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Taldrenites => Starfleet Command Models => Topic started by: Fallen_Warrior on March 17, 2007, 06:15:54 am
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Most of the governments in the Trek universe are totalitarian (including the Federation). Most travelers are required to travel aboard military ships by permit only. Those freighters, which are operated by civilians, are government sanctioned, with operators passing a thorough background check. The few that pass are those with inside contacts and products of nepotism. Starships are simply too expensive for a civilian to own, and Starfleet has its paws in everything. The Federation is a police state. I have had this discussion with a few in this community, and most everyone disagrees, but I think that it is supported by the shows and movies.
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Most of the governments in the Trek universe are totalitarian (including the Federation). Most travelers are required to travel aboard military ships by permit only. Those freighters, which are operated by civilians, are government sanctioned, with operators passing a thorough background check. The few that pass are those with inside contacts and products of nepotism. Starships are simply too expensive for a civilian to own, and Starfleet has its paws in everything. The Federation is a police state. I have had this discussion with a few in this community, and most everyone disagrees, but I think that it is supported by the shows and movies.
Sounds pretty much the same that I think
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Most of the governments in the Trek universe are totalitarian (including the Federation). Most travelers are required to travel aboard military ships by permit only. Those freighters, which are operated by civilians, are government sanctioned, with operators passing a thorough background check. The few that pass are those with inside contacts and products of nepotism. Starships are simply too expensive for a civilian to own, and Starfleet has its paws in everything. The Federation is a police state. I have had this discussion with a few in this community, and most everyone disagrees, but I think that it is supported by the shows and movies.
Sounds pretty much the same that I think
yup, I agree.
Just like present day Terra.
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Most of the governments in the Trek universe are totalitarian (including the Federation). Most travelers are required to travel aboard military ships by permit only. Those freighters, which are operated by civilians, are government sanctioned, with operators passing a thorough background check. The few that pass are those with inside contacts and products of nepotism. Starships are simply too expensive for a civilian to own, and Starfleet has its paws in everything. The Federation is a police state. I have had this discussion with a few in this community, and most everyone disagrees, but I think that it is supported by the shows and movies.
Sounds pretty much the same that I think
yup, I agree.
Just like present day Terra.
Yeah I concur
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In the TOS era, I would see a couple of rich people flying around in a few small, maybe five or six man ships. Certainly not much bigger than a shuttlecraft. The problem is, Warp Drives don't get really small until TMP era (Although in Menagerie, a Shuttle Craft from the Starbase does have a Warp Drive) Once the Federation goes Socialist in TNG, forget it. There wouldn't be any civilian craft outside of a few freighters.
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Many private "yatchs" exist.
There are also starliners (you rescue one in Star Fleet Academy for PC).
Some Travelers get passage on small freighters (like to DS9)...
Worf's Parents hitched a ride on something when they surprised him with Alexander.
I'm sure other outlets exist...
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You can see the disdain that merchants had for Starfleet on Enterprise. They hated that Starfleet continued to interfere with their activities. They very much so wanted to be independent. In TMP era though you can see some freighters that wouldn't have been part of Starfleet. surely the vessel that sold information to the Klingons in STIII weren't part of Starfleet.
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First off: The Federation is not totalitarian...the prime directive does not apply to citizens and thus they can pretty much do whatever the hell they want, which has been shown in ENT, TOS, TNG, and DS9 many many times...If you feel that there maybe some evidence of it (possibly the Native americans on "Cardassian worlds" or the Maquis)...then forget it as it has been shown that they could be left on there own fruition and be accountable only for themselves. Hence the Natives being left alone in TNG and the Maquis demise durring the Dominion war. Oh and there is that whole Sheliak incident, that would force the colonists to leave their world or be Destroyed...Gee real totalitarian attitude there..C'mon it was to save them from certain demise at the hands of the Sheliak...also I may point out that the federation had pratically no knowledge of their developement and didn't give a crap untill they got word from the Sheliak about it...So yes they could have let them just die...next time they might. Federation should not be confused with Starfleet as they are very much seperate entities...(sometimes they act together, but other times they do not, as it has been shown in every incarnation of the genre.)
Second: As for the expense of the vessel, there is some truth there, but bartering is definately being used as much as actual "credits" or other precious materials, again as shown by Ent, TOS, TNG, and DS9. Also freelance or non-allied races/peoples to have free reign of federation space, or just explore space for the sake of it...such as Proffessor Galen and the crew of the SS Raven.
