Sys

The Sys - short for System - is essentially the internet. It can be accessed through Vidscreens, Sys panels and terminals, or through cybernetic technology that directly interfaces between your brain.

Access & Availability

The Sys is a fact of every day - so much so, that the government of Twilight City issues rudimentary devices to access the Sys for free, and it is considered a basic human right. Everything from paying your coffee bill or taxes, to reading the government bulletins, to communicating with your office, requires the Sys. For example, the few homeless of Twilight City may not have homes or clothes, or even enough food to eat - but they still have a basic Sys screen.

Complexity

Basic actions on the Sys are incredibly simple - a toddler can (and sometimes they do) buy items from a store, read, learn, and the like. But sophisticated interactions with the Sys require advanced programming knowledge. And, of course, one must always look out for B.U.G.s , especially if one goes deep, or uses the avatar state rather than screen interface.

Discovery

The Sys is essentailly a late stage development of the late 20th century "Internet", developed arguably by Vinton Cerf and Bob Kahn, Tim Berners Lee, and a host of other scientists. The Internet started in the 1960s as a way for government researchers to share information, and soon became a means of communication from anywhere in the world.
With the launch of the first satelites to serve the solar-energy collecting Astro-Panels, the Internet was renamed to the "Tesla System" in honour of Nikola Tesla at the end of the 23rd century, who first toyed with the idea of a “world wireless system” in the early 1900s. This renaming was to reflect the fact the the new suystem now covered not just the whole of earth, but the stars too - and most importantly - the moment that the system became open access to all. However, the name was long and cumbersome, and soon people shortened it to its currently used name.