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I find it hard to believe that transporters are used all the time. They must take up a lot of energy and they are clearly at least somewhat dangerous. For example, Sisko's line about his dad making him beam back to New Orleans every night to have dinner while he was at the Academy implied that it was an odd thing to do.
I also like the idea about the secure shielded area. I just mean that there's got to be a limited number and they are for public use, so if someone lives in rural India, they probably have a train ride to closest transporter station.

Chris Propst wrote:I find it hard to believe that transporters are used all the time. They must take up a lot of energy and they are clearly at least somewhat dangerous. For example, Sisko's line about his dad making him beam back to New Orleans every night to have dinner while he was at the Academy implied that it was an odd thing to do.
I also like the idea about the secure shielded area. I just mean that there's got to be a limited number and they are for public use, so if someone lives in rural India, they probably have a train ride to closest transporter station.

This is certainly possible, but I would think at the academy, the idea of the transporter being a privillege is meant to represent the status of cadets, rather than the economic scarcity of energy; simply a reminder that they're military property, are low in the overall chain of command, and must act accordingly; no different than West Point cadets, etc.

Tsukiyumi wrote:I'd think they were trying to scalp my wallet.

Seriously, I have a major aversion to people (especially strangers) touching me... Trust must be earned first.

That SOOOOOO used to be me. I didn't even want to shake someone's hand the first time I met them. I have gotten over my aversion to touching though. In NA meetings, we traditionally hug. After the first hundred of so hugs from strangers, I kind of got over it. Oddly enough, none of those drug addicts ever lifted my walled

Chris Propst wrote:I find it hard to believe that transporters are used all the time. They must take up a lot of energy and they are clearly at least somewhat dangerous. For example, Sisko's line about his dad making him beam back to New Orleans every night to have dinner while he was at the Academy implied that it was an odd thing to do.
I also like the idea about the secure shielded area. I just mean that there's got to be a limited number and they are for public use, so if someone lives in rural India, they probably have a train ride to closest transporter station.

Well, I see what your saying, BUT one can pretty easily assume that civilians have access to "civilian transporters". Granted, there is SOME danger using transporters in space, but we are talking about using transporters in a controlled and ideal enviornment (on Earth). About the only things that COULD inhibit transporters would be a severe electrical storm, WHICH Earth is able to control in the 24th century. Even if people didn't have transporter pads in there homes, they could easily initiate a site to site transport from the local transport hub, couldn't they?

Chris Propst wrote:I find it hard to believe that transporters are used all the time. They must take up a lot of energy and they are clearly at least somewhat dangerous. For example, Sisko's line about his dad making him beam back to New Orleans every night to have dinner while he was at the Academy implied that it was an odd thing to do.
I also like the idea about the secure shielded area. I just mean that there's got to be a limited number and they are for public use, so if someone lives in rural India, they probably have a train ride to closest transporter station.

The Federation seems to have such insanely large amounts of energy available to it as to make even things that use large amounts of it insignifigant.

Aye, there seems to be no shortage of energy available.

Agreed. As to Papa Sisko's comment, one can attribute that to a mannerism of a traditionalist.

God, this is going to sound stupid, but I wonder if in the 24th century, people have transporter liscenses? I mean, you have to learn how to use a transporter targeting scanner system, and be somewhat responsable. Or is transporter operation and piloting required classes in grade school in the 24th century, since everyone seems to be able to do it?

Excepting hazardous duty, I'd guess day-to-day transporter operation is on par with riding a bike. It takes some practice and teaching, but almost everyone I know can do it by young adulthood.

At least parallel parking will be a thing of the past

Presumably you'd need some sort of training before being allowed to fuck around with a transporter.

We could only hope.
Five year old kid: "Hey mom, can I try the transporter today?"
Mom: "Sure son."
Five minutes later...
"Ahhhh!"

Mark wrote:I mean, you have to learn how to use a transporter targeting scanner system, and be somewhat responsable. Or is transporter operation and piloting required classes in grade school in the 24th century, since everyone seems to be able to do it?

What makes you say that? Look at who we've seen working a transporter - Starfleet officers. I can't recall any examples of a civilian operating one. While I could accept a conclusion that transporter operation is part of academy training, I don't see any evidence of it being so widespread that anyone could operate them.

I think he's basing that on the idea that transporters have, by and large, become the standard of transportation. Surely, there isn't a Starfleet officer or crewman on every public transporter station across the Federation?

Mikey wrote:I think he's basing that on the idea that transporters have, by and large, become the standard of transportation. Surely, there isn't a Starfleet officer or crewman on every public transporter station across the Federation?

I can't even recall civilian transporters being mentioned - even on Earth the only mention of cross-planet beaming involved Starfleet Academy, so its use may be restricted to the military.