It would be intriguing to see what civilian starships would look like...as they would exist. Most likely they would have to be registered (like real vehicles, cars, boats, planes, subs, etc...), though i would not be shock at the likelyhood of non-registered vessels. lol
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You can see the disdain that merchants had for Starfleet on Enterprise. They hated that Starfleet continued to interfere with their activities. They very much so wanted to be independent. In TMP era though you can see some freighters that wouldn't have been part of Starfleet. surely the vessel that sold information to the Klingons in STIII weren't part of Starfleet.
if you think that starfleet say "hey calm down some guys" as a bad thing...think how bad it will be when they piss off a race that not only kills them but then comes to Earth and kills everyone here. Or worse they act like the Conquistidors or other "colonists" that followed that whole manifest desitiny crap all over again leaving whole peoples extinct...
So i think its okay for someone on Earth to say "Hey Calm down". Its about responsibility mates.
Sometimes to have a better future everyone needs to curve some aspect of themselves, otherwise its just anarchy.
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I find the idea of the Federation as being a Totalitarian style organisation quite offensive actually. I am really very surprised that so many people here would agree with that notion.
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Trek merchant vessels... hmm, kind of anything goes as far as what they could be armed with for the right price. Pirates have all kinds of ships afterall.
Harcourt Fenton Mudd, Cereno Jones, Space Hippies and the Aurora class vessels were all TOS/TAS
7 of 9's parents had their research vessel Raven in VOY
Merchantman from ST: III widely available throughout the TMP era
FASA Trek did a whole supplement devoted to late TOS-late TMP era Merchant Princes and Traders
Plus add the fan made computer animated TOS series about the two female merchants...
Just my two cents.
KF
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Personally I count vessels such as the merchantman, Raven from voy, maquis vessels as private/civilian ships. The Maquis raiders have been reffered to as modified versions of such. I'd also reckon there would be a market of surplus to requirement ships from most races, such as it has been seen that the Klingons don't generrally worry about what happens to its hardware when its pentioned off, with certain factions gaining hold of BofP's etc.
Mudd's ship also was a distinct design - pitty it was a reused Tholian web spinner, would have been nice to see a propper design. Nay mind.
As for the Federation being a totalitarian state, I'd be inclined to point out that would be a massive error, and if anything could be likened to a Totalitarian democracy, *go google it - theres a big difference!*, but even then it lacks some of the precidences for such.
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Earths government in Trek : Totalitarian, perhaps not- Socialist is more like it.
So I'd think private ships being rather costly would need if not require Government approval to be built if not subsidized directly from the Govt.
That has nothing to do with off worlders and pirates- they do whatever they like, steal, barter, purchase components and stuff.
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There's going to be thousands of civillian ships running around in the STU. The 'too expensive' arguement is a dead-end: people build ocean-going craft today with our technology base, they'll likely build space-going ones in Trek with the much higher level of technological capability present there.
Especially when you consider the fact that, using replicators, you could easily create pretty much any part you needed.
What would the none Military/Exploration craft look like, for the major aswell as minor races?
Trek rules say that nacelles should be in even numbers and not obstructed from the front or rear. Beyond that, there's probably endless varieties of small craft, though I'd be surprised if, for cargo ships and such, standard layouts weren't pretty similar even across several speciies.
What technology would be carried from the Military fleets into the civilian/merchant fleets?
Civillian ships likely wouldn't have anywhere near the sensor capability or shield power of warships...at least stock ones. Transporters in TOS might be somewhat rare, but I'd bet by TNG, they're all over the place.
However, when you start dealing with operators not so concerned with legality, designs are limited only by what they could get their hands on. We've seen more than one fairly formidable civillian or criminal owned ship on Star Trek.
Would the major Military powers and for that matter Minor powers fall back on its civilian fleets, if its military fleets were somehow rendered inoperable?
Sure. Desperate times, and all that.
Could civilian craft be as formidable as the standard warships in size aswell as firepower? If they would have any firepower at all?
We saw a warship that exceeded a Galaxy-class in Firepower in one episode, so it's possible, though I'd say it was rare....the biggest pirate ships in Earth history were formidable, but not exactly a 75-gun Ship of the Line (which wouldn't be that suitable for pirating anyway).
For sheer size? Well, compare a supertanker of today to a cruiser and see which one is larger.
