 Microtrancievers, What's the point? |
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 Aug 8 2007, 04:27 AM
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#1
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Running Target  Group: Members Posts: 1,288 Joined: 4-September 06 From: The Scandinavian Federation Member No.: 9,300  |
Hey, back in previous editions Mictrotransievers and similar tactical communication gear was almost mandatory on runs.
My players brought this to my attention: With commlinks being cheap and so versatile, what's the point of using any other means of communication devices? Initially I thought communicating with mictrotrancievers would be more secure, but it seems it has the same kind of encryption that commlinks have, so it should be just as easy to intercept, sabotage or jam. Sure, commlinks can be hacked, while I'm not sure that MTs can, but then again most runners use commlinks as well. Sure, you can turn them off but that means you lose out on another advantage comlinks have: Using tactical maps in conjunction with verbal communication. So can you tell me what's the point of MTs? Are they just mementos of a past time, communication dinosaurs, or do they provide a benefit compared to comlinks? |
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Aug 8 2007, 04:32 AM
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#2
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Immoral Elf Group: Members Posts: 15,247 Joined: 29-March 02 From: Grimy Pete's Bar & Laundromat Member No.: 2,486 |
They are always useful as a backup comm system. ;)
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Aug 8 2007, 04:43 AM
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#3
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 325 Joined: 5-May 02 From: Various Planets Across the Galaxy Member No.: 2,689 |
I forget who mentioned it in another topic but they brought up the point of if your commlink is compromised, EVERYTHING on that commlink is now compromised (or very well could be) so unless all you use it for is MT style purposes, you're taking a bigger risk.
With a MT if they hack/jam/sabotage it all you've lost are communications and not stuff like contact phone numbers, addresses, places you think are really whiz and hang out at all the time (thus making it easier to find you), etc, etc. Also, MTs are pretty damn cheap. 1200 :nuyen: for a rating 6, signal 6 device used for communications is awesome compared to 8000 :nuyen: for a fairlight caliban with a signal of 5. You also need an operating system to go along with it, pushing the cost up further and frankly, if you're going to be bringing your commlink on a run you better be DAMN sure you've got a superduper firewall because otherwise well, you might as well use a MT for all the good it'll do you to bring it along just to get hacked without the offender batting an eyelash. :) Now if all you want is a rating 1 deal, you can get one for 200 :nuyen: whereas the absolute cheapest commlink/os you'll buy out of the box is 300 :nuyen: and well, that commlink is pretty useless for anything other than a decoy link to display your (fake)SIN and make the authorities happy while your super whiz amaze-o-deluxe with a side of fries commlink loaded with all sorts of goodies can operate in hidden mode or be turned off and not catch the stink eye. |
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Aug 8 2007, 06:46 AM
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#4
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
...if they brought back the Transducer (Cyber Implant) in Augmented the Micro Transceiver makes an excellent stealth comm unit totally independent from your commlink. :cyber:
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Aug 8 2007, 06:51 AM
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#5
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Dragon Group: Members Posts: 4,328 Joined: 28-November 05 From: Zuerich Member No.: 8,014 |
Can you operate a commlink in "pure radio, voice only" mode? Not accepting anything but an (probably analog) voice signal, making it impossible to hack?
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Aug 8 2007, 06:55 AM
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#6
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Great Dragon Group: Members Posts: 5,537 Joined: 27-August 06 From: Albuquerque NM Member No.: 9,234 |
Maybe it's just me, but I've always seen having stuff built into you as having the distinct drawback that it's still built into you when the cops wander around to ask pointed questions. It's unlikely that they will find the commlink and encrypted microtranscever I threw off that bridge last night, but it seems a lot more likely they will find the encrypted microtranscever embedded in your head. Which is likely to raise just a few more questions and provide some interesting leads for them to follow. |
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Aug 8 2007, 06:57 AM
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#7
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Great Dragon Group: Members Posts: 5,537 Joined: 27-August 06 From: Albuquerque NM Member No.: 9,234 |
I'd expect not. It sounds like trying to operate a VoIP phone without using IP. |
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Aug 8 2007, 07:36 AM
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#8
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Immortal Elf Group: Validating Posts: 7,999 Joined: 26-February 02 Member No.: 1,890 |
As others have said, it's essential a security choice. Microtranscievers are cheaper, are more secure, and have greater range. But, in all honesty, if someone can hack into your teams commlinks they probably won't have any trouble jamming or intercepting your microtranscievers, either. So it really just comes down to a choice.
It's also just as vulnerable as the rest of your PAN is if it's connected directly or indirectly to any other wireless device in the network. So you have to go with cabled earbuds and subvocals or... well, you may as well just be using your commlink if not for the greater range on the microtransciever. |
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Aug 8 2007, 09:16 AM
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#9
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Hoppelhäschen 5000 Group: Members Posts: 5,807 Joined: 3-January 04 Member No.: 5,951 |
I'd expect to. It sound's like using a soft-radio. |
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Aug 8 2007, 01:57 PM
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#10
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,219 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Lofwyr's stomach. Member No.: 1,320 |
I think the Idea is the Microtranceiver could operate this way, making it more secure than over-matrix communications.
