When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth

This was a short story written by Corey Doctorow. -When the Sars2-cov pandemic, followed by quarantine became part of our lives --a short story from science fiction came to mind--. The story is part of his book call Overclocked. I think he may have made a short story into a novel. I have to check it out.

The story had to do with computer nerds known as system administrators or Sysadmins and it was written originally in 2005. The plot is about a virus that was part of a bioweapon and of course it affected the whole world; the system administrators that didn't die because they were in clean rooms where the ventilation system filtered the air to avoid servers from being damaged by outside pollutants and humidity. Many sysadmins were safe but now they deal with other issues like maintaining the internet in spite of the disaster that was occurring.

In the real world what keeps the world going on communication-wise would be in Hands of amateur radio (HAM). Unfortunately in this story, they are dead. Because the world was affected by a bio-weapon the infrastructure remains the same so from the author's point of view the internet will be the sole device to keep communications going for the survivors of the bio-weapon attack. The sysadmins create a digital state to keep the world going. In any event the short story it's so close to what's happening now it almost seemed incredible. But that is the idea of Science Fiction, to tell a story about science in a layman fashion.

Comments

The Long Mars

The Long Mars by Terry Pratchett My rating: 3 of 5 stars "The Long Mars," the third installment in the Long Earth series, continues to expand the already vast canvas of Pratchett and Baxter's creation. While the concept of "Joker Mars" – echoing the familiar "Joker Earths" – is intriguing, it's just one of three distinct narrative threads woven throughout this book. We follow Sally Linsay on a journey across the Martian Stepped worlds, unraveling the mysteries her father, Willis, seeks. This exploration of the alien landscapes of the Long Mars is certainly compelling, but personally, it was the storyline involving "The Next" that truly captivated me. Joshua Valiente's arc, which delves into the emergence of these post-human children, is where the book really shines. It's a powerful exploration of prejudice, fear, and the potential societal clashes that arise when faced with the "other." The authors masterfully tackle ...

Echo of worlds

Echo of Worlds by M.R. Carey My rating: 2 of 5 stars M.R. Carey's "Echo of Worlds" serves as a powerful and satisfying conclusion to his "Pandominion" duology, following the intriguing setup of "Infinity Gate." While the author's broader works certainly explore diverse realms, this novel masterfully ties together the threads of this particular multiversal conflict. The story immediately plunges readers into an epic war across countless dimensions. On one side stands the organic Pandominion, pitted against the chilling machine-intelligence known as the Ansurrection. Both factions are escalating their destructive capabilities, threatening to unleash an extinction-level event called the "Scour," which could wipe out thousands of planets. At the heart of this desperate struggle is the artificial intelligence, Rupshe. Convinced that the "Scour" is inevitable without intervention, Rupshe assembles a captivating and unlikely team fr...

The Long Cosmos

The Long Cosmos by Terry Pratchett My rating: 2 of 5 stars Having just finished "The Long Cosmos," the final installment in the "Long Earth" series—a collaboration Stephen Baxter completed after Terry Pratchett's passing—I found myself a bit disappointed by the number of loose ends left unresolved. I think a core challenge in classifying this series as traditional science fiction lies in its fundamental premise, which sidesteps the real-world physics limitations of interstellar travel. Knowing the near impossibility of venturing beyond our solar system due to light-speed limits, the authors cleverly engineered the parallel Earth concept as their vehicle for cosmic exploration. Instead of launching spaceships, the characters simply "step" into new worlds. This ingenious workaround allows for adventure without grappling with conventional astrophysical constraints. While "The Long Cosmos" does bring humanity's journey across the infinite ...

Rancid

Search This Blog