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ok, here is another controversial assertion:
The Steamrunner, Saber, and Norway Classes are predominantly non-starfleet, not only that, but the designs may not be just neutral civillian, but actually Marquis.
Ok, if I haven't been banned from the board yet, maybe you can hear me out just a bit more:
Reasoning for them being civilian designs:
1. I have seen no onscreen evidence (on screen, not publicity shots, on screen) of any of those three classes carrying Starfleet markings or registries.
2. The overall shape of the ships are of significant departure from standard starfleet vessels up to that point, furthermore, they are departures from all shown future or experimental designs. For example, the Enterprise G (I think G) from Enterprise, Prometheous, Wells, Dauntless, Rhode Island, and Pasteur all suggest a much less angluar and for the most part, posess a more standard look.
3. The angular/utilitarian looks of the ships scream economy-centered designs.
4. The Norway has a large rectangular slot between its warp engine nacelles. This slot would be very conducive for some sort of bulk container transport. If not, what is it for???
5. Most civilian ships (as few and far between as they are) shown have their warp engines integral of the hull.
So why do we see these designs in battle scenes in First Contact and DS9 if they are not starfleet? Because the independent Marquis found that they had a common, greater enemy then the Federation. In one case the Borg, in the other the Dominion. "My enemy's enemy is my friend."
But didn't the Dominion wipe out the Marquis? Dispite apparent severe losses to the Marquis, can you ever garantee that you have wiped out a group of people fighting for their home on their home turf especially those who employ terrorist or semi-terrorist tactics?
But what about that screenshot showing Voyager's tatoo commander guy standing in front of a diagram of starfleet ships and a Norway? We don't really know what that diagram was trying to show. Maybe it was a set of ships by the same name, maybe it was the ships that One of the officers had served on. Could be a set of ships that a shipyard put out in a record amount of time. Starfleet may own a few bulk freighters much like modern navies do.
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The Sabre class does indeed have Starfleet Markings on it. You get a breif glance at it in "Sacrifice of Angels" I think it was. The Sabre does seem to me as a cross between a Defiant and a Miranda class. As for the other two, The Steamrunner class was only seen in First Contact (and the model was promptly lost for whatever reason) I don't recall seeing the Steamrunner close enough to tell if it had Starfleet Markings or not. I was also under the impression that the Norway class was created specifically for SFC3, like the Achilles was created for Dominion Wars.
I do not see a large number of Civilian ships, especially not near battles. And the assertation that a Cruiser is smaller than a super-tanker is a bit off. Frieghters as a rule are much cheaper than warships, and need to be bigger to haul more. Cruisers need to be smaller to present a smaller target to enemy ships.
With the Federation being a Socialist Government in TNG, and the other regimes (except the Ferengi) being Totalitarian, I don't see any Civilian ships outside of Government subsidized Freighters. The Federation was different in TOS, it was still Capitalist, to account for people like Mudd, Jones, and all the other "Civies" that Kirk encountered.
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And the assertation that a Cruiser is smaller than a super-tanker is a bit off. Frieghters as a rule are much cheaper than warships, and need to be bigger to haul more. Cruisers need to be smaller to present a smaller target to enemy ships.
For sheer size, a lot of cargo ships are physically larger (in length and tonnage) than warships.
For example, the largest battleships ever constructed were the IJN's Yamato class, which measured in at 862 feet long, with a standard displacement of 64,000 tons. The Nimitz-class supercarriers outweigh those significantly, at 102,000 tons (fully loaded).
Conversely, the largest merchant (the Knock Nevis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knock_Nevis)) vessel ever constructed is 1504 feet long. That's nearly TWICE the length of the Yamato. Displacement? I think they might measure that a bit differently for merchant ships, but she's 564,000 (or so, also fully loaded) tons. While she's the largest, there are other ships that approach her size characteristics.
It follows quite easily that merchant shipping in the STU would be constructed with similar ideas, especially since starships would not be restricted by such things as harbor, breadth of canals, etc. Therefore, it's quite likely that in the STU, large merchant vessels are significantly larger than warships.
Especially when one takes into account the massive amounts of carge that are likely shipped from world to world.
With the Federation being a Socialist Government in TNG, and the other regimes (except the Ferengi) being Totalitarian, I don't see any Civilian ships outside of Government subsidized Freighters. The Federation was different in TOS, it was still Capitalist, to account for people like Mudd, Jones, and all the other "Civies" that Kirk encountered.
