Sunday, February 02, 2014

Software (Ware Tetralogy #1)


Software - Rudy Rucker This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.com by express permission of this reviewer

Synopsis
A drug induced, hazy look at the future with robots controlling the moon and all the old people living in Florida. And one man's quest to not die.

My Thoughts
I have no idea why I picked up this set of books, but I have to admit I am glad I did.

Anderson Cobb is an old geezer living in Florida along with the rest of the nation's Pheezers, subsisting on free food and alcohol and worrying about how he is going to pay for a new heart, as he is afraid of death way beyond the normal.
Cobb is also the man who freed the robots from their Asimovian coding. The robots promptly took over the moon and have been living there since.
Cobb was tried as a traitor to humanity and stripped of all his rights as a genius computer coder.

And now the robots want Cobb on the moon to help them with some more coding so that the human consciousness can be digitized. And they also need the help of a completely drugged out loser who has officially changed his name to Sta-Hi.

Ok, while this type of off the wall look at the future is about as normal as a bad acid trip while on weed and scotch [I suspect that combo would kill you, but I really have no experience with illegal drugs], it is written so well that I was sucked along almost against my will.

I don't like old useless alcoholics, useless young drug addicts nor the made up words describing a made up future.

But I liked this. And I understood it. Even with it's own internal slang not explained, the world situation barely explained and the action so fast that you'll miss something important if you blink.

In the end Cobb dies because the computers don't understand death and Sta-Hi marries some random woman. It totally fit with the rest of this book.

Rating: 3 of 5 Stars

Author: Rudy Rucker

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