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Just curious how others play the tech side of the three galaxies, as in the day to day stuff that regular people would use. Most of the tech still produced in Palladium books still seems mired in the 80's.
So what are your communications like? LED screens, holographic projectors, or something else?
Are e-mails a thing? How are files transferred? USB jump drive, data crystal, wireless?
Are smart phones a thing? Do they cost a years salary to buy like most other tech in PB?
Have you moved past wearable tech and gone to implanted?
Throw out any items you use and how they affect the worlds your characters visit.

I would say that they have everything we have today and things that can be found in some Sci-fi movies. (no Mr Fusion, but yes to things like food re-hydrators or replicators.)
Files: e-mails: yup. Short Range EM transfers: yup, data storage hardware as transfer: yup. It is just how strict your data security that effects the method chosen.

Communications: ""smart phones"" yes but you'd need to ether get a 'phone number' chip for the local system or register the Communicator into the local system if you travel the space ways.

Screens....tables, holo-RWVR-interactive screens. laptops, household comps: yup....just depending on the user preference.
With everything costing more and more, with less and less 'included ads'.
(cutting short cause dinner got home)

drewkitty ~..~ wrote:
Communications: ""smart phones"" yes but you'd need to ether get a 'phone number' chip for the local system or register the Communicator into the local system if you travel the space ways.

Automaton Wars pretty much killed the 'smartass phone' , at least in the Human Alliance. Most people at the time used the excuse that the phones were spies for the rogue AI to destroy the sarcastic hypercritical personal devices.

taalismn wrote:

drewkitty ~..~ wrote:
Communications: ""smart phones"" yes but you'd need to ether get a 'phone number' chip for the local system or register the Communicator into the local system if you travel the space ways.

Automaton Wars pretty much killed the 'smartass phone' , at least in the Human Alliance. Most people at the time used the excuse that the phones were spies for the rogue AI to destroy the sarcastic hypercritical personal devices.

Sorry, you just referenced my least favorite most hated thing ever placed in a Palladium Book.

If I remember correctly, in Anvil Galaxy it outlined some of the daily tech. So people had a communicator which could be a wristwatch that was a powerful computer (though again they put in numbers that seemed powerful in the early nineties we are fast approaching or have surpassed). That handles emails, document editing, database browsing, the equivalent of Netflix and Spotify and acts as a phone. (There's also the 'terminal' idea which does the same thing but is a household item not a mobile one).

So holograms are common enough that they can be created by personal electronics. Data Crystals seem to be the USB/CD equivalent.

Interstellar data seems to be a bottleneck at the moment. Thraxus has set up a galactic stock exchange, but in Anvil Galaxy at least there seems to be a driving effort to improve interstellar communication which is hampered by the light barrier even with Contragravity technology. From reading that section it seems that there are planetary data nets but linking them together is a bit of a chore. I wonder then if people use sneakernet (that is getting somebody to carry a huge server backup) through a rift or on a ship to carry it (Lots of caching going on).

drewkitty ~..~ wrote:Communications: ""smart phones"" yes but you'd need to ether get a 'phone number' chip for the local system or register the Communicator into the local system if you travel the space ways.

How do you play phone systems. Is a phone good for just a basic planet, that system, galaxy, or civilization (ie. CCW phone can be used throughout CCW space). Is it just a quick call to a service provider when you reach a new area, pay a fee and you're good to go?

Furoan wrote:Interstellar data seems to be a bottleneck at the moment. Thraxus has set up a galactic stock exchange, but in Anvil Galaxy at least there seems to be a driving effort to improve interstellar communication which is hampered by the light barrier even with Contragravity technology. From reading that section it seems that there are planetary data nets but linking them together is a bit of a chore. I wonder then if people use sneakernet (that is getting somebody to carry a huge server backup) through a rift or on a ship to carry it (Lots of caching going on).

