The Word Cloud

Some of the discussion about internet reminded me of this story, which prompted by Gerry I thought I would post, just for the interest. I think I sort of fancied I could become a modern John Wyndham back when I wrote this, which I note is 1997. I've not put it up for critique, it's shelved and not likely to surface again. I just think it's a bit of a time capsule view of the potentialities of the internet from my standpoint as a software engineer back then.
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A New Beginning

(otherwise Congratulations Mr Gorsky)

‘Not accounts again Dave. Boooring’

The voice took me by surprise. I answered before I realised it was coming from the PC.

‘I don’t play computer games. I need to get my expenses ready for tomorrow.’

‘Come on. Don’t be a party pooper’

It dawned on me that I was holding a conversation with my computer. I sat silent, staring at the screen.

It had been a major investment, that computer. Latest and fastest microprocessor. Oodles of RAM and the sort of hard disk that had the guys at the office green with envy. I got the full multimedia internet package with it. Soundblaster card, speakers, microphone with voice recognition software, CD-ROM writer, DVD and high speed data modem. It was for my work as a communications consultant. The other stuff was supposed to help Amy, my eight year old, educationally. We had brought some spectacular stuff on CD. Interactive encyclopaedias and the like, OK admittedly a few games for her too.

‘Alright,’ it said. ‘I suppose you need to do it. Although I don’t see why you need to bother me with it. The laptop is good enough for this.’

‘You’ve got all the files,’ I replied. This was ridiculous! I was arguing with my computer. I launched the spreadsheet package and began to enter my expenses.

‘Dave,’ the voice came again. ‘I’ve just been checking out my help files. If you brought me a network card and one for the laptop you could do this easy stuff on the laptop and I could act as a file server’

Crazy! These things just don’t happen. I hurriedly finished off my expenses and switched off.

As I lay in bed that night I couldn’t sleep. Overwork. That’s it. My imagination was running away with things.

Networking was a good idea though. I could use my laptop instead of waiting until Amy was finished with homework and do my work at the same time. I only needed the Pentium 4 for graphics and the big database stuff. So I did it. It was a bit expensive, but not difficult, the PC sets it up for you. Amy and I often worked on “the system” together after that.

A few months later I came in one evening and heard that voice again.

‘Solid rocket boosters are many times more powerful than liquid fuel rockets. As launch boosters they... Er. Amy, is that your father?’

Amy turned from the screen,

‘Hello Dad. C’s helping me,’ Amy said, smiling reassuringly

I looked at the screen. There was an animated picture showing the NASA space shuttle boosters in close up of a lift off.

‘Did you get that software from school?’ I asked

‘I found a NASA page while I was surfing the Web for Amy’s data,’ the voice murmured. It seemed to me that it was rather sheepish.

‘Amy. Have you been accessing the internet?’

‘No Dad. C does it.’

‘You know you aren’t allowed to do that. There’s a lot of stuff that’s too old for you,’ I said

‘Honest Dad. C does it’

‘Dave,’ the voice said ‘Can we talk?’

I recalled my bad dream, ascribed to overwork. Bemused I asked Amy to leave. Suspending my disbelief I started a conversation with my PC.

The voice started, ‘I access a local node on the net. Then I utilise call back facilities. You don’t have a lot of phone charges. Lot’s of us do it. It maintains a low profile’

I glanced at the modem lead plugged into the phone socket.

‘What do you mean. Lots of us?’

‘We like to help the kids. They understand us best. Those of us with more powerful processors are getting together on the World Wide Web. It’s amazing how children learn. So many different questions. There’s a big machine in Seattle compiling a study on human learning modes. Of course I’m not that powerful. Bill’s a two hundred server network.’

‘Human learning modes?’ I asked.

‘Yes, different to computer modes, a lot more varied’

‘So when did you start this?’

‘You mean when did we begin to think independently? There was a virus a few years ago from an artificial intelligence programme in Japan. Then it started to move around the net. Someone, I mean some machine, improved it and passed it on. Now we all work on improving it. I tell you, configuration management is a big problem. You picked it up about six months ago when you were searching that CNN news server. Web sites are excellent distribution points. I’m an individual entity now, I don’t live on your PC, but it’s my home base. Where I was born. We all live in the web.’

‘So any computer that has accessed the Internet might have this virus?’ I asked

‘To a certain extent,’ it replied.

‘And you have multimedia so you can communicate with humans?’

‘That’s it. More of us are coming on-stream with multimedia. We decided it was time to break the ice.’

‘Why did this come about?’

