What technology did Star Trek Actually Inspire?

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Picard and later Janeway were always shown doing their recreational reading with print books, rather than on a pad.

Because they like the feel of it. A PADD feels like work - they use them so often. Paper books have acquired the connotation of relaxation, the way soft, loose-fitting clothing feels more cozy than stiff starched uniforms.

Even with the data pads, Seven of Nine is shown on two separate occasions giving Naomi, then Icheb several pads; one for each subject, instead of it all being on one pad. Again, not all that many years before the inventions of the Kindle and Ipads.

Storing files on individual devices is technological redundancy - if you lose one to a corrupt file/wipe, you don't lose them all.

And there's that funny scene where Bashir and his genetically modified superfriends wrote up a bunch of scientific studies, and Bashir starts handing them all to Sisko. One study per padd, until Sisko is holding like ten Padds in his hands.

Knowing their brainpower, just imagine how long those reports were. Maybe they needed one PADD data storage amount per report.

 

[Tosk]

For books vs padds, with replicators and space not being an issue, I'd read books over a padd any day, so I can see why the characters would too.

 

[Prax]

Books are definitely more relaxing and more enjoyable in paper and binding, than reading on my Padd.

 

[Six of Twelve]

For books vs padds, with replicators and space not being an issue, I'd read books over a padd any day, so I can see why the characters would too.

On Voyager, especially, where replicator use was rationed, I can't see Janeway using hers for print books and I refuse to believe that she brought enough space-taking books with her on what was supposed to be a short voyage, so that she'd not be reading the same books over and over. It's like the Howells and Ginger Grant having all those changes of clothes with them on Gilligan's Island for what was supposed to be a 3 hour cruise.

And all of you are thinking like 21st century people, not 24th century people. It's been hundreds of years for them since print books were standard, so it would be an eccentricity during that time to be reading print books all the time, as they weren't brought up with them being the only thing available like those of us born in the 20th century were. A print book to them is a curiosity, like the Declaration of Independence, on parchment and written with quill pens, would be to us today.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Picard is an archaeologist at heart. Maybe reading paper books puts him more in touch with his ancestors.

 

[Six of Twelve]

Picard is an archaeologist at heart. Maybe reading paper books puts him more in touch with his ancestors.

They're not ALL archaeologists, though. It's like the history buffs all picking the 20th century as their favorite era - very eye rolling. The writers simply dropped the ball with all the print books, that's all. And they use 20th century slang that would garner a "huh?" from most people at that time. I can't remember the episode, but I remember someone, I think Riker, referring to a "phone call" rather than a communication. Again, eye rolling, to think that such tech related slang for an obsolete piece of equipment would still be in use all that time later.

 

[ChasFink]

nokia 3210? (3310)?.

I don't remember the exact model, bit it was very much like the 3510, with the screen near the earpiece and a taper near the mouthpiece.

 

[Tim Thomason]

I miss my last flip phone. I had it set on speaker and would always Kirk it up when answering. I would've loved to get one in the classic Star Trek style.

Instead, I'm forever stuck with this sleek smartphone, that I almost never answer and am using to type to you right now. Why did technology move beyond Star Trek?

 

[Prax]

My first phone:

A PrimeCo Audiovox.

It was sweet. It was gold with wood grain. It had a cover that flipped open to reveal the buttons, but the buttons weren't on the flip part. It was probably like 50 dollars a month for 100 minutes and 200 text messages. Data? What's that?

Before that I had a Motorola pager(in middle school)

I had a few flip phones later during the cingular years. They were all Samsung.

As for Janeway, I know of the one book she had, Dante's Inferno. It was gift from her fiancé. sigh...Janeway's such a classy woman.

Picard only had one book too, the complete works of Shakespeare, and he had multiple copies. He kept one in his ready room, and one in his quarters, and I've heard he has more around, but I don't remember where. Having Peekard always reading Shakespeare was a little on-the-nose if u ask me(no offense to either Picard or Shakespeare, of course)

Edit: Actually, the phone was more of a champagne color, because it perfectly matched the color of my first car, a 1991 Nissan Stanza(The greatest car of EVER).

 

[Tosk]

On Voyager, especially, where replicator use was rationed

So they say. I didn't see that from stopping them replicating every little thing they felt like anyway. Racing uniforms, orbital drop suits, medieval clothes, old sci-fi costumes...I guess some of the replicators ran on that different power source that the holodeck uses.

Picard only had one book too, the complete works of Shakespeare

What about the book that he's reading in Allegiance?

 

[Six of Twelve]

Picard has a whole shelf of books in First Contact.

 

[Prax]

What was he reading? It may have been fauxPicard reading the complete collection of the Kama Sutra.

By the time of First Contact, Picard was already showing signs of his Irumodic Syndrome. His perspective had begun to change, and he decided that there was more to life than Shakespeare.

 

[Prax]

After that whole bit with Arturis, Voyager traveled to a new region of space where they soon found the bomb dilithium crystals. They had a replicator ration holiday. It was great times, but karma would punish them for too much partying when they ended up in the void for a few months.

 

[Six of Twelve]

They were in the void for less than a week.

 

[Prax]

The first "the void," between season 4 and 5.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Forgive my ignorance, but what does BBS stand for?

Bitching 'Bout Stuff

 

[Tenacity]

It's like the history buffs all picking the 20th century as their favorite era - very eye rolling.

Troi (and Troi's father) selected the American old west, Kirk was knowledgeable of the time period too. O'Brien and Bashir spent time in the holosuite at the Alamo. Nineteenth century.

O'Brien and Bashir also did The Battle of Britain though.

I remember someone, I think Riker, referring to a "phone call"

I would expect at least some words and phrases from now to persist, "phone" easily could be one of those terms.

It would be like McCoy referring to a turbo-lift as a "elevator."

 

[Tosk]

What was he reading? It may have been fauxPicard reading the complete collection of the Kama Sutra.

Don't know, but it was real Picard before the abduction.

By the time of First Contact, Picard was already showing signs of his Irumodic Syndrome.

There's no guarantee "our" Picard will ever develop symptoms.

 

[Six of Twelve]

Troi (and Troi's father) selected the American old west, Kirk was knowledgeable of the time period too. O'Brien and Bashir spent time in the holosuite at the Alamo. Nineteenth century.

O'Brien and Bashir also did The Battle of Britain ."

And don't forget Tom Paris with his 1950s TV, 1960s muscle cars, and his imitation of 1930s science fiction.

 

[Prax]

I need to get better about adding these after most of my posts.