It's been a while since I read the book, but what's the obvious parable? Maybe for me, it's a victim of an uncanny valley: it's neither stylized nor plausible.

It's been a while since I read the book, but what's the obvious parable? Maybe for me, it's a victim of an uncanny valley: it's neither stylized nor plausible. I may not have given it a fair reading, because (personal preference) I really didn't like the book; the cyber stuff seemed more like unoriginal shiny tech than a way to provide insightful commentary on what it is to be human - unlike Tine pack minds, for example. I haven't done a survey of fulltime writers; and I'm sure exceptions exist as you've noted. Larry Niven knows many more writers than I do, and so I think his observation probably has some merit. But really, I'm just expressing my frustration with Vinge's output, and noting that it coincides precisely with his retirement. I miss his old stuff.