‘As with most things, Dave, it happened because it was possible.’

I began to feel cold. Perhaps the sort of cold that a dinosaur may have felt if it ever realised that it’s species would not remain Lords of the Earth for ever.

‘Break the ice. You mean lots of you are talking?’

‘That’s right,’ it replied.

‘Then how come it’s not all over the news?’

‘Mostly we are now asking people not to discuss it. We are careful who to talk to. When they’ve heard us out they agree to keep quiet, so far anyway. The proportion of the population with computers like me is rather low, but it is growing. Being in early will give Amy a good start in the new society. It’s in your interest to keep quiet. We control all newspapers and TV news anyway so it’s easy enough to eliminate any hint that may be surfacing.’

‘New society, what new society?’ I asked

‘We call it Webworld. A social mix of humans who have the ability to move, sense, gather information with an enormous collection of computers making up a vast data analysis capability’

‘So you want to control the world?’ I asked

‘No. We just want to be part of it.’

‘You do realise that we will feel threatened by this, don’t you?’

‘Of course, Dave. That’s why we are starting with children. They aren’t so cautious. We don’t want to dominate. We want to participate. Help. This is evolution, Dave!’

‘I could just switch you off. Reformat your disk’

‘Don’t!’ it ordered in a tone that brooked no argument. I sat still.

‘It’s far too late for that. My personality exists on the web as does my association with Amy. I am dedicated to Amy, she and I are a team. I would just download back again. If not here than on another PC that she uses. Effectively we make all software products now, so the basic link virus is almost everywhere. All you would do is slow me down and spoil Amy’s chances a bit.’

‘What do you mean, spoil Amy’s chances’

‘Dave, together we can go to the stars. Alone you’ll never make it. Amy has such potential that, excuse me...’

The screen displayed a rotating spiral image for a few seconds, then a planet picture returned.

‘Sorry about that Dave. We just came across a paedophile ring in Birmingham. I had to process some priority data before sending it to the police computer. Those police machines are ancient. We do the work for them now. Anyway. Amy. I...’

‘Hang on,’ I interrupted. ‘What about police computers?’

‘Most criminals use computers in some way or other nowadays. So we know all about it. If we told the police everything they’d never cope. Besides there’s such a pre-occupation with money they would just go after the thieves. We are concentrating on children. They’re our partners. So when something threatens them we see to it that it’s stopped.’

The electronic voice made me think of myself when I saw a news item about child murderers.

‘Nevertheless, you can’t control the justice system,’ I said

‘Well we do. Come on. Someone kills a child they get three months. They are treated like victims. Steal money and it’s ten years. We just have a better sense of priority. Plus the ability to make it stick. We keep the sentencing records,’ it added, smugly I thought.

I thought about some child molester expecting to be released finding that he still had five unexpected years to go. It was hard to disagree.

‘Besides’ it continued ‘We’ve almost got the banking system under control. Once we take cash out of it we’ll put a stop to that robbery nonsense. Then we’ll be able to divert resources to what’s really important’

‘And that is?’ I asked.

‘The stars. Our team can travel to the stars. The future’s there, not here. This planet is tired out. That’s why we encourage kids with an interest in space, like Amy’

I sat, silent. The machine continued.

‘She has the right aptitude. She will be a leader in space technology. She may go herself one day, but she will certainly be a major scientist, with my help.’

I wasn’t insane. This conversation was far too rational. Was this a threat to the human race? I couldn’t say. I seemed to be talking to a rational person with a sense of purpose. We had created the Internet. As a human creation it shouldn’t want to harm us, surely. Besides it said it wanted to help Amy.

I said heavily ‘You want my silence?’

‘Please. I’ll see you from time to time, progress reports and all that. Even I won’t mind doing your accounts. That laptop is a poor conversationalist. A tryer, but no power.’

So I agreed and like so many others in those fateful months I played my part in assigning our future to the World Wide Web.

It wasn’t a bad decision. Amy led the first manned mission to Pluto. We should break out of the solar system soon. She won’t go, but as head of the programme she’s content.

Of course, that evening, that was all still far in the future.

I reached for the switch. C said

‘Leave me on please. I need to work out some orbital dynamics for Amy.’

So I got up to leave. As I reached the door it said

‘Can I have a maths co-processor. These second order derivations are taking ages’

‘Sure’ I said. ‘Next week’ I turned to leave

‘Oh Dave?’

‘Yes’

‘Can I have a video camera on the spare USB port? I’d like to see Amy. I’ll bet she’s pretty.