They allowed you to get inside them and insert commands into programs to alter almost anything.

FORBES: Steve Jobs' One Big Idea

Could the lorry-drivers not alter their schedules, or check into a motel, a representative of the governor asks?

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Instead of fibbing awkwardly about their jobs, backgrounds or marital status, the players create virtual alter egos, which are transformed into colourful avatars to represent themselves in the online world.

ECONOMIST: Computer games