Star Trek itself contradicts this. We've seen everything from cargo shuttles (warp capable) to freighters to armed ships capable of outgunning a Galaxy-class ship (too bad the capability resulted in it's destruction.:D), all of which appeared to be under civillian ownership. We've seen Klingons operating on their own as raiders, etc. We've seen Maquis raiders apparently converted from civillian use. The list goes on.
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ok, here is another controversial assertion:
The Steamrunner, Saber, and Norway Classes are predominantly non-starfleet, not only that, but the designs may not be just neutral civillian, but actually Marquis.
Ok, if I haven't been banned from the board yet, maybe you can hear me out just a bit more:
Reasoning for them being civilian designs:
1. I have seen no onscreen evidence (on screen, not publicity shots, on screen) of any of those three classes carrying Starfleet markings or registries.
2. The overall shape of the ships are of significant departure from standard starfleet vessels up to that point, furthermore, they are departures from all shown future or experimental designs. For example, the Enterprise G (I think G) from Enterprise, Prometheous, Wells, Dauntless, Rhode Island, and Pasteur all suggest a much less angluar and for the most part, posess a more standard look.
3. The angular/utilitarian looks of the ships scream economy-centered designs.
4. The Norway has a large rectangular slot between its warp engine nacelles. This slot would be very conducive for some sort of bulk container transport. If not, what is it for???
5. Most civilian ships (as few and far between as they are) shown have their warp engines integral of the hull.
So why do we see these designs in battle scenes in First Contact and DS9 if they are not starfleet? Because the independent Marquis found that they had a common, greater enemy then the Federation. In one case the Borg, in the other the Dominion. "My enemy's enemy is my friend."
But didn't the Dominion wipe out the Marquis? Dispite apparent severe losses to the Marquis, can you ever garantee that you have wiped out a group of people fighting for their home on their home turf especially those who employ terrorist or semi-terrorist tactics?
But what about that screenshot showing Voyager's tatoo commander guy standing in front of a diagram of starfleet ships and a Norway? We don't really know what that diagram was trying to show. Maybe it was a set of ships by the same name, maybe it was the ships that One of the officers had served on. Could be a set of ships that a shipyard put out in a record amount of time. Starfleet may own a few bulk freighters much like modern navies do.
NO! Lol seriously this really annoys me when its raised, because a modicum of research will show that the cgi models used for Sabre Norway and Steamrunner all have starfleet markings, just that they were of fairly low quality to be shown close up, unlike the Akira. Also the Dauntless is not a fed design. aRrGh!
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(http://NO! Lol seriously this really annoys me when its raised, because a modicum of research will show that the cgi models used for Sabre Norway and Steamrunner all have starfleet markings, just that they were of fairly low quality to be shown close up, unlike the Akira. Also the Dauntless is not a fed design. aRrGh!)Exactly.
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Does anyone have an on-screen source to prove that said ships have Starfleet markings? And I am not talking about publicity shots or model tests, I am talking canon material.
Also, is not there a Dauntless-like ship in a future Battle of Procyon V sequence from "Azati Prime" an episode of Enterprise?
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Does anyone have an on-screen source to prove that said ships have Starfleet markings? And I am not talking about publicity shots or model tests, I am talking canon material.
Also, is not there a Dauntless-like ship in a future Battle of Procyon V sequence from "Azati Prime" an episode of Enterprise?
the markings mean nothing...as they were not fully designed ships, but were rather filler vessels...also there is no or very little onscreen signage of the akira's markings too...But again it doesn't matter
You can believe what you like, but the Sabre, Norway, Steamrunner, and Akira are all federation ships. This was stated by the creative team for First Contact. They where just filler designs.
Also, there are 3 levels of models in ST:FC, 1st the Enterprise, Borg Cube, Borg sphere, Phoenix, and Defiant as the 1st best level. The Akira was the next...it was a filler ship but at a mutch better detail rate, but not where the 1st tier were at. then there are the background vessels (including the millenium falcon ) which were all tossed in there. They are not really defined designs as they were never meant to be.
Same goes for the ships in the TNG eps. "Best of Both Worlds: 1&2" they are all kitbashed filler ships, and those kitbashed filler ships in DS9, "elkins", "Yeager", etc.
