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I wrote about hackers too, http://www.dusted.dk/pages/phlog/2023-12-02.txt http://www.dusted.dk/pages/phlog/2023-12-02.txt the gist of that rant is that what yo

by dusted 3y ago

I wrote about hackers too, http://www.dusted.dk/pages/phlog/2023-12-02.txt http://www.dusted.dk/pages/phlog/2023-12-02.txt the gist of that rant is that what you see in hackers is not what's not their screens, but what's in their minds, through a poetic lens.

PrimeMcFly 3y ago
That's a pretty nice interpretation!
ethbr1 3y ago
Well said. It's amazing how often people dismiss computer visualization in media (< ~2005) as "unrealistic." That's not the goal! It's intended to be representative of the process of interacting with a computer, not the interface itself. At a time when most viewers had little or no first-hand experience with a computer. If you showed a CLI then, maybe 1/20 people would understand it, and they'd be bored because they used it everyday at work.
- necrotic_comp 3y ago
  That's exactly right! I didn't see hackers until I was in my mid 30s, but when they had the initial flyover of the city representing tables in a database ... I had a moment where I said "my goodness, this is the closest representation of how I think of data". It's like when you're reading a book - you don't think about the words, the concepts and people come to life in your brain. I feel like this is the only movie to get that that happens with computers, too.
  - chromaton 3y ago
    "I tried to picture clusters of information as they moved through the computer. What did they look like? Ships, motorcycles? Were the circuits like freeways? I kept dreaming of a world I thought I'd never see. And then, one day, I got in..."
    - secretforest 3y ago
      Tron Legacy. Such a good film. My kids and I watch it a few times a year. I tried watching the original from 1982 and it just felt so... dated? Perhaps I'm spoiled like most people from all the great CGI and effects.
      - ethbr1 3y ago
        Would recommend reading a background on how they made Tron 1, then rewatching. If nothing else, it's fascinating from a special effects technical standpoint, for when it was made.
pohl 3y ago
That was my interpretation, too, but this article shows me The Plauge skateboarding through physical towers, etc. Not sure such scenes can be written off as happening in Joey’s mind.
sgt 3y ago
I like your blog format. Kinda reminds me of Phrack.
bitshiftfaced 3y ago
One of my favorite scenes is when the protagonist is in the airplane looking down at the city, and the buildings warp into computer chips and circuitry. This fits well with the idea that what we're seeing is more about the feeling that the characters are experiencing rather than what's actually on their screen.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
codingdave 3y ago
I always figured it was the closest they could do to the descriptions of hacking from Neuromancer. Especially since the computer was named the "Gibson", I figured the whole thing was a great big nod to it.

by dusted 3y ago

PrimeMcFly 3y ago

That's a pretty nice interpretation!

ethbr1 3y ago

Well said. It's amazing how often people dismiss computer visualization in media (< ~2005) as "unrealistic." That's not the goal! It's intended to be representative of the process of interacting with a computer, not the interface itself. At a time when most viewers had little or no first-hand experience with a computer. If you showed a CLI then, maybe 1/20 people would understand it, and they'd be bored because they used it everyday at work.

necrotic_comp 3y ago
That's exactly right! I didn't see hackers until I was in my mid 30s, but when they had the initial flyover of the city representing tables in a database ... I had a moment where I said "my goodness, this is the closest representation of how I think of data". It's like when you're reading a book - you don't think about the words, the concepts and people come to life in your brain. I feel like this is the only movie to get that that happens with computers, too.
- chromaton 3y ago
  "I tried to picture clusters of information as they moved through the computer. What did they look like? Ships, motorcycles? Were the circuits like freeways? I kept dreaming of a world I thought I'd never see. And then, one day, I got in..."
  - secretforest 3y ago
    Tron Legacy. Such a good film. My kids and I watch it a few times a year. I tried watching the original from 1982 and it just felt so... dated? Perhaps I'm spoiled like most people from all the great CGI and effects.
    - ethbr1 3y ago
      Would recommend reading a background on how they made Tron 1, then rewatching. If nothing else, it's fascinating from a special effects technical standpoint, for when it was made.

pohl 3y ago

That was my interpretation, too, but this article shows me The Plauge skateboarding through physical towers, etc. Not sure such scenes can be written off as happening in Joey’s mind.

sgt 3y ago

I like your blog format. Kinda reminds me of Phrack.

bitshiftfaced 3y ago

One of my favorite scenes is when the protagonist is in the airplane looking down at the city, and the buildings warp into computer chips and circuitry. This fits well with the idea that what we're seeing is more about the feeling that the characters are experiencing rather than what's actually on their screen.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

codingdave 3y ago

I always figured it was the closest they could do to the descriptions of hacking from Neuromancer. Especially since the computer was named the "Gibson", I figured the whole thing was a great big nod to it.