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Under the guiding narrative of Dyson, once called "the most powerful woman in the Net-erati" by the New York Times Magazine, this glossy volume carries the reader through 11 chapters brimming with anecdotal evidence of the author's familiarity with the innermost workings of cyberspace, both as we know it and as Dyson predicts it shall be. Subjects range from the structure of the Net and its usefulness in binding citizens into communities, to the ever-present dilemma of governance and regulation within the electronic realm...
Most strikingly prophetic are the second, third and fourth chapters of Dyson's book. Detailing the impact of digital networks upon communities, work and education, these three chapters present the reader with an unfailing air of optimism for the development and integration of the Internet within public and private domains. Dyson views the Net as a means of linking individuals and allowing citizens to seek employment and students to expand their horizons, though she does concede that certain risks--breaches of privacy, increased insulation from reality--will always exist. Neither is one of her visions the total dehumanization of interactions...
...lesser extent, in the public arena. Names like CYBERsitter, Net Shepherd, and TRUSTe provide evidence of the viability of the Internet as a secure environment for children and adults alike. Unfortunately, the main bias of Release 2.0 reveals itself in these chapters. Dyson, who previously urged the reader to remember when "[you had] just turned thirteen" and "you tried to get around the school's blocking software to look at the Playboy site," extends the male-oriented focus of her book with questions like, "Should you have? Should you wear your trousers rolled?" Elevated as her status may be within...
Release 2.0 is steeped in Dyson's personal experience and authority. As a result, even the most jargon-filled paragraphs fall within the understanding of the common reader when augmented by Dyson's conversational sidenotes and proposals. Her intent to elucidate the workings and promising features of the Internet is clearly stated and reiterated from an economic standpoint throughout the book. Though the target audience seems to be limited to male members of the corporate world, almost anyone can appreciate the tidbits of advice that constitute the book's conclusion. "Trust but verify." "Be generous." "Always make new mistakes." Equally...
...charm comes from its wonderfully self-conscious adherence to the classic conventions of mystery novels. A few key red herrings are made painfully obvious, as are several crucial clues. A large, distinctive signet ring is referred to in detail three or four times; only a very slow-witted reader could fail to mark its significance. In the car after interviewing Mirry about Gavin's death, one policeman turns to his partner and asks significantly, in time-honored detective novel tradition, "I wonder how she knew [the murder weapon] was a spanner," since the precise murder weapon had not been divulged...