[martinchaen]

Fair enough; feel free to continue arguing semantics. I'm out.

[Aryeonos]

wageslavery While employers reap the benefits of skillware, such as low costs and quick training, chipped employees suffer from detach- ment and a lack of upward mobility. Most chipped workers have little or no pride in their work, a side effect of performing their jobs with skills they do not naturally possess. They perform their jobs virtually on autopilot, with a wage or salary being their only real reward. The lack of personal fulfillment has led to numerous side effects, including widespread depression and high addiction and suicide rates among chipped workers. Additionally, since chipped skills are not learned, advance- ment and upward mobility are limited for chipped workers. Corporations have done away with training programs in favor of skillsofts, but that leaves a worker with no marketable skills once the chip is removed. As a result, most chipped workers are bound to their employer, unable to market themselves to a competitor.[/quote=SR4 Unwired Pg. 194]

This is where I'm getting the sense that much of the corp workforce (AA, or A rank? or even lower?) is skillwired, yet these systems are so espensive, in SR4 you can network skill wires if you're subscribed to a node running them, so I"m thinking a Nexus running one wire to its subscription limit in employees, even then that's like more expensive than modern server licenses for program suites. I'm so confuse.

[JimmyCrisis]

This is where I'm getting the sense that much of the corp workforce (AA, or A rank? or even lower?) is skillwired, yet these systems are so espensive, in SR4 you can network skill wires if you're subscribed to a node running them, so I"m thinking a Nexus running one wire to its subscription limit in employees, even then that's like more expensive than modern server licenses for program suites. I'm so confuse.

Compared to the cost of training an employee and the money saved on not paying a competative salary for skilled labor, it's not bad.  Consider that the company can artificially inflate the cost of the implant and take it out of the worker's wages - this alone might justify the high price of skillwires and skillsofts.  After all, the company wouldn't have the implant removed, it's too problematic.  Places like Renraku can manufacture their own skillsofts and skillwires in-house, really only paying parts and labor, which might be as low as 10% of the price.

[Aryeonos]

Yeah, I can see it making allot more sense that way, I mean after all the books never state the prices corps would/are paying to outfit their drones, just the cheddar it costs a runner in seattle and avail. So in actuality it costs them about as much as a brand new high end computer per employee but without special licenses out on the free market its not something most would have. Just like most office machinery, you arent going to bring your own welding robot or commercial program suite to the table at your interview.

[Critias]

Don't forget, it's not like the ruthless megacorp has to pay those steep skillwire prices every time they hire a new employee.  They need to pay for the skillwires (and skilljack, and skillsoft) once per position.  When someone quits, is fired, or dies, they can yank the hardware (which is likely in their contract somewhere) and install it, used, in the next desperate employee to come of age (who doesn't have an "alpha-plus!" tier employment benefits package, or something).

The wires, jack, and softs stay in that office forever, if the corp wants them to.  It's just the bodies that come and go.

[Sendaz]

Don't forget, it's not like the ruthless megacorp has to pay those steep skillwire prices every time they hire a new employee.  They need to pay for the skillwires (and skilljack, and skillsoft) once per position.  When someone quits, is fired, or dies, they can yank the hardware (which is likely in their contract somewhere) and install it, used, in the next desperate employee to come of age (who doesn't have an "alpha-plus!" tier employment benefits package, or something).

The wires, jack, and softs stay in that office forever, if the corp wants them to.  It's just the bodies that come and go.

Which raises the interesting issue of acting as a potential carrier for CFD as well if the original owner had gotten infected and all their cyber therof..

[The Wyrm Ouroboros]

Probably not CFD, but I suppose it's possible; at this point, almost any object could be a CFD carrier.

The wires, jack, and softs stay in that office forever, if the corp wants them to.  It's just the bodies that come and go.

How delightfully dystopian.

[KarmaInferno]

Even more dystopian: forcing the employee to finance the 'ware with a staggering loan agreement or face losing his job, working him to the bone, then when he's died in an 'accident', repossessing the 'ware for use in the next guy.




-k

[Sendaz]

Even more dystopian: forcing the employee to finance the 'ware with a staggering loan agreement or face losing his job, working him to the bone, then when he's died in an 'accident', repossessing the 'ware for use in the next guy.




-k

Even more dystopian, the family of the deceased still has to keep making payments on that same loan for the skillwire even while the corp is ripping it out of the recently departed and prepping it for the next sucker and his own loan.  It's the gift that keeps on giving (to accounting)

[Novocrane]

Hire a SINless worker under a fake national SIN, provide them food, shelter, and skillwires under a contractual work agreement. Possibly include a minor stipend for the duration of the job, but always a final payment at the end of the contract, with the possibility of renewal and limited corporate citizenship.

Before the contract expires, "find" their SIN invalid and declare them guilty of impersonating a SINner. Repossess everything including the skillwires, then have them executed. Repeat.

[Dangersaurus]

Hire a SINless worker under a fake national SIN, provide them food, shelter, and skillwires under a contractual work agreement. Possibly include a minor stipend for the duration of the job, but always a final payment at the end of the contract, with the possibility of renewal and limited corporate citizenship.

Before the contract expires, "find" their SIN invalid and declare them guilty of impersonating a SINner. Repossess everything including the skillwires, then have them executed. Repeat.

I dunno. Sounds pretty expensive. Are you sure about the food, shelter and stipend?

[Novocrane]

The first two, at least, are things you're going to be making allowances for with any other worker. Which isn't to say you can't scrape rock bottom on costs and keep digging for cheaper solutions - you only care about the short term effects.

[Dangersaurus]

Whooooosh.

[Novocrane]

What's that, Lassie? Over his head and fell down a well?

[Leevizer]

A month has not passed so this is not necroing... Right?

There was a lot of discussion about corps using skillsofts but nobody mentioned something I remember hearing about some years back... Skillwires as a security measure.

This isn't exactly how it works, of course, but imagine a hall full of droning wageslaves, let's say... Fifty. Let's say that this is a high-profile job so Runners come in, fire a gun in the air and shout Everyone Down or such. Maybe not runners, could be robbers or anyone else too. So what happens? All the wageslaves dive down to the floor and whimper and shiver and pray for security...

...Until that red button is pushed, some drugs are dispensed from a one-use container inside their body or the skillwires are a bit more invading than what the brochure said and BOOM, the runners are faced with 50 trained martial artists. Or, given the cost of guns in SR, they could suddenly be trained in using that pistol/taser that every employee has in his desk locker. And they aren't even really bad people, just wageslaves. That'll surprise the players and give them a bit of a dilemma to solve.