Network Warrior

Colophon

The animal on the cover of Network Warrior is a German boarhound. More commonly known as the Great Dane, the German boarhound is an imposing yet elegant and affectionate dog that usually weighs between 100 and 130 pounds and measures between 28 and 32 inches in height. German boarhounds range in color from brindle to light grayish brown to harlequin and have a lifespan of 7 to 10 years.

A bit of controversy surrounds the German boarhound's background, with some claiming the dog originates from Denmark, and others, Germany. However, over time, breeders in Germany have made the dog what it is today.

The name German boarhound comes from the breed's ability in its hunting years to pull boars, wolves, and stags to the ground. The kings of Denmark and England often thought of the hound as holy, and at one time it was said that boarhounds lived in every castle in Germany.

Paintings of the German boarhound can be found on the walls of Egyptian tombs. In Beowulf, the boarhound makes an appearance as the hunting dog Dene. During the Middle Ages, the dogs were buried alongside their owners, as they were thought to be spirit guides to the afterlife. But their spirit selves were not always welcomed—the dog was sometimes thought of as a hellhound, called Black Shuck, a wraith-like black dog that was most likely the inspiration for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's third Sherlock Holmes novel, The Hound of the Baskervilles.

The cover image is from Lydekker's Library of Natural History. The cover ...