Now as for evidence on screen, as i said the ships were filler and thus BS in terms of details...but here is the actual studio mesh of the steamrunner(publicity) :
http://www.stguardian.to/fed/steamrunner/steamrunnerwall.jpg
http://www.stguardian.to/fed/steamrunner/steamrunneraft.jpg
Sabre/Saber:
http://www.stguardian.to/fed/saber/saberbig.jpg
http://www.stguardian.to/fed/saber/saber.jpg
Here's the Norway on the wall in the background:
http://www.stguardian.to/fed/norway/norwaywallplaque.jpg
Now if you think that those aren't proof and the fact that the crew called them Federation/starfleet designs, then the TOS Ent and TMP Ent are Starship and Enterprise-class respectively...which we know to be incorrect, as Roddenberry himself said they are Constitution-classes
Now the ent-J is a possible future Ent, thus making all those ships in that ep only possible burred filler ships that were intentionally kept in the background for lack of budget.
thats why the Ent-D dreadnought with the 3 nacelles is only a possible design, and as we saw, was not to be, because there was an Ent-E after the Gal Ent-D got fragged. We have never seen another Olympic class other than in that Ep, while the Neg'var was modified from the Klink version that was seen in AGT.
also not one of the Maquis ships have federation markings, but are Starfleet ships as stated in eps.
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I find the idea of the Federation as being a Totalitarian style organisation quite offensive actually. I am really very surprised that so many people here would agree with that notion.
I was going for a longer post, but in spite of my fast typing habits, I guess I'll sum up my point:
In light of all of what's been established in trek canon and factoring in inconsistencies, I've reached a conclusion that one can be confused to think that the Federation is communist or extremely socialist after looking at her military; the Starfleet. I do think that the Federation is at least in part socialist, however no more than the United States; somewhat socialist in how big the government is, yet also capitalistic. I think the "We don't use money" attitude is majorly a human way of life people choose in the future, not necessarily something imposed upon by the Federation government, what with examples such as from Uhura acquiring Tribbles in TOS, to McCoy offering money for transportation to Genesis in Star Trek III, to Scotty just buying a boat in Star Trek VI, to credit usage in TNG, to capitalism at its finest in DS9's promenade. Granted, it's a station inhabited by both Federation and non-Federation members, it is nevertheless a station occupied by Starfleet, right?
To sum it up, I think the Federation and Starfleet, canonically at least, is mainly a (loose?) parallel of the United States and its military. Perhaps a bit more left-leaning, but again, we see more of Starfleet than civilian life to be sure...
And in fanon, I wouldn't know. I don't read a lot of the books both old and new (I sometimes wish I could), and fanfilms tend to have their own idea of the Federation and Starfleet... The unfinished Star Trek: Intrepid (http://www.ussintrepid.net) fanfilm features usage of a variety of TNG-era uniforms (http://ussintrepid.net/companel/index.php?showtopic=592&mode=linear) for Starfleet and has a civilian-run merchant service (http://www.ussintrepid.net/encyclopedia/index.php?title=Federation_Merchant_Service) that majorly uses surplus material from Starfleet (that seems to be at least as old as SFM (http://www.starfleet-museum.org)/Pre-TOS-era tech, if visuals like this one (http://ussintrepid.net/companel/index.php?automodule=gallery&req=si&img=145) seem to be right)
But with not a big grasp of (and with not a huge interest in) politics, I don't know how accurate my observations of the Federation and Starfleet are.
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I personally agree with most of what La'ra says.
I would like to start off by defining what "civilian" actually means to me in this context. I mean non-government owned and operated vessels, which pretty much rules out only Federation diplomatic ships, Federation official bureaucratic ships (Office of the Interplanetary Affairs, Federation One, Interstellar Parking Commisson, etc), and Starfleet (police/military) ships.
As such, I think that civilian ships in the Federation will be as common as roaches in a slum. Corporations will still exist in the future. Corporations such as computer manufacturers, shipping companies, romantic cruises to stunningly beautiful stellar and planetary sites of natural beauty, luxury goods importers on most well-established planets, etc. etc.
The good ol' UF of P may not be purely capitalistic any more by the 24th century, but it will still have a supply and demand, free-enterprise market setup. Otherwise, how can it maintain its economic growth and stability? Someone wants something they cannot get where they are? Someone will ship it to them. If it is legal, and has mass market appeal, it will be shipped in bulk. And since this is bulk shipping on an interstellar scale, supplying the planetary market, and sometimes on a loop run to several planets, space bulk-carriers are going to be multi-multi-multi-megatonne monstrosities. Flying Boxcars writ cosmic.
