So, GalNet's going Galaxy wide...

[RosaMaus]

Fair enough, but it would need some mega-engineering. Let's say, for the sake of argument, it uses modulated tachyons that travel faster than light. You would need a huge generator/transmitter, what better than a star? So why not, using existing in game assets, have a previously uninhabited system set up as "Broadcasting House". All you need is a network of twelve or so Orbis to produce a suitable amount of "Handwavium" in close orbit around the star, perhaps docking by permit only and lots of security. Of course, it would need to be in Alliance space. Who would trust the Imps or Feds?

Not much work for something interesting and fun to look at, that helps develop the back story and give some realism to the whole concept of a galaxy ranged data stream.

 

[Vasious]

Would the Neutron Star at Jacksons lighthouse be suitable?

 

[Walt Kerman]

The Dukes of Mikunn would be willing to host the broadcasting house. For the modest fee of reviewing all material before broadcast, ya know, early access and all.

 

[RosaMaus]

Would the Neutron Star at Jacksons lighthouse be suitable?

Dunno, haven't visited yet it. Might pop in and do a recce on the way back from the Crab Nebula. But it sounds reasonable.

 

[RailBalco]

Given the nature of FSD (it "punches holes through space" to transport ship from one star system to another) I expect there is similar little FSD for comms purpose (or using big one modulated to send only streams of data). Since you are in fact sending only particles, it can be power efficient enough to send small text stream from one edge of the Milky Way to another one.
No need for transmitting stations IMHO

 

[Jack Schitt]

It's a pity, although perhaps inevitable, that FD seem to have gone for an "all the data, everywhere" model for the new GalNet. Although certain features have to be lore-breaking (instantaneous comms with friends, availability of UC Discovery data) for gameplay or practicality reasons, I would rather the GalNet feed have been baked into the game in a more believable way.

For instance I always imagined that the non-local GalNet news in the stations was obtained by interrogating the computers of ships arriving from nearby systems, and downloading the feeds they'd obtained elsewhere. A sort of 34th century sneakernet. The lore could have been extended to allow ships to send GalNet data to each other directly, so your feed would be updated whenever you saw another player or NPC in supercruise. The beauty of this is you wouldn't even need to model the actual comms in-game, or to keep track of who had met up with whom, because with the whole "six degrees" thing and the sheer number of ships jumping all over the place, news would still travel so fast that everyone would have access to everything almost simultaneously, at least within regularly flown space.

But it sounds to me as though GalNet is going to be available to everyone, everywhere, even to lone explorers tens of thousands of light years away. It doesn't sit easy with the way I've always imagined the Elite galaxy to work, but I guess there's no way around it.

The other can of worms that it (re)opens is the whole market price thing. If news can be broadcast instantaneously across the whole galaxy, why is market data limited to individual systems? Is it time for FD to bite the bullet and include a Thrudd- or Slopey-style galactic exchange database within the game, or would that be one step too far from the original Elite design?

 

[RosaMaus]

...No need for transmitting stations IMHO...

But where's the fun in that? Everyone says we need more content, my suggestion adds this with existing assets and very little work. It also adds the possibility of future Powerplay type stuff. Every leader wants to control the media!

 

[Zephyriel]

To be honest I'm not a fan of the idea that you can get the latest news while exploring to the other end of the galaxy... it doesn't make sense. When you go out exploring, you need to feel like you are abandoning civilization, you keed to feel truly alone. Also it's just hard to believe that thousands of lightyears away I could still get the latest news, and in real time.

Solutions I propose :
- The simplest : no signal in the news feed when far enough from inhabited space
- News don't update, once you're far enough you can only read the last news you downloaded
- The signal breaks up : the further you go, the more corrupted the news bulletins become, with missing or corrupted characters, etc, and, far enough, it becomes unreadable.
- Getting older news : the further you go, the older news you get, because of the time it would take the broadcast to reach your remote location since you travel very fast.
- A mix of the previous two points : you get older and older news, with decreasing signal quality.

