Emergency Command Hologram

posted on October 9th, 2009, 9:14 pm

how about a 25 energy to activate,  like a cloak.  not a steady drain, (like my tractor beam idea no one likes)3

"Emergency Command Hologram AUTO ACTIVATION, engaged"

posted on October 9th, 2009, 9:16 pm

Sounds decent enough. 25 units or 25 percent?

posted on October 9th, 2009, 9:23 pm

Not a bad idea... special energy would be drained by the Emergency Hologram until it runs out or makes it back to the repair yard.

Thing is, couldn't you just then do away with the idea that there's a hologram at all and just call it an SOS directive or something? If the ship computer is clever enough to activate and then run a command hologram, then isn't it just easier for the computer to automatically set course to the nearest starbase for repair if no lifesigns are detected on board?

That's the caveat of the concept of having a command hologram when there's no crew. The computer could do the work itself without having to power a holographic representation (which is only beneficial to other humanoid lifeforms, physically and psychologically) of an officer who has nobody to command in the first place.

What you could do is call it an emergency remote command directive. Once the ship loses crew, you can give it a single order to auto-pilot to the nearest repair yard. That's it. You cannot then alter it's course to avoid other ships or defended areas. That could be partly what balances such an ability, because whether or not it gets back will be highly dependant on luck.

[Tyler]

posted on October 9th, 2009, 9:32 pm

Last edited by Tyler on October 9th, 2009, 9:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I didn't see Voyager display any ability to act without being told what to do outside of what is already automated, it needed to be told where to send the Engines... Just because it can do one thing, doesn't mean it can do something else.

The ECH was capable of messing with engines, weapon, ect but the ships seperate Computer wasn't.

posted on October 9th, 2009, 10:03 pm

I understand that, but what I'm saying is that the ECH is just a computer program that is then physically manifested as a hologram for the sake of physical interaction. That's important for a Doctor, because you can't perform surgery without some form of corporeality, but if there is no crew, then a similar intuitive program could be run inside of the ship's computer systems. The ECH only reacts to stimuli that the computer can feed it, so in effect it can only know what the computer knows.

posted on October 9th, 2009, 10:15 pm

The Doctor never knew what the Sensors did and was always the last to know because his program is seperate from the Computer.

posted on October 9th, 2009, 10:44 pm

He didn't need to know - he was a Doctor.

The program is separate from the computer, but it is running ON the computer. Computer science, even in Star Trek, suggests that a program is limited in scope relative to the the amount of processing that whatever "hardware" it's running on can assign it. In order for the Doc to learn and become better, for example, much more computer resources had to be assigned to his program. This is discussed in earlier Voyager episodes whilst the writers developed the character.

An ECH might think intuitively, and display acts of sentience (the topic also playing centre roles in numerous episodes) but it's a program running on a machine, albeit a massively sophisticated one on a super high level. So, what I am saying is that the "program" can run on the computer and not have to be manifested as a hologram. The photons and forcefields of a hologram are just visual, the thinking part, or rather pseudo-thinking, is done by the program in the computer.

Why have a hologram that's got nothing to command? It's only use would be to repair stuff physically. Thing is, it wouldn't be practical to implement such a hologram in the game if it runs off special energy. Unless it can repair vital subsystems super fast (in which case, why have an organic crew at all?) or it can fire weapons and attack other vessels (not something you'd want a vessel with no crew to be able to do for balance) then there really is NO reason why you'd have a hologram piloting the ship back.

[Tyler]

posted on October 9th, 2009, 10:58 pm

Last edited by Tyler on October 9th, 2009, 11:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.

An ECH might think intuitively, and display acts of sentience (the topic also playing centre roles in numerous episodes) but it's a program running on a machine, albeit a massively sophisticated one on a super high level. So, what I am saying is that the "program" can run on the computer and not have to be manifested as a hologram. The photons and forcefields of a hologram are just visual, the thinking part, or rather pseudo-thinking, is done by the program in the computer.

So, the Computer can maintain the systems and prevent them breaking down on route? If that was the case, the crew wouldn't be needed.

Even if the ship can plot a course, the Engines still have to be kept working.

Why have a hologram that's got nothing to command? It's only use would be to repair stuff physically. Thing is, it wouldn't be practical to implement such a hologram in the game if it runs off special energy. Unless it can repair vital subsystems super fast (in which case, why have an organic crew at all?) or it can fire weapons and attack other vessels (not something you'd want a vessel with no crew to be able to do for balance) then there really is NO reason why you'd have a hologram piloting the ship back.

Systems need maintenance as well as repairs, a Computer without a body cannot maintain anything.

Special Energy is more for showing Damage (a damaged Warp Core cannot generate as much power as a fully working one).

A new name, maybe? Something Engineering based?