Of course, that was five years ago, an eternity when it came to technical developments. Virtual meeting places— forums, discussion groups, and so on—were commonplace, an accepted way of life. Instead of meeting physically around a conference table or using limited intermediaries like conference calls and two-way video, people with datajacks could meet virtually. All participants in a meet would project their persona icons into a selected locale in the Matrix, and then carry on their discussions there.