Comments interspersed.

On 4/9/23 04:42, Christopher Sean Hilton - chris at vindaloo.com (via
tml list) wrote:
> This morning I got up and I was thinking about routes in Traveller. I'm
> specifically thinking about representing routes in a database and the fact
> that these routes are effectively a *[mathematical graph.][1]* I'm thinking
> that there should be at least two, and possibly three _graphs_ in the
> Imperium:
>
> - Trade Routes, or the trade network or graph;
> - X-Boat Routes;
> - And a possible non-public information network using Jump-5 or Jump-6
>    courier ships to judiciously carry information and intelligence for
>    the Imperial Royal family, a small subset of their friends, and the
>    Military, the _Shadow Intelligence_ network.

Christopher,

Have you looked at traveller_pyroute (aka PyRoute),
https://github.com/makhidkarun/traveller_pyroute , the gubbins used to
generate the trade maps for the travwiki?

And why only the (presumably Third) Imperium?  Wouldn't other major
polities have something similar, for similar reasons?

>
> I've always assumed that trade routes are bidirectional. A trade route or
> _edge_ that connects system A to system B, can be used to travel A --> B or B
> --> A. Mathematically, the trade route graph is not _directed_.
>
> [Q] **Is the X-Boat route directed or not?**
>
> [Q] **Would the _Shadow Intelligence_ network be directed?**

PyRoute definitely assumes trade, comm and xboat networks are undirected.

I've been reworking pyroute recently, landing speedups and
simplifications left right and centre.

It should be in a spot to support any experiments you want to run with
actual data to refine your intuitions.

>
> ## My asumptions:
>
> Either of these graphs can be _directed_ as long have some _cycles_. In a
> graph, a _cycle_, is a path, or a set of routes that includes the same node
> more than once. A graph without cycles is _acyclic_. If the X-Boat, or Shadow
> Intelligence network were _acyclic_ then there would be starships accumulating
> at the networks leaf nodes.
>
> ### The Shadow Intelligence Network
>
> It actually seems to make sense to me that this network would be a directed
> cycle whose main intent was to carry information back the Imperial
> Throne. **[Q] has anyone got any thoughts on this?**

Cyclicity would be _required_ if a shadownet was directed.

However, _why_ would a shadownet be directed?

Hide its presumably small level of traffic in the noise of trade
traffic?  Wouldn't a simpler method be using one transponder identity on
the way out, and a different one on the way back?

How much of a concern is unfriendly traffic analysis?  (the reason given
in GT:SP that a Depot cannot be hidden)

> <snip>
> Chris
>
>        __o          "All I was trying to do was get home from work."
>      _`\<,_           -Rosa Parks
> ___(*)/_(*)____.___o____..___..o...________ooO..._____________________
> Christopher Sean Hilton                    [chris/at/vindaloo/dot/com]
> -----
> The Traveller Mailing List
> Archives at http://archives.simplelists.com/tml
> Report problems to xxxxxx@simplelists.com
> To unsubscribe from this list please go to
> https://www.simplelists.com/confirm/?u=BOJXpTlhq8JLuOsJzSV1RtNTE9qsN8u5
--
Alex