[Leevizer]

This is a kind of a silly question, I know... But the rulebook states they are a net, cap or a headband, right? now, why couldn't they be, say, an armband or such? I understand it reads... brainwaves... or... Something, right? Or what is the reason that it seems like it's necessary to wear them on the head?

The main reason I'm asking this is because I find a trode net/headband/cap to be... quite awful, in terms of how I imagine it to look. Though, the DNI has quite a few perks for every character class ever (my favourite is to have sunglasses with an imagelink and a DNI to let you realistically do anything you could do with your smartphone by thinking about it, from sending text messages to taking pictures and video and sharing it between your team-mates, even in the midst of a firefight. Fun stuff.), and wouldn't necessarily want a datajack due to either being a magician or just... not wanting it. it's a hole drilled in your head. ew.

I -KNOW- that this doesn't really matter to any rules or such, I'm just asking because I'm curious and need to know how to explain it flavourfully.

[firebug]

They do need to be worn on the head, yes.  However, you can put them in a helmet (costing 1 capacity I think), or you can just have them be part of an actual hat.  The latter is what I usually do for magicians.  Some kind of hat that has a trodes net sewn into it.

I mean, it makes sense that people in-universe would want a way to wear trodes and have them be "stylish".

[Senko]

Actually I think that would depend on a couple of factors. Are there limits on teen use ( imagine as their brains growing they couldn't get a DNI but would trodes cause a problem? If not there's probably a fairly large rangw of fashionable options for the younger crowds. Secondly is there a stigma in using them as in only poor people, mages and freaks were such things. In which case your probably only going to get bare bones functional ones. Is it going to be treated as a fashion item I.e. do I look good wearing it or is it viewed as a functional item I.e only minimal variations in basic design but lots of covers.

That said yes it can only be worn on your head as it needs to interface with your brain waves from what i see.

[ProfessorCirno]

As the saying goes, everything has a cost.  Want DNI?  Gotta have the commlink implanted, a hole in your head, or a stupid hat 

Also someone can correct me where I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that you do not need image link if you have DNI, since DNI syncs up all your senses to the Matrix.

[Insaniac99]

Also someone can correct me where I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that you do not need image link if you have DNI, since DNI syncs up all your senses to the Matrix.

That is partially correct.  If your commlink has a sim module then you get everything but without it you only get a subset (but I don't have my books at hand right now)

[Senko]

My understanding (could be wrong) is that the basic model is visual only i.e. you get little pop up icons and the like you can interact with. If your just using a basic comlink you can only see them on its screen and have to tap, touch and otherwise manipulate it to affect them. To have greater convenience you can buy optional extras gloves to interact with icons and feel them (to a limited extent based on the gloves ability to generate pressure), glasses to see AR objects and open windows to VR, earbuds or headphones to offer sound and cyberware augments that offer smell and taste. The other option is direct interface via an implanted datajack or trodes which directly interact with your brain so you don't need optional extras you'll see the icons, hear them, feel them as though they were real and can link in fully to VR.

Here's where my understanding gets a little hazy. I think the base units gloves, glasses etc all translate digiital signals into effects glove give presure here, glasses display this icon. However to experience them direction I feel an object here, I hear a siren in the distance, I feel fear you need the simsense module to translate digital information into your brains method of perceiving things.

So with a basic comlink or one with a sim module + phsyical interaces its second hand your watching in your glasses as a girl walks through a car park, mysterious footsteps making her turn nervously and call or for a more involved the view through the glasses is what she's seeing. Now if you have trodes or a datajack plus the sim module you are the girl, you feel her hair around your shoulders, see what she see's, feel nervous and afraid as you realize someone is following you. How much you feel this things depends on what your accesing and what safeguards are in place.

WIthout a sim module even with trodes or other DNI you'll probably only have sound and vision (not 100% sure on that) and without trodes or a DNI but with a sim module you'll only experience second hand images and sensations through the objects you have to interace e.g. you'll never feel her pain as the killer slams her up against a car because nothing you have is capable of relaying that.

[Xenon]

DNI give you AR that [at least] include Audio and Video (no need for image link or ear buds).

If you in addition to your datajack or trodes also have a commlink and the commlink is modded with a sim-module you get super AR.


AR from DNI often let you do things with the Linked Change Device Mode Free Action.
AR without DNI often force you to use the Change Device Mode Simple Action



You basically only need an image link if you do not use an internal commlink, you do not use trodes and you don't have a datajack augmentation.

With only an external commlink (and no trodes or datajack) you might or might not be able to interact with AR using the display on your commlink
...rather than a heads-up up display that an image link would provide