Similarly, regular passenger services between planets--and in a free, democratic, even if socialist utopic society, people are free to go where they want, when they want. Massive interstellar liners will carry thousands or tens of thousands of passengers in cyclic runs between the major planets, also carrying low-priority mail, cargo, and luggage. Colonial movers fit into this too. :D Because these will be (relatively) slow ships, they'll have to have endurance, lots of distractions for the passengers, and all sorts of special facilities to cater to all sorts of alien life support needs and wants.
If you have limited time, you can charter a small ship, a 10-passenger courier or something, and go straight from A to B. Similarly, colonial movers can fit here too, a slightly larger cargo ship chartered by a family or group of families.
If the item you want or the place you go to is illegal or restricted, there are always adventurous Human souls, never mind aliens, who will sneak it in or you there for a reward. There are private pleasure yachts (a ship that cannot or isn't allowed to carry cargo or paying passengers), and independent "jacks of all trades" who will take any job they can find--like Cyrano Jones, like the guy McCoy tries to charter to take him to Genesis, like the small merchantman that Valkris pays to meet with Kruge, like Kassidy Yates who runs her own ship, etc. etc.
Basically, it all boils down to the fact that Starfleet is not going to be the mass passenger service for civilians. And civilians in a free society travel. For pleasure, for business, for work, on assignment, in emergencies, you name it.
Roll into that the non-aligned worlds and other stellar nations like the Klingons, and you have international, cross border travel, too.
Therefore, even in a UFP of only 150 members, each planet having a population of around 3 billion each, that's 450 billion people, and doesn't take into account the myriad outposts, colonies, protectorates, planetary science missions, etc. etc. Even if only a thousandth of a percent on each UFP "member" planet travel annually, thats 4.5 million people hauling themselves across the stars.
Government-regulated freighters? You gotta be kidding me.
As for firepower... There is always the Orion Syndicate and the Ferengi who will sell anyone what they want and find a way too get what is wanted to sell. The number of civilian ships that can stand up to a Starfleet cruiser will be low, but there will be some. I belive that the vast majority of armed, independent ships will be on the level of the SFC Orion CR compared to the F-CA, technologially. It is frigate-type vessel, armed and shielded accordingly. Enough of them swarming, or a couple of lucky captains can at least force the retreat of a Navy cruiser. Also, they can ambush and lay traps.
Also lay into this the legitimate, non-aligned world governments who could be as developed as the Feds but just want nothing to to with the Feds. They'll do a brisk business in the arms trade, and there's nothing the Feds can do about it beyond, perhaps, economic sanctions, which would just piss of the non-aligned worlds and make them anti-Fed. The Orions themselves fall into this category.
Bottom line: Hundreds of thousands of civilian Federation ships of all types.
Interstellar Corporations will have almost as much resources as Starfleet, though it will be illegal to arm their ships beyond a certain self-defence level, and prison-worthy to field a private 'security force'.
Federation-sanctioned security fleets will be incredibly closely monitored, if they are allowed to exist at all.
Citizen-owned and operated Federation ships will have to have all the correct permits and permissions to be armed at all, and will have much lesser armaments (if any) and power than Starfleet ships, with a possible very few exceptions. Warp and shield technology is centuries old by this point, and will be commercially available, if costly for the private owner. Warp engines are apparently relatively simple to build and maintain, it is their fuel which is closely regulated. It will be a huge expense to own and operate a ship, but it already is in our present world.
Non-aligned ships operating in Federation space will be able to see off Federation police ships and smaller Starfleet patrol ships, but will be scared off by the Starfleet big boys unless there's a huge advantage they can play.
This is how I see the Federation, in either the 23rd or the 24th century. And beyond. Humans are curious. They want to "go see" for themselves.
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in the trek universe- they have replicators, so one can make food, money, simple objects.
Wait, they don't use money- economic principles go out the window. With replicators there really no need to work to buy food, or for housing. My guess is people work to fulfill the need to be useful- nothing else.
So by making millions of simple objects with a replicator one may be able to assemble from all these simple objects some very complex objects (like a basic starship) to leave the planet and start collecting space debris, sattelites, hijacking other ships, etc.
NO ! the government must have control or this kinda thing will happen.
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I'm behind Scottish Andy. What he said pretty much summed up the vision I have of the Star Trek universe. The whole of interstellar commerce is simply too monstrously huge to be handled by one agency, on top of fielding a credible navy and patroling your space.
