help with a novel

Im attempting to write a techno novel, for grins and giggles So far its the story of an average american young man living outside Lubbock Texas in the year 2014. The "New World Order" has finaly united the world in which he lives. He accidently stumbles upon an abandoned but still functional computer lab in a sealed room. Powers it up and discovers a network of hackers, thought long to be extinct, using packet radio and obsolete communications satalites no longer in commercial use, to unite around the world, He discovers a plot to crash the world.

any ideas?

Here's the prelude, to set the scene:

- Prelude -

At the beginning of the twenty-first century the Internet was considered, by most, to be a place, not truly safe for conducting business. There were far to many security holes to worry about. Far to many kids, with programs written by those who were well versed in the ways of computer intrusion techniques. The Net was thought of as a play land, or an amusement park, more than a real world business solution

Those who helped to plug these security holes began to reap substantial rewards for their efforts. Professional hackers turned quasi-legitimate and geared their labs toward finding and fixing vulnerabilities in the products of the Internet hardware and software manufactures, revealing all their secrets and more, in the hopes of landing cushy security jobs with these large corporations. Sometimes they did land those jobs, but mostly they didn’t and partly because of their efforts, a final Internet solution was achieved in late 2004. An un-crackable Worldwide Commerce System had finally been developed. The announcement was made to the public that the Internet was now “truly a safe place to conduct business”.

An unprecedented exodus of brick and mortar companies to the Internet occurred. This virtual land of free trade offered business owners new alternatives for profit. Virtual Showrooms replaced real world sales floors and sales people. Online programming replaced order desks and cashiers. Movies were now being streamed directly to private residences and taverns, closing theaters by the score. The demise of the Cinema Houses caused the closing of many restaurants and other businesses that depended upon the after movie trade for their livelihood. Multitudes of jobs were eliminated in a very short time. All were told not to worry, it’s only a temporary transitional hardship. New and better jobs are being created by this new technology.

Unfortunately, it was no longer necessary for a business to draw its work force from it’s local labor pool and these new jobs, which were to replace those which were eliminated by computerization and the Internet, all those data processing jobs which were to be the promised land for the largely unemployed, but retrained, blue collar worker, could now be located anywhere in the world. High priced, long distance communication and language barriers were no longer an issue. The jobs that were to revitalize the economy were now in the process of killing it, as they were farmed out to the lowest bidder.

Too late, an angry outcry was heard from the working people of the world, demanding that something be done, as the politicians, with their hands, deep in the pockets of the new technologies leaders, urged labor everywhere to offer drastic wage reduction in all sectors to “keep the jobs here” and promising a turn around of events once the economy was back on its feet. The people agreed, they really had no choice, but the turn around never came. Wages were frozen at an all time low while profits soared to an all time high.

In 2007 rioting broke out around the world as swarms of angry people, disillusioned with the system that had caused the lose of, what had once been a comfortable life style, took to the streets. These “Anarchistic Revolts”, as they were called, were quickly and quietly crushed. Everyone who participated was arrested. Those who were not taken right away, by the International Peace Keeping Forces at the scene, were dragged from their beds in the middle of the night. The IPKF keeps databases around the world, with the particulars and whereabouts of everyone at all times. It was a simple matter, to search the databases, and find those who were at that location, at that time, and cross reference the pictures in the databases to the images of faces that had been captured by local surveillance cameras using facial recognition technology. A completely computerized worldwide operation, and most efficient. The System is informed of an event, it identifies and locates those involved and deploys forces accordingly. Escape is nearly impossible. All vehicles are equipped with GPS tracking devices and radio frequency transponders designed for the same purpose. Vehicles will not operate without these devices in place. Any attempt to bypass these devices is a crime that receives a most severe punishment and random roadblocks are setup to insure the deployment of them. Public transportation is available only to holders of valid government ID cards, which can be revoked with a simple command from IPKF Headquarters and those who attempt escape on foot, are spotted by hidden surveillance cameras attached to the IPKF computer grid. These cameras are placed anywhere and everywhere that humans go, and would-be escapees are apprehended in short order.

