Cyberia : Life in the Trenches of Hyperspace

I'm conflicted about this book. It was well-written and engaging, and an interesting window into the history of the Internet and the culture surrounding it, but of course, I can only entertain this book with 20/20 hindsight as to its anachronisms, its hopeful posture, and its laughable, failed predictions about the future. I feel compelled to dispel its myths, of an egalitarian internet, the promise of anonymity, etc., but that would feel unfair. Most of its predictions and their nativity only seem so since I am writing this review decades on from its publication. Then again, some of its thesis is still believed by techno-optimists today, and I'm sure Rushkoff had some contemporaries outside of the popular Cyberian-libertarian-hippie clique who could have correctly identified where the Internet was headed, but alas, that's not what this book was.

In short, the fatal flaw in Rushkoff's and his ilk's analysis and philosophy of Cyberia, is the Internet's commercial structure, which undermines the Cyberian ethos of holism and anti-materialism at every opportunity, and has continued to do so since this book's publication.

Despite that I would still recommend this book. It's a classic, and though I disagree with most of its findings, its worth a read for a window into the past, and a dive into the thinkers, scenes, and culture of its time.

Best paired with a watch of Serial Experiments Lain