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I go with Scottish Andy's summary as well - I feel that he has summed up just about everything very accurately.
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I think that they would follow the general shape of Starfleet ships, but they probably look less utilitarian have fewer escape pods, fewer weapons, and more coloring. They would have older warp engine styles then the present era, for example, Galaxy engines as opposed to Sovereign, or Ambassador engines as opposed to Galaxy. Work vessels would have boxier shapes and more exposed paneling, while luxury and private vessels may have a be much smoother and finished look. Shuttles may be mounted outboard instead of in bays. The bridges may not be centered, but maybe off to the side to facilitate docking. Ship names would be shown clearly, but would maybe look chipped, misspelled, or misshapen. In fact, ship names should be mounted on a separate, or raised part of the mesh for easy swap out, as ships may change ownership. It would be great to come up with some sort of load line equivalent. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterline In real life, load lines are drawn on ships to allow the authorities to tell if they are carrying legal load weights. Maybe some sort of scripting on the warp engines might be in order. Some sort of uniform marker on the ship to designate which planetary state they are from, similar to license plates in the US where each state has a different design. I get the impression from Trek that the use of a saucer is primarily for Starfleet vessels. Most civilians vessels, i.e. Raven, either do not have a saucer or the saucer is integrated into the main hull. It might not be necessary for the warp engines to be held on pylons so far from the ship because the ship might not be in as many battle situations where the engines might explode. In fact, warp engines could be fully integrated into the hull, where the buzzards may be at one place and not aligned with the warp grill located in another, the warp grill may even be broken up into several different segments distributed along separate axis on the side of the ship. A deflector dish may or may not be necessary. Handrails and handle bars along the outside of the ship would be more prevalent to facilitate repairs. Everything you might see on a Starfleet ship flush with the hull might be exaggerated and sticking up from the hull. Truss-like supports instead of pylons for sensors, engines and such. Outboard impulse engines, deflector dishes, and cargo pods for easy swap out. Graffiti. Discolored, or primed only panels, old chipped paint. Dark or cracked windows. Wings for atmospheric flight.
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On that topic, FW, I'd say that all the ship owners would buy from bidders for the contract according to their specifications. I think the analogy to follow here will be aircraft/airlines, where as for Starfleet the analogy is warships/navies. It makes more sense, since the driving forced behind each are different.
For the corporate ships (passenger liners, freight-liners, bulk cargo carriers, tankers, etc.) I'd say there will be typical classes of ship, like the different airlines flying different types of Boeing and Airbus planes. The "Great Unknown" Tour Operators of Earth might have a flagship Boeing of Earth 8447 Stratoliner carrying 10,000 passengers with 500 crew and various Grath of Tellar Starflyer liners carrying 2,000 passengers each, as well as a few "corporate executive" yachts of the type I'll outline later.
T'Vorok Freight of Vulcan may operate Sunnik-class bulk carriers capable of hauling 5,000 megatons of dry goods with a crew of 10 or 20, and Guppy-class tankers capable of hauling 2 billion gallons at 1 atmosphere of pressure.
Federation Express would operate scores, hundreds even, of ultra-fast (for their small size) couriers, Warp 8-capable with a moderately sized cargo capability of say 10,000 tons that operate with a crew of 2 to 5.
Smaller civilian ships will be as individual as their roles demand, like light aircraft. Pleasure craft (yachts) will be like Cessnas and Pipers and De Havilland Tigermoths, and aerobatic display aircraft. Really rich people will have the equivalent of Gulfstreams and Learjets. They share the same basic shape to fit their medium--i.e. they have to be aerodynamic to fly well--so our pleasure warp craft will have to conform to warp dynamics, but that really doesn't affect the shape of the ship in warp. These smaller ships will very likely be planetary-landing capable, so they'll have to have undercarriage or landing struts. Possibly have aerodynamic surfaces, too. These Cessnas also have engines on the wings or in the nose, the small jets have engines either side of tailcone, so nacelle placement will be variable as well. Built into the hull, out on pylons, positioned for planetary landing, atmospheric flight.
Also, you'll have to design size and facilities accordingly, which will alter the shape, or at least size, of your ship. Runabouts are capable of interstellar flights, but would would you want to be stuck on one for months with only a deck of cards and a book? I think the Gulfstream analogy is correct for this.
