Matrix
From Sixth World Wiki
The Matrix, also known as cyberspace, is the Sixth World equivalent of the Internet. The Matrix is a virtual reality representation of computerized data and communication, and delivers content to the human brain by means of ASIST and a datajack. The majority of the Matrix was built after the Crash Virus of 2029, but it was rebuilt in a Wireless Matrix model after the Matrix Crash 2.0 of 2064. The Matrix is essential to telecommunications and computing, and has fundamentally changed the focus of business since its creation.
The Matrix also provides a niche for those who learn to control and manipulate it. These computer experts are called deckers (or hackers after 2065), and they range from the corporate software programmer to the criminal shadowrunner to the government spook.
[edit] Matrix and Metaphor
Since everything on the Matrix is a virtual representation of information, everything on the Matrix tends to be a metaphor of some sort. For example, attack programs tend to be sculpted as swords or other weapons. A stream of data might look like a river with data packets resembling fish, or a train hauling cars of data packets resembling bales of hay. While the Universal Matrix Specifications developed by Fuchi provide a standard default icon for most representations, nearly all hosts have their own custom sculpting of some sort. Familiar metaphors tend to be easier to use and learn than unfamiliar metaphors. For example, a computer security grid might look like the control room from a naval vessel, while a database program might look like a busy library. Of course, the unfamiliarity of complex metaphors also offers a layer of security, and so Matrix sculpting often is tailored to suit the needs of the clients.
[edit] After the Crash 2.0
After the Matrix Crash 2.0, much of the wired Matrix was left in ruins. A brand new Wireless model was introduced, based on the efforts of the Wireless Matrix Initiative. Transys Neuronet and Erika were largely responsible for this implementation, which focused on a distributed "mesh" of networks between individual devices rather than the centralized RTG/LTG system of the wired Matrix. While some of the wired Matrix still exists, most of the world has adopted and embraced the new Wireless Matrix after 2065, a seemingly obvious answer to the problems after the Crash.
