jrb@wdl1.UUCP (jrb ) (06/22/84)
#R:vice:-135600:wdl1:800004:000:248 wdl1!jrb Jun 22 11:14:00 1984 I disagree about the gloom. I do think that the extrapolation is very good, not to say extremely likely. I would recommend it without reservation. John R Blaker UUCP: ...!fortune!wdl1!jrb ARPA: jrb@FORD-WDL1 and blaker@FORD-WDL2
brucec@orca.UUCP (06/22/84)
I bought "Neuromancer" because I was curious to see if the book carried the ideas in "True Names" any further. I didn't think that the concept of cyberspace was at all well developed or described (though it would probably look all right in a movie, in fact it reminded me of the arcology cityscape of "Bladerunner"), so I was somewhat disappointed. Once I got over the disappointment at the book being something other than what it was hyped up to be, and what I'd hoped it was, though, I found it generally good reading. Keith Lofstrom is right, it is very gloomy, and rather anti-climactic, but the subcultures which are shown are well-visualized and the characters are more than just cardboard (even the AI is believable, if not comprehensible). Not great, but worth reading. Incidently, does anyone out there remember a series of short stories published in Amazing (or maybe Fantastic (great magazine titles, no?)) in the early '70s, based on a character by the name of Queer Sal? The tone (hi-tech punk) and the mood (gloom and doom) of "Neuromancer" remind me of them. Bruce Cohen UUCP: ...!tektronix!orca!brucec CSNET: orca!brucec@tektronix ARPA: orca!brucec.tektronix@rand-relay USMail: M/S 61-183 Tektronix, Inc. P.O. Box 1000 Wilsonville, OR 97070
rpw3@fortune.UUCP (06/24/84)
+--------------- | Neuromancer, William Gibson, Ace Specials, $2.95 ppb. | | This book seems like a three way cross between Bladerunner (the movie), | True Names by Vinge, and the Ophiuchi Hotline by Varley. +--------------- Don't forget "Coils", by Zelazny & Saberhagen, or "Fireship" by Joan Vinge. "Neuromancer" had a fairly convincing social milieu, a good deal more complex than "Fireship" (although therefore not as elegant), and the technology is more convincing than the (totally unjustified) various one-off ESPs of "Coils". Rob Warnock UUCP: {ihnp4,ucbvax!amd70,hpda,harpo,sri-unix,allegra}!fortune!rpw3 DDD: (415)595-8444 USPS: Fortune Systems Corp, 101 Twin Dolphin Drive, Redwood City, CA 94065
keithl@vice.UUCP (Keith Lofstrom) (06/27/84)
<>
Neuromancer, William Gibson, Ace Specials, $2.95 ppb.
This book seems like a three way cross between Bladerunner (the movie),
True Names by Vinge, and the Ophiuchi Hotline by Varley. The book
follows protagonist Case from the criminal underworld of Chiba City,
Japan, to the space habitat Villa Straylight. He is a computer "cowboy",
whose job is to crack computer systems and steal data. The world he works
in, cyberspace, is reminiscent of the artificial world in True Names, but
a lot more deadly. The scenery is gloomy, violent, and high-tech.
The characters are burned out, drug-ridden, and jaded. The computers are
Machiavellian. Authority appears (briefly) in the form of the Turing
police, who work to destroy artificial intelligences that grow beyond
certain bounds. The love interest is Molly, a surgically modified
mercenary, or "razorgirl".
I won't recommend this wholeheartedly, because it is rather strange,
downbeat, and doesn't have much of an ending. BUT, the language is
good, the concepts are fascinating, and the imagery is splendid.
Very realistic extrapolation. Worth checking out if you can handle
a little gloom.
--
Keith Lofstrom
uucp: {ucbvax,decvax,chico,pur-ee,cbosg,ihnss}!tektronix!vice!keithl
CSnet: keithl@tek
ARPAnet:keithl.tek@rand-relaydantonio%vlnvax.DEC@decwrl.ARPA (07/13/84)
I have read the reviews/spoilers on Neuromancer by William Gibson and they sounded suspiciously like a short story I had read so I did some research and turned up the following: William Gibson wrote a short story called "Burning Chrome" in the July '82 issue of Omni Magazine (the one with the eye-ball and person doing a back flip on the cover). It too featured a somewhat less than honest person "jacking into cyberspace" for fun and profit (mostly the later!). There was also a place called Chiba City where many people went in hopes of becoming simstim (simulated stimulation) stars, but it was a minor aspect of the story. It was enjoyable and I have reread it many times. If this is anything like Neuromancer, then I will look forward to getting a copy... Beware the black ice! DDA
long@oliveb.UUCP (Dave Long) (02/20/85)
[movl (pc),4(pc)]
"Neuromancer" is certainly a good book. Does anyone know if William Gib-
son has written anything else besides "Neuromancer", "Burning Chrome", and
"Johnny Mnemonic"? In "Neuromancer", Molly Millions (from "Johnny Mnemonic")
talks for a while about what happened to her and Johnny after the end of
"Johnny Mnemonic". Is there any similar connection with "Burning Chrome"?
(I have a hunch that the deck jockey might be the same one from "Burning
Chrome", but I can't check it out right now.)
Dave Long@RUTGERS.ARPA:RAM@CMU-CS-C.ARPA (02/23/85)
From: Rob MacLachlan <RAM@CMU-CS-C.ARPA>
Is there any similar connection with "Burning Chrome"? (I have a
hunch that the deck jockey might be the same one from "Burning
Chrome", but I can't check it out right now.)
I believe that they have different names. I remember getting the
distinct impression that "Neuromancer" occurs some years after
"Burning Chrome". I believe that one of my reasons for beleiveing
this was that in "Burning Chrome", the coyboy's sidekick (who hacked
his hardware), lost his arm in the same ill-fated attack against the
USSR that Wintermute's agent was in, yet the former was young and the
latter was moderately old.
The Gentleman Loser (bar) is definitely the same. I remeber wondering
if the junk-shop guy who had the virus program in "Buring Chrome" was
the same as the similar character in "Neuromancer", but I didn't
bother to check.
Robjcp@osiris.UUCP (Jody Patilla) (02/25/85)
"Johnny Mnemonic" and "Burning Chrome" both appeared in OMNI about a year and a half and two and half years ago, I think (I dug up the back issues when I bought "Neuromancer"). Both of them share characters with "Neuromancer", but definitely precede the events in the book. Molly Millions figures prominently in "Johnny Mnemonic" and "Neuromancer" - the book tells you something about what happened after the short story ended. All three are excellent reading, I highly recommend them. jcpatilla