OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: A method for non-augmented organics to perceive and interact with a symbolic virtual representation of the Holonet and potentially other various internal networks.
- Image Source: Cyberpunk Art
- Canon Link: N/A
- Restricted Missions: N/A
- Primary Source: Interface Visor, Hamarin interface band
- Manufacturer: Illicit Electronics
- Model: Rapture-series Holointerface
- Affiliation: Open-Market
- Modularity: Yes (enhanced attachment settings for augmented organics)
- Production: Mass-Produced.
- Material: Duraplast, Cutting edge electronic components
VR Environment
Officially nicknamed "holospace" by the Illicit development team, this setting allows for the user to experience the data lanes and messaging hubs of a virtual environment as an intractable, three dimensional simulated space. Primarily used to approximate physical interaction across vast cosmic distances, the holointerface band is also useful for better visualizing a network and more innovative approaches to troubleshooting and cyber security.
While this environment, more commonly known by slang terms like "the matrix" or "digiverse" as well as a few others, attempts to fully simulate sensory perception across a range of species, there are safeguards in place to protect the user from physical harm regardless of the state of their personal avatar. This is not always completely effective, as Illicit Electronics cannot take direct responsibility for any slicing or otherwise illegal modding that strips a unit of its safety features, and in rare instances, the biofeedback when encountering heavy duty anti malware software is so great it can overload all failsafes and potentially cause permanent brain damage.
AR Setting
The Rapture-series interface's augmented reality mode is less invasive than its virtual reality mode. While the interface band in the back of the helmet still manipulates the user's neurological connections to their sensory perceptions, it does not override them completely like a deep dive into holospace. Instead, it enhances the end user perception of their true, immediate environment, allowing them to overlay and customize any number of display configurations to best retain their situational awareness. Because of the bulkier nature of the Rapture-series, most users buy the device strictly for the virtual simulation feature, but for more casual uplinks when there are no other alternatives, AR mode is there and fully functional.
Custom Data Uplink
While the Rapture-series does require relative proximity to a functional Holonet relay, much of the componentry in the helmet not dedicated to virtual simulation is devoted to compressing the neuroinputs it receives and shunting them in as a series of packets along with the normal data traffic. This is why, in times of localized or wider ranging network interruptions, the virtual reality environment can suddenly appear more stilted, the images around the user more jagged and jarring, as packets of necessary information to provide a detailed picture are lost.
STRENGTHS
- A Unique Perspective: Allows the user to perceive the structure of the galactic holonet and, with some modification, most internal network systems, as symbolic representations of the physical world. Primary uses are for simulating direct interaction across vast distances, and troubleshooting system errors from a more intuitive point of view.
- Slicer's Dream: An unfortunate consequence of the holointerface's public launch is the ease with which slicers of dubious moral intentions can get their hands on the tech and begin to reverse engineer the software. This process is not without risks, however, as tampering with proprietary technology can easily compromise the physical safeguards and leave the user open to neurological damage.
- Non-Invasive: While based on Hamarin interface band technology, the user does not need augments, implants, or any form of socket to enjoy a baseline experience. The more augmented the user however, the more realistic the simulation, as the Rapture-series is able to better adapt to known biointerface wetware.
- Scalability: While the Rapture-series provides a cohesive user experience for smaller gatherings, it has difficulty processing larger swathes of the holonet and rendering it into a detailed environment. The more the holointerface attempts to perceive all at once, the more the quality of the simulation deteriorates, until at a certain point the data stops being useful at all.
- Power Consumption: Most Core grids are able to handle the additional load (likely at the charge of exorbitant additional utility fees), however the power requirements of the holointerface go well beyond the average portable generator you'd find in some Outer Rim bazaar. Although not unheard of on the fringes of the galaxy, a lack of access to such energy surplus makes the Rapture-series a much rarer sight.
Although the Rapture is based on interface band technology, it does not necessarily require physical augmentation in order to operate, instead relying on lighter surface scans of the user's neurofeedback and feeding it directly into the device's visor. Through this means, the wearer does not merely see what is projected in front of them on the screen in front of their eyes, they are seemingly mentally transported into the environment that screen projects. Entering a state of partial unconsciousness in the physical world as their perceptions of their actual surroundings are severely limited, the user is able to "enter holospace", experiencing the structure of a holonetwork as if it were a physical environment. Where possible, interaction with this environment is possible, as certain motions and functions can trigger scripts within the holointerface that translates the users efforts into corresponding network inputs.
This unique functionality has led to a perhaps expected but not fully anticipated upswell of support for the device among the galaxy's slicer community. Daring modders or "riggers" have been known to even risk bypassing the holointerface's core safety features in exchange for fuller control of the experience, and also to potentially access parts of a network that would normally be considered off limits. This practice is not without extreme risk, however, as even not factoring in possible serious malfunctions in the unit itself from inexperience tampering, certain heavy duty security safeguards have been known to be so powerful and in-discriminatory, that running afoul of one can overload the operator's senses to the point where their brain essentially bursts.
Experiencing holospace has become a growing fad in some of the more affluent parts of the galaxy, but limitations on the technology as it exists today cuts short any speculation as to whether the device could one day usurp more conventional forms of communication and information retrieval. The device struggles to maintain quality at scale, and the power requirements necessary to maintain a stable, long term connection are uneconomic, to say the least. Yet for this with a sufficiently powerful generator on hand, the Rapture-series can be a way to feel more connected to the wider galaxy even in the most remote locations.
