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neiltravers's review
3.0
Some interesting stories/ideas, but the problem with almost all short stories is they finish just as they get interesting (if they get interesting enough). Mostly fairly obvious plotlines.
stanwj's review
4.0
Despite its title, Future Visions: Original Science Fiction Inspired by Microsoft is mercifully not about people making the world a better place with their Xboxes, Windows 10 and the HoloLens.
Instead it's a collection of stories about future tech that sometimes hints at Microsoft products without naming them--such as the augmented reality glasses used in the graphic novel story "A Cop's Eye" that could be the follow-up to the HoloLens, to various extrapolations on AI. We've come a long way since Clippy. The stories shift in tone from playful (the Dr. Doolittle-inspired "Hello, Hello") to weird (Greg Bear's mind-bending take on what happens when a quantum computer starts to successfully do its job in "The Machine Starts") but never veers entirely toward the dark. These visions are sometimes tales of caution, such as Ann Leckie's take on culture clash and mistranslation in "Another Word for World" but there is usually some hint of hope or redemption, no matter how bleak the situation may seem.
This book is available as a free download from major ebook retailers so the only investment made here is with your time. Given the brevity of the collection and the generally high quality of the work (none of the writers have phoned it in--perhaps why there's no Lumia product placement) it's an easy recommendation.
Instead it's a collection of stories about future tech that sometimes hints at Microsoft products without naming them--such as the augmented reality glasses used in the graphic novel story "A Cop's Eye" that could be the follow-up to the HoloLens, to various extrapolations on AI. We've come a long way since Clippy. The stories shift in tone from playful (the Dr. Doolittle-inspired "Hello, Hello") to weird (Greg Bear's mind-bending take on what happens when a quantum computer starts to successfully do its job in "The Machine Starts") but never veers entirely toward the dark. These visions are sometimes tales of caution, such as Ann Leckie's take on culture clash and mistranslation in "Another Word for World" but there is usually some hint of hope or redemption, no matter how bleak the situation may seem.
This book is available as a free download from major ebook retailers so the only investment made here is with your time. Given the brevity of the collection and the generally high quality of the work (none of the writers have phoned it in--perhaps why there's no Lumia product placement) it's an easy recommendation.
curgoth's review
A nice collection of science fiction short stories sponsored by Microsoft. So, it's a free collection that serves somewhat as free advertising.
The stories, however, are still worth reading. Seanan McGuire's story about translation software is especially lovely.
It also made me realize how much my standards for quality characters has gone up in recent years. Some of the stories in this collection are of the older tradition of SF where characters exist solely to prop up the Big Idea. I apparently have no patience for cardboard cutouts these days, no matter how great the idea is.
The stories, however, are still worth reading. Seanan McGuire's story about translation software is especially lovely.
It also made me realize how much my standards for quality characters has gone up in recent years. Some of the stories in this collection are of the older tradition of SF where characters exist solely to prop up the Big Idea. I apparently have no patience for cardboard cutouts these days, no matter how great the idea is.
kitaliae's review
4.0
A solid collection of shorts! I liked the majority of them which is pretty good for a collection of shorts put out for free and is technically advertising. That said I hope to see Microsoft continue to have writers and artists collaborate and share ideas for the future. Scifi is a very important part of inspiring scientists and vice-versa.
My favorites were 'Hello, Hello', 'The Machine Starts', 'Skin in the Game' & 'Another Word for World'.
My favorites were 'Hello, Hello', 'The Machine Starts', 'Skin in the Game' & 'Another Word for World'.
ericlklein's review
4.0
Surprisingly good read considering it was inspired by Microsoft and is being given away for free.
skylarprimm's review
3.0
The Anne Leckie story was far and away my favorite, with the rest ranging from "Ugh" to "Okay." It's free, though, so there can't be much to complain about!
mato's review
3.0
Some good, some a bit awkward due to needing to springboard from current MS research. Overall, it kept me entertained.
mburnamfink's review
4.0
Corporate sponsorship has some upsides. When Microsoft wants to do a sci-fi anthology, it gets some of the most brilliant writers in the field. I think everyone here has at least one Hugo, Nebula, or Campbell award.
The stories lean towards hard sci-fi, and while they're generally optimistic about technology, Microsoft didn't buy loyalty. The company doesn't appear by name at all, and when a similar entity does show up (big Pacific NW tech company) its is usually as suits threatening to cut funding from the cool projects before they appear. Some guesses as to the cool tech demoed for the authors: machine translation, quantum computing, emotional intelligence, and SETI. Microsoft is more than Office and Xbox and a warehouse of unwanted Zunes. They want to remind people that they're on the cutting edge.
The stories are all solid, but my favorites came at the end. David Brin delivers a sharp and funny take on skeptical magicians debunking various types of fraudsters, and how we as a species can get better about thinking about the future (it'd be great if various speculating idiots were held to some level of accuracy in their speculation, which I'm sure we'll get around to doing in the next Critical Six Months, or Friedman), and Ann Leckie with a story about violence between two alien species variously aided and abetted by faulty machine translation.
Since last I checked this collection is free, you've got nothing to lose. Track down a link and enjoy the beneficence of the Beast of Redmond.
The stories lean towards hard sci-fi, and while they're generally optimistic about technology, Microsoft didn't buy loyalty. The company doesn't appear by name at all, and when a similar entity does show up (big Pacific NW tech company) its is usually as suits threatening to cut funding from the cool projects before they appear. Some guesses as to the cool tech demoed for the authors: machine translation, quantum computing, emotional intelligence, and SETI. Microsoft is more than Office and Xbox and a warehouse of unwanted Zunes. They want to remind people that they're on the cutting edge.
The stories are all solid, but my favorites came at the end. David Brin delivers a sharp and funny take on skeptical magicians debunking various types of fraudsters, and how we as a species can get better about thinking about the future (it'd be great if various speculating idiots were held to some level of accuracy in their speculation, which I'm sure we'll get around to doing in the next Critical Six Months, or Friedman), and Ann Leckie with a story about violence between two alien species variously aided and abetted by faulty machine translation.
Since last I checked this collection is free, you've got nothing to lose. Track down a link and enjoy the beneficence of the Beast of Redmond.
jmmd's review
4.0
Surprisingly good for corporate-sponsored fiction. I picked it up with low expectations, because it was free, but this is a nice collection with particularly good stories from Seanan McGuire, Elizabeth Bear and Anne Leckie (which is no surprise at all).