User

Name: User [specific name(s) unknown)]

Format: User; obviously from the person "using" the computer

Function: Use computer, especially to play games

Description: Basically unknown; age(s) unclear, physical description not specified

Reboot tells the story of people who live inside our computers, including their adventures playing games that land on their city via a "game cube" [picture supplied]. If they do not win these games, whole sectors of their city will be "nullified" and the inhabitants turned into energy sucking worm-like nulls. Thus, games are a very stressful and dangerous thing for residents of Mainframe, as well as who have to deal with them. Who inputs these threats to our favorite sprites and binomes? People like you and me of course, aka "The User," who theaten Dot and friends all the time, though now and then, they also help via some system upgrade, as well as the final "restart" that saved the day. It is a tad bit upsetting to think of ourselves as "bad guys," but for the Reboot gang, we basically are much of the time.

The residents of Mainframe, of course, do not know much about us at all. A few, like Fax Modem, suggest users do not even exist; it is all a myth set forth by the guardians to amass power. Most do believe in users, thank them when something really good happens, and most likely also blame them when bad things happen as well. After all, whenever Bob and company has to play a game, the User is the enemy, the one who possibly will win and cause death and destruction. Such power brings with it a sense of awe, but also mixed feelings, when the power can very well be destructive. We do not see the residents of Mainframe discuss the User much at all, though Bob does wish to know more about him/her, since it is his job to beat the User in games. It would be fascinating to know just what everyone thinks about the entity that controls their lives, especially since it ultimately is what they think about us.

The User is a type of godlike figure to the Reboot characters, and like God, is rather hard really to discuss in any detail. As an aside, the idea that we are playthings of user type beings is a theme touched upon by many both in fiction and reality (see Greek mythology), and is a fascinating if somewhat depressing idea. Actually, Greek mythology is a good example in that we are dealing with a group of imperfect gods and goddesses, which is also the case with the "users" involved here. After all, Megabyte might very be the result of some crafty computer hacker, while many other users of different stripes are involved in the computer universe Reboot characters inhabit. For instance, note the different sounds of the game cubes of the systems Matrix and AndrAIa visits, suggesting different Users (Mainframe games all have one computer voice).

Taking as a given (admittedly perhaps false) that the events in Mainframe all take place in the same computer, can we describe the User (or perhaps Users) involved in any detail? Not really. We only see the User (except during restart, when computer system commands are typed in) by the games s/he plays, mostly action and adventure type games (see list in supplied Joe's Unofficial Site link). The User did not do well in "Commando" ("Identity Crisis") followed by a more kid friendly "Funhouse" game ("Santa Claus" and "Rocky the Rabid Cartoon" also were kid themed), but did pretty well in other games that took a good amount of skill. This might suggest more than one person is using the computer involved, perhaps a younger sibling used it for some of the games. All the games are of the type children between say 8-16 might play, none were that complicated or adult orientated ("Evil Dead" was the most dark, and even that would appeal to people of this age range, and the war strategy game in "Enzo the Smart" also appears to be more geared to older children). If one would hazard a shot in the dark guess, the User is an American (everyone speaks English but generally without a British type accent, especially note the computer voice) boy (no games really geared to girls [Penelope Pitstop was the User in 'James Bond 007,' thus a possible exception], though of course many would play the type used) around 12 or so. The fact that this is around the core audience of the show is surely not coincidental.

The User is a complicated figure in that he (?) "uses" the residents of Mainframe for pleasure probably without truly realizing the full effects of his actions, especially if s/he is a child. On the other hand, the User is the reason for the sprites, binomes, and all the others for existing in the first place, but see Web Virus'theory for an alternate possibility [low opinion on human creativity there Web]. Furthermore, the User is a very different type of being than computer generated images, even if such CGI actually do have some type of personhood. It is quite likely sometime in the future we will have to deal with the Star Trek type questions of just what is our relationship and responsibility to artificially generated beings. If Dot and company actually is somewhere in the Net we are inhabiting right now, such fascinating questions would have to be faced now. At any rate, like Phong might say "thank the User" for helping us to see the lives and adventures of a great group of characters!

"Reboot" is a Canadian production originating in Vancouver, and the pathways of Daemon's infection as shown in "Sacrifice" seems to suggest that Mainframe is around there. On the other hand, another theory is that Daemon's spread through the Net originates in Silicon Valley, California. Examine A Minor Glitch's screen grab to decide for yourself. Note the bright dots ... are these key systems of cyberspace? At any rate, Season IV (thus far) has not told us much more about the User.

"Warning: Incoming Game"

"They say The User lives outside the Net" and inputs games for pleasure. No one knows for sure, but I intend to find out." -- Bob

Bob: "They set off an explosion capable of destroying an entire planet!!" DOT: "Bad idea" BOB: "Yes, especially if your inside the planet"

Bob's lecture on "game sprites": "Agressive try to attack the User. Defensives, try to block or delay anything that comes their way. Now Chaotics are the most dangerous. They'll attack anything that moves, User and MainFramer alike. Passives tend to help by revealing information about the Game. And Artificial Intelligence sprites are programed to match changes in the User's playing ability. In other words, they learn and become better opponents. But please remember, treat them ALL as potential threats."

User Myth Hypotheis: Fax Modem: There is no User. That's just induced mass psychosis engineered by the Guardians. Bob: What?!? But what about the games? Fax: Sent by the Guardians to promote the User myth. Data Nully: Another conspiracy theory, Modem? Fax: One of many... Bob: So, let me get this straight. There's a web-creature, posing as Mouse, loose in Mainframe, abducting sprites. For what purpose? Fax: I haven't worked that out yet. Bob: OK. And Guardians are control freaks, willing to sacrifice the very people they've been sworn to protect by dropping games on them. Fax: That's right.

"What kind of sick creature gets enjoyment out of playing this sort of game?" -- Dot

Matrix: "I keep you in that tiny container, and release you to fight for me." "Bob": "You keep creatures in cages, and release them just to fight?" Matrix: "Yeah." "Bob": "That is sick!" [while playing a Pokemon like game]

]SYSTEM CRASH:
]RESTART Y/N?:
YES
]RESTORE Y/N?:
YES