My personal opinion is that the micro-tranceivers don't broadcast on matrix frequencies or with matrix encoding, and so if someone wanted to intercept the signal, they'd need their own micro-tranceiver to do so. |
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Aug 8 2007, 02:13 PM
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#11
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Hoppelhäschen 5000 Group: Members Posts: 5,807 Joined: 3-January 04 Member No.: 5,951 |
My personal opinion is that as long as a comlink has no written frequency limitations, it tunes onto whatever frequency the software says. If it has frequency limitations, anyone serious would custom-order a pure soft-radio. |
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Aug 8 2007, 02:21 PM
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#12
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,219 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Lofwyr's stomach. Member No.: 1,320 |
I interpret hooking a micro-tranceiver up to your commlink as getting that custom soft-radio. But your right, that's not anywhere in the rules.
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Aug 8 2007, 02:29 PM
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#13
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Hoppelhäschen 5000 Group: Members Posts: 5,807 Joined: 3-January 04 Member No.: 5,951 |
A micro-transceiver is less suitable to take full advantage of a softradio, as he lacks any real interface.
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Aug 8 2007, 02:35 PM
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#14
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,219 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Lofwyr's stomach. Member No.: 1,320 |
But a microtranceiver hooked up to your commlink...
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Aug 8 2007, 02:37 PM
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#15
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Hoppelhäschen 5000 Group: Members Posts: 5,807 Joined: 3-January 04 Member No.: 5,951 |
..does nothing more than your commlink itself.
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Aug 8 2007, 02:43 PM
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#16
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,219 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Lofwyr's stomach. Member No.: 1,320 |
I'm saying IF the commlink had a limited range of frequencies, the micro-tranceiver would act as a soft radio.
Real world comparison: my laptop has a wireless card, it can interface with other wireless devices, but can't communicate with my walky-talkies. My friend has a peice of equipment he hooks his laptop up to that allows him to send and receive data over HAM radio frequencies. My normal laptop cannot do this, but if I attached a similar device it could. Back to SR: The commlink has wireless, as does almost everything else, but a special adapter would be needed for it to access microtranceiver signals. Incidentally, this device is a micro-tranceiver. |
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Aug 8 2007, 02:44 PM
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#17
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The Dragon Never Sleeps Group: Admin Posts: 6,924 Joined: 1-September 05 Member No.: 7,667 |
Theoretically, a microtransciever could also be a node....
and since p 320 "The transceiver’s Signal rating is equal to its Device rating." and the table on P 214 also uses "Device Rating" You can claim that a rating 6 microtransciever also acts as a rating 6 node. Not that I would let anyone get away with that. |
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Aug 8 2007, 02:46 PM
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#18
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,219 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Lofwyr's stomach. Member No.: 1,320 |
Oh, it's a node, and could run all kinds of IC to protect that node. It's just not a commlink, and would not give you a persona, nor would agents running on it be able to do anything outside of it's node.
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Aug 8 2007, 02:47 PM
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#19
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Hoppelhäschen 5000 Group: Members Posts: 5,807 Joined: 3-January 04 Member No.: 5,951 |
Why should it?
Actually, that is because the driver/'firm'ware of it limits it to WiFi frequencies... otherwise, the FCC would be non-happy. The radio itself is a soft-radio and could do much more...
Thus, it's not really a problem for a hacker to make his commlink tune into those 'special' frequencies. |
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Aug 8 2007, 03:03 PM
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#20
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,219 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Lofwyr's stomach. Member No.: 1,320 |
I don't know, mostly to give micro-tranceivers something to do. I did not know that about (RL) wireless devices. How very interesting. |
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Aug 8 2007, 03:06 PM
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#21
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
...the Transducer is legal Cyber (at least in SRIII it was, don't have Augmented yet.) In previous editions I had characters patch an external MT through their induction datajack to their Transducer router. Even so, a radio or vid implant is still not illegal or even restricted cyber. As a matter of fact a lot of media people would have a whole AV studio crammed in their heads (I once ran a reporter who was a walking remote unit and editing studio). |
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Aug 8 2007, 03:08 PM
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#22
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Dragon Group: Members Posts: 4,328 Joined: 28-November 05 From: Zuerich Member No.: 8,014 |
You can switch cyberware to wireless mode. Can you switch Comlinks to microtransceiver mode too?
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Aug 8 2007, 04:22 PM
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#23
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Immortal Elf Group: Validating Posts: 7,999 Joined: 26-February 02 Member No.: 1,890 |
You can turn wireless connectivity off on anything.
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Aug 8 2007, 04:40 PM
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#24
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panda! Group: Members Posts: 10,331 Joined: 8-March 02 From: north of central europe Member No.: 2,242 |
iirc those are now part of the cyberjack. there is some fluff about two people with jacks having a conversation across a fiberoptic cable... |
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Aug 8 2007, 05:32 PM
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#25
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
...do you have a page citing? |
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