You'll need on-board entertainment, toilet and shower, bunks, play areas for kids, maybe. How much range you want (or have) determines (or is determined by) what size of antimatter containment you have. Or, more likely, these smaller ships will not be allowed antimatter and will only be allowed warp plasma aboard. Can you imagine a squadron of antimatter powered yachts landing on your planet's capital spaceport? BOOM! So, you have a warp plasma tank. That limits your endurance because the size of your fuel tank may end up being half the total size of your little ship.
What sensors do you need? For damn sure, a Gulfstream of Cessna doesn't need an F-14's pulse-doppler radar and encrypted comm channels, but it will need subspace sensors to detect planets and stellar hazards, and comm gear for pleasure and emergency.
Tactical systems such as fire control, shields, phasers or lasers will be closely controlled and regulated. Permits will have to be gained.
Cargo space? if you're a yacht, you'll need very little. If you're a trader, you need to balance cargo space with all of the above. This adds size and bulk, which affects manoeuvrability and aerodynamics.You'll likely have to have a big cargo door, too.
And of course, there are the "used" ships, cause not everyone who wants a warp ship can afford to buy one off the production line. This means you will have old Daedalus-era ships that are still spaceworthy being used as civillian vessels, competing side by side with more modern ships. The better off you are, the more you can "trick out" the hull of your old beater with new sensors, computers, etc. There may not be a lively or flourishing trade in this, but there will be one.
To the people who claim replicators will do away with government regulation on anything, think about this: Who sells (or supplies) the replicators? By, either a benevolent, beneficent government (as befits a socialist utopia, or a corporation. And won't those sterling entities not decide what patterns are loaded into said replicator to for the average citizen to make? Won't they put in safeguards so that kids can't just load new templates into the memory--say, Daddy's old laser rifle or a really sharp kitchen knife--and hurt themselves or others? Won't they make sure that adults who really should know better can't add in unauthorised items or reprogram it without hefty degrees in cybernetics or whatever?
Think on this also: What, exactly does a replicator run on? Orange juice? No, it'll be the 24th century equivalent of electricity, off the city or planetary power grid. Now, how much power does it take to replicate a cold glass of water compared to, say, a nuke? An incredibly intricate mechanical or electronic device--for example a phaser, complete with power cell, emitter, programming, etc. etc?
Large bodies can absorb this power cost, because that is what they do. Build homes, ships, aircars, orbital shuttles. But a private citizen? if they started hefty use of power for any reason, they'll be investigated to make sure they're not replicating a moon rocket or Trojan horse or a 1:50 scale model of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
So. There. Nyah. *grin* Okay, that may sound blunt, but please don't take offense. I just spend a whole lot of time thinking about crap like this instead of doing something useful. ;D
Take it for what you think it's worth.
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Considering Andy's comments, I would apply mine mentioned above but with heavy use of supplus military parts. Prehaps you would get stuff that looks like the Frankenstein fleet from DS9: Centaurs, Shellys, Yeagers.
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It might not be necessary for the warp engines to be held on pylons so far from the ship because the ship might not be in as many battle situations where the engines might explode. In fact, warp engines could be fully integrated into the hull, where the buzzards may be at one place and not aligned with the warp grill located in another, the warp grill may even be broken up into several different segments distributed along separate axis on the side of the ship.
If I remember right (It's 25 odd years since I've read the Trek Tech Manual) Warp engines were placed that far apart so the warp fields wouldn't interfer with each other. Thats also why they we're higher or lower than the rest of the ship because they couldn't be on the same plane as the warp core.
At least thats how I remember it.
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that kind of became a moot point once the defiant was built
What could also very well be moot is that the Sovereign-class has Type XII phasers, or that Quantum Torpedoes are much more devastating... Neither of which had been said/demonstrated in on-screen Trek canon. Y'know, the same one that can't make up its mind about what Transwarp is; either an infinite-speed Warp 10 that turns you into a lizard (meanwhile it doesn't and you can pass it in a Season 1 TNG episode), or a corridor through space that of course doesn't make your travel at infinate time, but still is fast.
It's things like this that give me a headache...
I think somebody had it right in the 2260s with ships that had their engines far apart, given how fast they can maneuver at Warp speed. Aaah, good ol' Matt Jefferies.
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Just make something that looks cool, and then makeup the treknology to fit. That is whay they did in the show. As long as the science is beyond the grasp of the average fan, it will fly.