I will be starting a new SR4 game at some point in the not too distant future , several of the players are unfamiliar with the settings and are not the sorts to read a book. I am trying to produce a 1 or 2 page introduction to the setting and wondering if someone else had already done so , as it looks to be a hard job and I would welcome not having to do it

Tolkien meets cyberpunk.

Also, what kind of RPG players "are not the sorts to read a book?" O.o

That's my opinion also

Take a look for the latest movie thread, it has a list of movies that everyone pretty much agrees are very Shadowrunny.

1 or 2 pages? Hmm, I'd go with a quick screamsheet listing a days top news stories with a brief summarized plot. Also remember to slant the news to the organization supplying the information.
Example:

Horizon security teams successfully prevented known terrorists from abducting Dr. Wuzang Funzion. During the daring daylight attack, the doctor was seriously injured and will be recouperating in Horizon General Hospital, under the auspices of renowned cybersurgeon Dr. Vilvan Doubtczech. Details regarding his injuries have not been release, though video footage taken at the time of the attack indicates severe burning from a terrorist mage's fireball. Reports indicate that the facility Dr. Funzion was working in was completely totaled. Burnt to the grounds by a pack of hellhounds that were being used for research purposes at the facility. Reliable sources state that the terrorists were members of GreenWar!, trying to free the hellounds and take Dr. Funzion for ransom. The terrorists that were killed were also wanted for previous offensses in other jurisdictions.


Now how truthful this is is up to you as GM. Me, in the back of my mind this really meant:
1. Dr. Funzion was involved in an extraction, willing or not.
2. Dr. Funzion is know being held and interrogated at a Horizon hospital.
3. The surgery is for a cortex bomb so this does not happen again.
4. The terrorists were runners, some of which might be recognizable to the players.
5. The hellhounds were controlled by a rigger, who lost control after battling it out with the runners decker.

A curious PC is rewarded for paying attention to the news with a phone call from their fixer, a Johnson wants them to extract Dr. Funzion

There is a lot of potential material to toss at players who are new to Shadowrun, which is no surprise considering how long it has been around and how much fluff the game has generated.

I'd cover the big elements in a timeline: Corporate sovereignty, the rise of magic, the rise of cyberdecks and Matrix 1.0, goblinization, Night of Rage, and so on.

For flavor, well, you said they weren't the sort to read books (I agree with Tanegar, RPGers who don't read, really?), but I'd still have them read the best chapter out of the Attitude book, assuming you have access to it. I don't remember the name, but I'm sure other Dumpshockers will, it is the chapter where the "shadow tutor" is instructing a newbie on how to be a good runner. You know, the one with a minor twist at the end that really says, "This is Shadowrun, this is what you know to be true and should have expected to happen from the start!"

The Main one one I am thinking of is the GF of an another player and I am uncertain if she actually has any interest in gaming. I am sure she does read , but not gaming books or background.
I have access to pretty much everything published since 1st ed but still summarizing the major changes in the world in a short intro is not easy. I took the Wiki Timeline and edited out 'less significant' events still have 6 pages

My advice is to dispense with the infodump altogether. Drop them into the world, and let them learn about it through the game.