Build:Computers
8.4 Computers
(Required)
Cost (per core): 0.5 x Size (silicon tech – pre-2243); 1x Size (duotronic – 2243-2328); 2 x Size (isolinear – post-2328)
Power Requirement: 5 Power per active core per round; 1 per round (pre-Duotronic)
Computers control virtually every function of a starship in some way. They regulate the power flow in the warp drive system, operate the sensors, and help the Tactical officer accurately fire the weapons. Without a working computer system, a starship virtually shuts down. While the Federation has never managed to build a reliable fully sentient computer, starship computers contain such sophisticated artificial intelligence subroutines that they sometimes seem sentient. They can understand, and respond to, ordinary speech, including contextual cues within that speech. Crewmembers interface with the computer system via the Library Computer Access and Retrieval System (LCARS), which lets them use voice commands and graphic interfaces to access data, modify ship systems, and write programs. The LCARS contains the equivalent of trillions upon trillion of pages of text, and more data is added every stardate.
A ship’s computer monitors everything occurring on that ship, including the location of everyone aboard ship based on their communicator badge (the Tactical officer can track down anyone aboard, even persons not wearing communicators, but this takes some time). When emergencies or crises occur (such as a failure of life support or hull integrity), the computer evaluates the situation and notifies the appropriate personnel. However, that’s about all the computer can do; it cannot operate the ship for extended periods, or in other than extremely routine circumstances, without crew control. The computer lacks the judgment, intuition, and emotions which a sentient humanoid possesses and can apply to complex situations. It can only follow the instructions given it by its programming and the crew. For example, unless instructed to do so, the computer will not report that a crewmember has left the ship.
Star Fleet computers use miniature subspace generators to process data at faster than light speeds. They store information and programs in modules of isolinear optical storage chips. Each module holds 144 isolinear chips. Approximately the size of a microscope slide, an isolinear chip holds up to 2.15 kiloquads of data. On large starships, a computer core is a cylindrical structure ranging from about 20 to about 100 meters tall and 10-15 meters in diameter which holds thousands of modules containing hundreds of thousands of isolinear chips. Rearranging the isolinear chips within a module, or installing new ones with specialized programming, can interfere with, alter, or in some cases enhance computer operation.
Each computer core capable of handling the primary computational load of the entire vessel costs 2 x Size in SUs. Star Fleet regulations require any ship above Size 4 to have a minimum of two computer cores (and even smaller vessels tend to have at least two). Vessels of Size 8 and higher must have at least three computer cores. If the ship has saucer separation or multivector attack mode capabilities, each “piece” of the ship must have its own core computer (for example, a Galaxy class ship [Size 8] has to have at least three computer cores; it arranges them so that two are in the saucer section and one in the engineering section). A detachable warhead does not require a core computer.
In addition to the computer cores, ships have a network of subprocessors throughout the ship. These subprocessors help to improve the system’s operation by handling some of the computational load. They can also provide some redundancy for the computer cores.
Computers cost 5 Power per round per computer core. If a ship has two or more computer cores, Star Fleet protocols require that at least two operate at once—that way, if service to one is somehow interrupted, the other can instantly, and without loss of significant ship functions, pick up the computational load. In addition to the main computer system, several systems aboard a ship have dedicated computer systems. Examples include the navigation computer and tactical computer. These are addressed elsewhere under the specific systems they work with.
Computers on TOS-era ships use duotronic technology instead of the isolinear technology familiar to 24th century engineers. Although more primitive than the isolinear models invented in 2329, duotronic computers are still extremely sophisticated, and well able to monitor and control the functions of a starship’s systems. Each of the computers on the Constitution class Explorer, for example, contains 900,000 individual duotronic relays and holds up to 8,500 kiloquads of data.
Accessing a 23rd century starship’s library computer usually requires the use of a small viewer. The bridge, cabins, and other important areas of the ship all contain viewers. TOS-era computers use the basic Spacedock rules (including the need to buy an ODN), but can only take Class Alpha uprating packages.
Prior to the invention of duotronics in 2243, space vessels have computers based on microchips made of silicon and/or other materials. Such computers help run the ship, but can take no uprating packages. They must buy an “ODN” defined as the electronic wiring and cables needed to connect the computer to the ship’s systems.
Cardassian: Cardassian ships use some advances in computer systems which the Federation and Klingons are studying. While Cardassian ship computers have a slightly slower processing speed than Star Fleet computers, their higher levels of reinforcement allow them to withstand more damage, subspace field shock, and vibration. By studying Cardassian computers captured during the Dominion War, Star Fleet hopes to develop a new computer that incorporates the Cardassian reinforcing technology with its own high-speed systems, creating a “hybrid” computer better than any model currently in use. The current Cardassian computers cost 3 x Size, per core.
SFC Technology Index
Computers: Index