Hm, interesting discussion. To add to it, here's some data on the stargate network:
The network is built on a partially-connected mesh topology - some nodes are connected to more than one node in the system, and the only way to figure out which nodes connect where is to reactivate the node (stargate), then poll the routing DB. Reactivating can be done remotely, but getting the DB requires jumping through the active wormhole and querying the new node in person, so to speak. The gate system include a traceroute function, which will allow anybody with the correct addresses to route a wormhole through the network, but this is an advanced function and not available to Fen explorers (for the moment). The people who built them - Space Gods, Space Bats, bug-eyed monsters, whoever - like to place them on Lagrange points for some reason Fen scientists don't quite get. Maybe it's something to do with the way gravitational forces cancel out, or maybe it's just an aesthetic reason. I think that ties in nicely with having the jumpgates balanced at outer system L4-L5 points. Jupiter and Neptune's trojan points are a bit crowded, so maybe at Saturn and Uranus?
As for spacegates, I think the need or lack thereof for them ties back into the ongoing discussion about speed and acceleration drives. As long as we've got spacecraft capable of doing between one and ten percent the speed of light in-system, the need for a spacegate is kind of limited. It's a neat idea, but unless there's heavy traffic between Earth and Pluto, it's speeding up an already speedy trip.
Mr. Fnord interdimensional man of mystery
FenWiki - Your One-Stop Shop for Fenspace Information
"I. Drink. Your. NERDRAGE!"
The network is built on a partially-connected mesh topology - some nodes are connected to more than one node in the system, and the only way to figure out which nodes connect where is to reactivate the node (stargate), then poll the routing DB. Reactivating can be done remotely, but getting the DB requires jumping through the active wormhole and querying the new node in person, so to speak. The gate system include a traceroute function, which will allow anybody with the correct addresses to route a wormhole through the network, but this is an advanced function and not available to Fen explorers (for the moment). The people who built them - Space Gods, Space Bats, bug-eyed monsters, whoever - like to place them on Lagrange points for some reason Fen scientists don't quite get. Maybe it's something to do with the way gravitational forces cancel out, or maybe it's just an aesthetic reason. I think that ties in nicely with having the jumpgates balanced at outer system L4-L5 points. Jupiter and Neptune's trojan points are a bit crowded, so maybe at Saturn and Uranus?
As for spacegates, I think the need or lack thereof for them ties back into the ongoing discussion about speed and acceleration drives. As long as we've got spacecraft capable of doing between one and ten percent the speed of light in-system, the need for a spacegate is kind of limited. It's a neat idea, but unless there's heavy traffic between Earth and Pluto, it's speeding up an already speedy trip.
Mr. Fnord interdimensional man of mystery
FenWiki - Your One-Stop Shop for Fenspace Information
"I. Drink. Your. NERDRAGE!"