Below is an interesting email related to timing. Note that this screen shot shows that Trinity is using Nmap version 2.54BETA25, which was released on June 4, 2001. The next version (2.54BETA26) was released on July 9. The vulnerability she seems to be exploiting was released on February 8, 2001.

Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 03:36:24 -0700 (PDT)
From: Neil Kandalgaonkar <neil_j_k&at&yahoo.com>
To: fyodor@insecure.org
Subject: nmap... in the PAST!

You wrote:

> Not only is it important for
> the coolness factor, but we can learn how Nmap
> looks in the future by studying that output!

Maybe not.

In the first movie, the Matrix world is in 1999.

Morpheus mentions how since Neo became the One, they
have "freed more minds in the past six months than the
past six years".

So Trinity is actually using an exploit discovered in
2001, in a simulated world that can be no later than
June 2000.

So how can she do this? Possibilities.

* Trinity is one of the best hackers on the planet.
She could have discovered the flaw herself, or perhaps
some other Zion-based hacker did.

* In the real world, they do have some technology from
earlier eras. Perhaps Trinity came across some old
mailing lists on a CDROM. Say hi to her next time you
post.

=====
--
Neil Kandalgaonkar