's given me an idea to screw about with in my game
><snigger>
>
>So, does that mean a decker uses the telecom grid from remote points to
>access the matrix, or that they must rely on points where direct access is
>assured.

What you are forgetting is that after the crash of '29, the phone service IS the
matrix! Phones are just a special case of input device: they package up speech
waves as digital data, compress it, and send it as realtime packets across the net.
I suspect that you pay for matrix phone time using the following formula: base
cost x Mps of data x priority surcharge x packet size surcharge x reliability
surcharge x realitime surcharge. For a phone conversation, everything would be
low except realtime. For decking, the Mps is bigger, and you probably get the
most expensive connection you can, because you aren't really paying for it
anyway. Except in "third world" areas, I don't see the "phone
companies" using
anything other than fiber optics anywhere, so any phone connection could also
be a decking connection (subject to the VR2 bandwidth limitations).

Double-Domed Mike