Chapter 5 Facade
Tapping the Line
In his research into the Silicon Facades of the 2000 era, Darren had stumbled across an interesting tidbit he hadn’t heard about before. Even though the freedom to add personal information to the Internet, or as it was now called, the Line, had ended many decades before, all that information was still out there. It was just blocked from access by most of the classes.
There had been tens of thousands of individual servers and computers storing huge databases of personal information in the decades that followed the year of no return, 2000. When the big “clamp down” of the Line started occurring in the 2060’s, information did not get deleted. That would have been impossible to do anyway. Instead, the information was just suppressed.
The Line was still very much active in the 2130’s, and everything that was ever on the Internet was still there. New information was continually being added as well. The only difference was that in the 2130’s it was rare for individuals to have access to personally upload anything to the Line. Instead, the government, police, employers, health facilities, banks and news sources were the largest contributors to the Line data.
The Line was continually being web-crawled by government agencies for data to add to people’s SIN Records, including from their dead relatives. What they were specifically looking for was any supplementary information beyond that normally required to be sent directly to the government. Dirt, rumor, scandal, Uncle Tony’s skeleton closet, great grandpa’s drug problem in this youth, grandma’s church affiliation—it was all fair game.
This is the part that Darren found very intriguing. The original Internet was still there, being added to, and being trolled for information. The Silicon Facades were still possible, if someone could just obtain access for uploading information to the Line.
Darren’s part time job as a graphic designer for the news agency might just get him opportunity for access to the Line. But he’d have to “buy up” his position from graphic designer to one having Line access, a B class Article Researcher.
It was common practice in the workplace to allow employees to “buy up” into a higher class pay scale and position. The catch was that in return, the employee had a probation period in which they typically had to work either for free for six months, or at half pay for a year. The terms differed from employer to employer and how far you wanted to buy up.
But the planned results of the Buy Up programs were usually easy money for the company. There were many eager employees who often overlooked one of the very lures to the Buy Up program, a misnomer that their social position would change when it fact it absolutely would not change. The Buy Up only involved their work privileges and/or pay scale. And once in the program, anywhere from half to three quarters of the employees would not last through the probation period, usually because they couldn’t afford to work for free or half pay for as long as they thought. Out of financial necessity they’d be forced back into their old position or to find another job altogether. Not surprisingly, the Buy Up program was a hugely popular and profitable arrangement for the company.
At the news agency where Darren worked, a part time Article Researcher position was eligible through the company’s Buy Up program. So the same day that he put his order in for the “conversation band” with a co-worker at his mechanic gig, he also applied for the Buy Up position at the news agency. The terms were that Darren would have to work for free for fourteen months, since he was only part time, in order to have B class privileges and pay. Darren agreed. Amber didn’t know about it.
The B class Article Researcher position would involve searching the Line for news stories and background facts, posting inquires and requests for information, and, get this, manually uploading finished stories to a list of web pages and web sites for publication.
Automated uploading of anything on the Line was prohibited by law—for the very reason Darren wanted access—so that people couldn’t skew SIN Records through sheer volume of uploaded material. You could try high volume uploads manually, but Line access cost money and was monitored, both of which discouraged abuse, though not eliminating it.
Darren was stoked about the Article Researcher position. They let him start immediately. He planned to learn the ropes for a while at his new position before he would try uploading anything to the Line to benefit himself. He’d have to figure out the what, how and when logic and be very sure before he tried anything. But at least now he had plenty of time to work on it. His job was to learn more about using the Line. It seemed too good to be true.
On his way home from work that first night he was animated. This second job had really turned out to be a brilliant opportunity for them. He couldn’t wait to tell Amber about his day. Two great plans in the works, he thought. And plan three was already being formulated.
By the time he got home it was just past nine-thirty, p.m. His mechanic job had started at eight a.m. and went until five in the afternoon. He always packed his lunch and dinner so that he could go straight to work at the news agency and put in four hours. It had been a long day, just like every day. Luckily, both jobs were within fifteen minutes of home.
Amber had just gotten two year old Bryan into bed and was watching a movie on the Hologramic Image Display (HID). The usual routine after their long days was to hang out watching HID for a few hours then hit the sack to start the whole routine over again. Darren and Amber literally had two hours together each evening. If they wanted more time, then they got less sleep. This was the schedule six days a week. They were lucky to both have Saturdays off.
“Hey,” Amber whispered, smiling and looking up as Darren opened the front door, which opened right into the living room of the flat. After he came in and gave her a kiss, she continued, “How did it go today? Did you order your wrist band?” She already had the HID playing a movie and its volume medium loud so that a whispered conversation could not be detected by the Mites.
“Yes, I put a down payment on it,” he answered. “I’m going to have to pay it off little by little before he’ll give it to me though. Since I’m working two jobs, I don’t really have time to help him with anything so I can’t really work any of it off.”
“Well, at least you have your other job now so that will help out too,” Amber offered.
Darren looked down and was quiet.
“What is it?” she asked. “Did something happen at the news agency already? Is there some trouble?” She was quick to read him.
“No, there’s not any trouble,” Darren said. “But something really good did happen. I’m sorry I didn’t talk with you about this beforehand, but I didn’t want to lose the opportunity. I applied through the Buy Up program for another position, a position in which I access and use the Line on a daily basis. It’s a great opportunity to learn the in’s and out’s of using the Line. I got the job immediately tonight. There were only two openings.”
“Whoa,” she said. “So that means you’re probably not getting paid for a while. Probably twelve months, right? What are we going to do for money? Keep asking our parents?” She didn’t look angry, just hurt.
“Fourteen months for B privileges. And I don’t like asking our parents for help any more than you do,” he said. “But they do have the money and are willing. All we have to do is buy enough time for some of these plans to start working and then we’ll start seeing raises and better times ahead.”
“Assuming we, you, don’t get caught along the way,” she added. After pausing a few moments, she said, “I suppose we really don’t have a choice. What else can we do? Both work two jobs forever to get nowhere?”
Darren resented the constant working. Being with Amber was so worth it. But that was the very problem. They didn’t have enough time together. Something had to change so that they could have a better life, more time together, more time with little Bryan and time for the baby when it was born.
The only way to get more time was to make more
money. And the only way to make more money was to have a much higher SIN Score. Darren saw no option but to take the risk of artificially manipulating their SIN Records somehow. Amber was starting to see that too.
The odds were stacked against people in the C and D classes who were trying to improve their SIN Scores. Few were ever able to earn their way into the B class. But those in a B class or higher found so much more opportunity for work, higher pay, lifted social restrictions, better food and clothes, easier travel, better and cheaper housing, and more.
Darren sat down on the sofa beside Amber and put his arm around her. “We’re not getting enough time together these days. I just want a better life for us, Bryan, and our baby when it comes,” he said. “I know there’s risk in what I’m trying to do but there’s risk to our family and the quality of our lives if we don’t take a chance on this now.”
Amber looked at him with the beautiful blue eyes that he had fallen in love with. “I agree,” she said. “Just promise that you’ll discuss every step with me before you do anything. Both of our brains in this are better than just flying solo.”
“Of course I promise,” Darren replied. “I wouldn’t be able to do anything without you.”
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