151105 keep your mama out all night
On behalf of Doc. Wednesday-I'm not saying she asked, I just wanted to find out-I went up to the apartment of the crazy survaillance guy on the second floor. Mr. X., as he signs his checks, is a bit of a conspiracy theorist, and if anyone would know about how spiderbots work, it would be him.
So; I walk down to his apartment, and knock on his door. There is some brief scuffling, and I hear him call "who is it?" In response, I flip off the wall scone. He had the entire floor wired like a Chihuahua after it's third round of espresso within a week of moving in, and I know he knows I know it, and so we're all happy together.
There's a chuckle, and the door opens.
The room is dark, supposedly to confound any bugs. I can make out at least three white-noise generators, and the only illumination is the light from the three plasma screens bouncing off X.'s glasses.
"So," he says, "what can I do yer for?"
"Free. I'm hear to learn what you know about spiderbots. Or, at least, what you're willing to tell me."
He chuckled. "For Doc. Wednesday, huh?"
I wasn't going to look surprised in front of this kid. "Yeah."
"Fair enough." He runs his hand through his short, spiky hair, and I realize for the first time that the room is almost dead silent. Aside from the white noise, and the sounds of us, there was nothing. We should be able to hear a dog barking, a deliveryman knocking down an old lady, something, but he must've soundproofed the room. It's eerie.
"Alright," he says, and I see that he's somehow accesed my Blogger account. I'll just cut and paste what I know into your account and save it as a draft, mmkay?" I can't even hear his keyboard-USB, of course-clicking. Given the speed at which he types, it'd be nothing more than a hum anyway.
"X.," I ask, "What do you do for a living?"
He smiles, and logs out of Blogger. I feel violated, somehow. "I'm tech support for several porn payment sites."
"Ah. Do you get a...cut of the product?"
"Sure, why not? He shows me to the door. "Bye now."
I spent the next few hours poring(sp?) over the information. Here's it in a nutshell, Doc.
Spiderbots are small mechanical robots created to perform a variety of tasks. Initially created to assist in industrial and high-risk situations, they were soon developed into tools of voyeurism by, um, voyeurs. SB's are particularly popular on college campuses, where they can be easily concealed under beds, or in a shoebox. The bulk of their popularity is attributed to their low cost; an RC bot can be made or commisioned for under $150, and there are make-a-spider kits for even less than that. The standard spiderbot is usually a digital camcorder with a small HD, a power supply(usually rechargable batteries), and a radio. The more complex versions are waterproofed, slightly more durable, can operate off of their own AI as well as RC, and are capable of acting in the intrest of self-preservation. The expensive one's, in the thousands of dollars, are usually bulletproof and waterproof up to several hundred feet. They can seal their connectors if attacked, and sit around for years, if need be, until they can return home and/or resume their mission. Some even disguise themselfes as briefcases and have optic camoflague. Yes, that GiTS stuff. Kinda sweet, really.
The only thing that all spiderbots have in common is their heat signature. Even in standby, 'bots produce a distinctive pattern of heat emmision visible on any decend infrared sensor, and sometimes felt by people walking by. I'd go on, but I could swear I heard the sound of legs agaisnt carpet and a lens adjusting, and the room seems slightly warmer. I think I'll publish the post right here.
So; I walk down to his apartment, and knock on his door. There is some brief scuffling, and I hear him call "who is it?" In response, I flip off the wall scone. He had the entire floor wired like a Chihuahua after it's third round of espresso within a week of moving in, and I know he knows I know it, and so we're all happy together.
There's a chuckle, and the door opens.
The room is dark, supposedly to confound any bugs. I can make out at least three white-noise generators, and the only illumination is the light from the three plasma screens bouncing off X.'s glasses.
"So," he says, "what can I do yer for?"
"Free. I'm hear to learn what you know about spiderbots. Or, at least, what you're willing to tell me."
He chuckled. "For Doc. Wednesday, huh?"
I wasn't going to look surprised in front of this kid. "Yeah."
"Fair enough." He runs his hand through his short, spiky hair, and I realize for the first time that the room is almost dead silent. Aside from the white noise, and the sounds of us, there was nothing. We should be able to hear a dog barking, a deliveryman knocking down an old lady, something, but he must've soundproofed the room. It's eerie.
"Alright," he says, and I see that he's somehow accesed my Blogger account. I'll just cut and paste what I know into your account and save it as a draft, mmkay?" I can't even hear his keyboard-USB, of course-clicking. Given the speed at which he types, it'd be nothing more than a hum anyway.
"X.," I ask, "What do you do for a living?"
He smiles, and logs out of Blogger. I feel violated, somehow. "I'm tech support for several porn payment sites."
"Ah. Do you get a...cut of the product?"
"Sure, why not? He shows me to the door. "Bye now."
I spent the next few hours poring(sp?) over the information. Here's it in a nutshell, Doc.
Spiderbots are small mechanical robots created to perform a variety of tasks. Initially created to assist in industrial and high-risk situations, they were soon developed into tools of voyeurism by, um, voyeurs. SB's are particularly popular on college campuses, where they can be easily concealed under beds, or in a shoebox. The bulk of their popularity is attributed to their low cost; an RC bot can be made or commisioned for under $150, and there are make-a-spider kits for even less than that. The standard spiderbot is usually a digital camcorder with a small HD, a power supply(usually rechargable batteries), and a radio. The more complex versions are waterproofed, slightly more durable, can operate off of their own AI as well as RC, and are capable of acting in the intrest of self-preservation. The expensive one's, in the thousands of dollars, are usually bulletproof and waterproof up to several hundred feet. They can seal their connectors if attacked, and sit around for years, if need be, until they can return home and/or resume their mission. Some even disguise themselfes as briefcases and have optic camoflague. Yes, that GiTS stuff. Kinda sweet, really.
The only thing that all spiderbots have in common is their heat signature. Even in standby, 'bots produce a distinctive pattern of heat emmision visible on any decend infrared sensor, and sometimes felt by people walking by. I'd go on, but I could swear I heard the sound of legs agaisnt carpet and a lens adjusting, and the room seems slightly warmer. I think I'll publish the post right here.
2:02 PM
perma 
Eviscerator out!