The International Peace Keeping Forces themselves tend to be an exceptionally brutal lot. Not being born in the countries that they are defending, they have little if any feeling for offenders. They just want to stop whatever needs to be stopped, as quickly as possible and return to their homelands and families. To keep emotions from interfering with efficiency, members of the IPKF that live in the area of a disturbance are immediately deployed to another sector. This is considered by, the World Corporation, the name given to the worlds foremost governing body, to be the most economic way of approaching problems that arise. The world courts are there for show only. If one is arrested and accused by the IPKF it is as good as a conviction and only a matter of a time, a month or two at most, before an offender is pronounced guilty, a formal function of the court, and finds himself or herself living and working at a production farm in a foreign land. Usually one located in the New Arab Republic, or rather what is left of the old United Arab Alliance after the New World leaders declared the actions and politics of those nations, to be a hindrance to trade and a threat to the well being of the new order.

In actuality, the United Arab Alliance was in perfect accord with the rest of the world, but was fast becoming a world power and therefore a threat. They needed to be stopped before that could happen and they were, unconditionally, in 2006, by a joint military force consisting of the Eurasian Commonwealth and the Alliance of the Americas, both of which came into existence in 2005. This multi-hemispheric force acted in the name of the New World Alliance. Formally know as the United Nations. The powers of both hemispheres united in 2006.

There are other production farms, located around the world in places like Columbia, Siberia, Ethiopia, Somalia and other areas that either, don’t produce enough on their own, or are considered to be ‘trouble spots’. Columbia was one such area. Considered to be a trouble spot, for it’s seemingly unstoppable supply of illicit drugs that were removing people from the work force at an alarming rate. The lands that were under the influence of the Drug Czars were captured and brought under the control of the occupational forces of the IPKF. The laboratories, once used to process cocaine and heroine, were seized and converted to the manufacture of commercial medicinal products, which range from pills for pain or insomnia, to eye wash solution, and sold by the World Corporation in markets around the world. With a labor force consisting of convicted offenders, the operation turns a very tidy profit. No one is ever told at which farm a convicted friend or relative is working.

In 2009, the world was finally declared safe for trade. Wages were equalized around the world. Profits were maximized. A redistribution of the world’s wealth had occurred, the world’s wealth not belonging to the corporation, that is. It was said, that now, the masses could live at peace with each other as equals. No one had to fear for their life, there were no more aggressors. All were safe inside the body of the New World Order. A milestone had been achieved for the human race. Or so it was said.

hmmmmm....interesting....could it be that we later find that the 'World Corporation' is actually controlled by a supercomputer that is the offspring of A.I. research that occurred in the late 20th and early 21st centuries? An intelligence that, because it has no true comprehension of physical reality, has gone insane and begun to slowly snuff freedom out by secretly implanting key members of the human race with cybernetics, beginning with the leaders of the lesser corporations of the world? I wonder....


EDIT: Forgive my rudness...I have to echo the magistrate here and congratulate you on undertaking this venture. I liked it so well that instead of saying so, I just shot off my mouth (wow..big surprize there..hehehe) and said what was on my mind. But that is actually good, as it shows you that your work is inspiring!

Sounds like a great novel. I would buy it in a second. It has a Gatica-ness to it, or Demolition Man. It is interesting how you describe the world with such vividness, and clarity. I honestly wouldn't want to live in that society during the change, but I would definitly read about it.

What class will the "average American young male" belong to? Will the average life style go up, down, stay about the same? I'm interested in why you picked Texas... Being born in San Antonio, Texas is my homeland.

I'm looking forward to reading more, and seeing how the story develops. You are very brave to write a novel. I wouldn't have the time, or the patience.

thank you for you kind comments The_Magistrate. i was affraid it sounded too much like an 'Axler' type survivalist novel after i read it the next day.

prior to the redistribution of wealth he would have been considered upper middle class, his father was taken for resisting the breakup of his land. he now belongs to the masses (i don't have a name for this group yet), and lives with mom.

AI's a concept allenb1963 and not to be ruled out. i like to keep it as a projection of whats happening today. But if you got a way to work AI in that would be cool.

i chose texas, because i love texas. i think its the most 'american' place in the united states. i lived in houston for about 15 years. Lubbock because of the concentration of hackers in the area. an abandoned lab would not be too unbelievable, located there.

Maybe sometime down the line make a movie out of this idea, kinda reminds me of virtuosity.

Tedob1, have you played Deus Ex? It's got a great plot full of conspiracies.

ZeroOne this isn't about a conspiracy. events dont need a driving force to turn bad. they do it all by themselves. murphy was an optimomist.