 

[Commander Silex]

Could be Quantum entanglement for the overarching galactic news and something less complex for system wide news. You could explain it not being available for all forms of communication by the cost of implementation per feed thus only the wealthiest providers i.e. Galnet get to make a feed that can be delivered across the galaxy. They make or contribute heavily to the transmitters and receivers so they get to send the galactic data to them, and as players we can be glad we don't actually have to suffer the very likely spam of adverts. ^^

 

[RailBalco]

But where's the fun in that? Everyone says we need more content, my suggestion adds this with existing assets and very little work. It also adds the possibility of future Powerplay type stuff. Every leader wants to control the media!

Sorry, usually I'm just mean, unbearable wrecker of nice thoughts and feelings
I'm not really into sending GalNet into every corner of galaxy as well. Maybe we can make stream of data sent by FSD a little shorter, so you can use your transmitting stations

 

[Vasious]

I figure there is FTL comms already, so my ship is downloading the Gal Net News (it is just text after all) over night whilst I sleep if I am Thousands of light years out.

 

[RosaMaus]

I must admit, I'm not a great fan of the increased range, and I quite like Z's suggestions above. Personally, I see it as being a really difficult process to modulate a stellar body, so the transmission rate may only be one or two characters a minute.

 

[Arubeto]

While I very much appreciate the plan to let us access GalNet news during flight, I have to agree that access should somehow be connected to where you are in the galaxy.

So, if it's not to much of a hassle to implement, I think the following suggestion by Zephyriel would really be the best:

- The simplest : no signal in the news feed when far enough from inhabited space

 

[shinkicker444]

Was this not answered in the AMA? I' was sure it was said that to get Galnet you have to be in an inhabited system, and then it is only the local news you'd get at the station? People over at Sag A* will never know that the Princess clubbing in the Federation till the wee hours of the morning started a massive war when she pushed the Federation President over while performing a rendition of the Lavian Hustle...

 

[Cmdr Cheese Wedge]

I concur with Zephyriel on this, The global transmission feed should break up the further from the habitable zone you are. Also certain systems should make the transmissions go haywire white dwarf systems, Planetary Nebula and Nebula in general for instance.

 

[Daeron]

I'll join the immersion group on this one. Mostly because it is futile. It is a weakness of my character...

 

[Vasious]

I must admit, I'm not a great fan of the increased range, and I quite like Z's suggestions above. Personally, I see it as being a really difficult process to modulate a stellar body, so the transmission rate may only be one or two characters a minute.

The Last Galnet News item "Justice Isn't Always Blind" is 1125 characters including spaces, so a 9 and a half hour download at 2 characters per minute.
Possible to happen "off camera" while our Pilot sleeps etc when we aren't logged in.

 

[RosaMaus]

Exactly, and that's why trading data could never be transmitted!

The more I think about this, the more I like the gameplay options that open up on top of the potential Power Play stuff. For instance regular high value cargos of tech might be needed to be shipped in, or fast data runs to "BH" from remote systems, both open to piracy. Or once we get passengers, imagine how much a faction might pay for a scientist who knows how to control a sun!

 

[Arubeto]

Was this not answered in the AMA? I' was sure it was said that to get Galnet you have to be in an inhabited system, and then it is only the local news you'd get at the station? People over at Sag A* will never know that the Princess clubbing in the Federation till the wee hours of the morning started a massive war when she pushed the Federation President over while performing a rendition of the Lavian Hustle...

No, David stated that the Global News (e.g. not local news) are accessible from everywhere in the galaxy, so explorers on the far side of the milky way can read them, too:

Hi David, cockpit access to Galnet is a good new feature. Will this have a range? I.e will explorers on the other side of the Galaxy still have access?

Yes, they can access "global" news, but for system-local news, you need to be in the system in question.