[valavaern]

Skinlink seems to be a ubiquitous little mod that people slap on everything... but when you look at the wording of the rules, it's actually one of the least defined piece of gear in the game.  I've go through the archives and found discussion on various aspects of it, but I think it would benefit everyone to get a compiled area here of what -exactly- skin-link can and can't do.
For example:
does skinlink require direct contact with the user's skin (as the name STRONGLY suggests), or can it transmit through clothing (I've seen vague references to this being stated in Unwired somewhere, but I've yet to find it myself)?

Can skinlink be used to directly issue commands to an item, or is it merely a method of connecting 2 (or more) devices together (I.E., is it a DNI in it's ow right, or just another way for your ~comlink~ to talk with your PAN)?

What's eveyone's feelings on your skin's 'dataload', I.E. how many device can you connect over your skin before the data just becomes useless noise?

Can a person with a full cyberlimb use skinlink on that limb, even though they have no 'skin'?

any other question/answers/clarifications people can com up with?

[Lysanderz]

I've always let my players have it as a biometric lock if you will. Without trodes, I don't see how they can issue commands just by touching it. But what do I know?

[TheFinish]

Within my group, the skinlink needn't be in contact with skin (for example, we allow it to be used when something is held on a cyberlimb), though we take it on a case by case basis. What we do agree on is that it ISN'T a DNI. It's a way for thata to travel through the user's skin, but you still need something to issue to orders to the comlink so that it can order the rest of the PAN around.

[All4BigGuns]

The skinlink is less 'skin contact' and more utilizing the body's natural bioelectric field rather than detectable signals.

[CanRay]

Considering that it basically turns your skin into a Hub, the firestorms from data must be disastrous!

[Deliverator]

Considering that it basically turns your skin into a Hub, the firestorms from data must be disastrous!

Tell that to my wireless router.

[CanRay]

Considering that it basically turns your skin into a Hub, the firestorms from data must be disastrous!

Tell that to my wireless router.

Router ≠ Hub.

They are different things.

[AndyNakamura]

Considering that it basically turns your skin into a Hub, the firestorms from data must be disastrous!

Tell that to my wireless router.

Router ≠ Hub.

They are different things.

Yep. Routers serve to communicate between networks (e.g. your PAN and the Matrix as a whole). Hubs simply broadcast signals to all devices on the network at the same time. There's also switches, which work within the network, but send signals to the actual devices they are addressed to. Since the latter is hard to implement on a wireless PAN, or skin-links, CanRay's definition of one's body as a hub makes sense.

[TheNarrator]

I don't think it's been suggested anywhere than Skinlink grants you DNI. It just lets you connect the devices of your PAN together. You still need trodes or a datajack.

What I'd like to know is how you connect a skinlink to a smartgun. There's a skinlink mod, but if you buy a regular skinlink from the core book and slap it on a smartgun, does it use an accessory slot?

[lurkeroutthere]

Yes actually, i believe it's covered in arsenal explicitly.

[Deliverator]

Considering that it basically turns your skin into a Hub, the firestorms from data must be disastrous!

Tell that to my wireless router.

Router ≠ Hub.

They are different things.

Yep. Routers serve to communicate between networks (e.g. your PAN and the Matrix as a whole). Hubs simply broadcast signals to all devices on the network at the same time. There's also switches, which work within the network, but send signals to the actual devices they are addressed to. Since the latter is hard to implement on a wireless PAN, or skin-links, CanRay's definition of one's body as a hub makes sense.

CanRay's definition would be perfect, if it were... today. Except its not... its 50-60 years in the future... which means they have technology. "Skinlink" is not a hub, or a router, or a switch, it is a media type. Just like Cat3, Cat5, Cat6, Coax, Fiber-Optic. These are MEDIA, signals are transmitted across them, they do not actually control the signal. Your comlink would be the center of your skinlink network and would be the router/switch to control what signals are sent where. It works exactly like a wireless access point. It pulls the signals in, sorts them, and distributes them accordingly.

[lurkeroutthere]

Hmmmm for my next run, sending the players acquire the specs to allow a concept to build a Tolkien network to skinlink adapter to facilitate a datasteal from an extremely archaic system.

[valavaern]

CanRay's definition would be perfect, if it were... today. Except its not... its 50-60 years in the future... which means they have technology. "Skinlink" is not a hub, or a router, or a switch, it is a media type. Just like Cat3, Cat5, Cat6, Coax, Fiber-Optic. These are MEDIA, signals are transmitted across them, they do not actually control the signal. Your comlink would be the center of your skinlink network and would be the router/switch to control what signals are sent where. It works exactly like a wireless access point. It pulls the signals in, sorts them, and distributes them accordingly.

A really good and sound reasoning on the 'datastorm' point.  This actually makes sense.

[CanRay]

CanRay's definition would be perfect, if it were... today. Except its not... its 50-60 years in the future... which means they have technology. "Skinlink" is not a hub, or a router, or a switch, it is a media type. Just like Cat3, Cat5, Cat6, Coax, Fiber-Optic.

You forgot Kat-9. 

[TheNarrator]

Yes actually, i believe it's covered in arsenal explicitly.

I looked at Arsenal again, and there's the skinlink mod that I already mentioned, but I didn't see anything specific on if you want to just add an external skinlink to a gun instead of modding it.