The joy of info being spread haphazardly through multiple books. I know there are to companies working on tech to allow instantaneous communication throughout the 3 galaxies. I can't remember if it was through wormholes or another way. I'm considering it to be active in my game.

For a civilization that is supposed to be at least a thousand years ahead of where we are today, most of the tech (outside of weapons and space transport) seems archaic by todays standards with prices for simple tech that put it out of reach of almost all average people.

Whiskeyjack wrote:Just curious how others play the tech side of the three galaxies, as in the day to day stuff that regular people would use. Most of the tech still produced in Palladium books still seems mired in the 80's.
So what are your communications like? LED screens, holographic projectors, or something else?
Are e-mails a thing? How are files transferred? USB jump drive, data crystal, wireless?
Are smart phones a thing? Do they cost a years salary to buy like most other tech in PB?
Have you moved past wearable tech and gone to implanted?
Throw out any items you use and how they affect the worlds your characters visit.

Wearable vs Implanted - depends on multiple issues. Races with rapid regeneration, supernatural nature, or body modification taboos would not use implanted (even piercings could be considered beyond the pale...) tech.
Given the (near)nanoscopic level tech of most of the 3Gs, ear rings, cuff-links, broaches, etc. could be used as almost anything...combined comm unit/computer/projection unit with virtual haptic keyboard. (The projected screen would only be viewable by the user, unless otherwise programmed.
Near-field communications (transfer of data to someone by touch - they do it with virtual business cards today).
Primitive Quantum Entanglement communications. (No more than a few kb -at best - transfer per second.)
For areas where AI is feared, VI's (costing a couple month's salary for the average person) would be programmed into your comm units.
Entertainment for the masses would usually be holographic, whether centered in a room, or inset into a wall. Personal entertainment would be by personal projection, and sound by bone conduction (i.e.: micro-discs attached to the head behind the ears).

As for incoming tech being able to connect with 3G data streams/comm networks...no.
Think about Star Trek. How many times did they have to tune their communications suite BELOW normal frequencies to hear radio transmissions (and reply to them)? 3G tech can be manipulated to connect with Golden Age tech, but GA tech can not be manipulated to connect with 3G tech. You would have to install supplemental hardware, or replace the old stuff.

TTFN...

Thanks for the reply Borast. That gives me a few ideas to work with.

Whiskeyjack wrote:Thanks for the reply Borast. That gives me a few ideas to work with.

No problem, although, honestly? Most of the information is my take on GURPS advanced tech (various source books), and some Mass Effect thrown in. The rest is just my thoughts on where tech could be in the future, based on today versus a century ago.

The comparison I always chuckle over when someone uses it... If air craft advanced as fast as computers have, we would have been flying 747's in the mid '30's!

I've been watching as many sci-fi movies and series as I can lately to get some new ideas. Agents of Shield was a good one, as are most of the Marvel Movies.

So, delving Rommie's tech library, are you?

Ironically, tall foreheads today are working on flexies...although, they won't have petabyte(?) capacity of the ones seen on the show.

Whiskeyjack wrote:

drewkitty ~..~ wrote:Communications: ""smart phones"" yes but you'd need to ether get a 'phone number' chip for the local system or register the Communicator into the local system if you travel the space ways.

How do you play phone systems. Is a phone good for just a basic planet, that system, galaxy, or civilization (ie. CCW phone can be used throughout CCW space). Is it just a quick call to a service provider when you reach a new area, pay a fee and you're good to go?

Star Trek example.

Smart phones are just the comm and computer put together.

Get right with the local comm service (yup pay some $$) and if the comm is compatible then its just them providing the (simm) chip to interface with the local comm net. Sort of like how you if you take a trip to europe and pay the locals and get a chip to make your phone interface with their phone system. (so you are not paying your phone company mega-bucks in traveling fees.) So I expect that one of the 1st stops a traveler would do after/before immigration checks would to stop at a comm kiosck to let their comms work on that world.

Yes, there will be times that there are integration issues, when the traveler will just have to get a burner phone for that world.