Would Safeholdians really recognize electricity?

An interesting feature of that Weber comment is that he keeps describing the bombardment platform threat as an assumption, a hypothetical.

DrakBibliophile wrote:Dutch, see "Why can't Charis have electricity? (Asked Sun May 12, 2013)" here: http://www.davidweber.net/faqs/index/series:6

Merlin and the Inner Circle suspect that the orbital platforms would strongly react to electric generation.

Dutch46 wrote:I have long been in favor of Merlin setting up a little catenary railroad powered by electricity to complement and extend his steam domain on his test island. It would allow the inner circle to see a working model of a system powered by electricity. This is necessary because industrial development will come to a halt if they do not find a way to electrify their industrial processes. There is only so much one can do with compressed air and water and pulley drives.

No one aside from the inner circle needs to know exactly what drives any particular piece of machinery. One can easily hide an electromechanical transmission on a ship so that anyone taking a tour of the ship will have no idea what really drives the ship unless the workings are explained to them in detail. The first time I saw one of those on a C3B someone had to tell me how it worked. I only knew what it was because it said so on the nameplate.

Yep. Very interesting.

phillies wrote:An interesting feature of that Weber comment is that he keeps describing the bombardment platform threat as an assumption, a hypothetical.

DrakBibliophile wrote:Dutch, see "Why can't Charis have electricity? (Asked Sun May 12, 2013)" here: http://www.davidweber.net/faqs/index/series:6

Merlin and the Inner Circle suspect that the orbital platforms would strongly react to electric generation.

phillies wrote:An interesting feature of that Weber comment is that he keeps describing the bombardment platform threat as an assumption, a hypothetical.

An assumption, yes. Hypothetical? Not so much.

It is known without a doubt that Langhorne destroyed Alexandria with KEWs. The logical assumption is that he used a known Federation system, such as an Orbital Bombardment System. There's nothing really hypothetical about that.

The Assumption is that the OBS is still present, armed, and programmed for automatic interdiction of prohibited technology. The only way to prove that assumption true is to exhibit sufficient technology to trigger a Rakuri strike, which would tend to ruin your day.

The only logical course is to act as if the OBS can detect any violation of the Proscriptions and move very carefully in introducing Proscribed technology -- ie use the lowest level of tech that will accomplish your purpose until you can positively confirm the OBS has been disarmed.

Better an anti-climactic conclusion in finding a pile of junk in orbit than finding an active OBS by catching a KEW with your teeth.

What we do know is that the OBS is still protected as Owl lost probes that got too close to the OBS.

While David Weber has fooled me before, I'm beginning to suspect that somebody disabled the actual OBS so it will not bombard any locations on Safehold without direct instructions.

That may be what the Key does. The person using the key is prompted to instruct the OBS in the "proper" course of action.

This is speculation on my part and while Merlin (& the Inner Circle) may suspect this as well, there's no way that they are going to risk being mistaken.

If I'm wrong, I'm slightly embarrassed.

If they're wrong, they may lose Charis.

Weird Harold wrote:

phillies wrote:An interesting feature of that Weber comment is that he keeps describing the bombardment platform threat as an assumption, a hypothetical.

An assumption, yes. Hypothetical? Not so much.

It is known without a doubt that Langhorne destroyed Alexandria with KEWs. The logical assumption is that he used a known Federation system, such as an Orbital Bombardment System. There's nothing really hypothetical about that.

The Assumption is that the OBS is still present, armed, and programmed for automatic interdiction of prohibited technology. The only way to prove that assumption true is to exhibit sufficient technology to trigger a Rakuri strike, which would tend to ruin your day.

The only logical course is to act as if the OBS can detect any violation of the Proscriptions and move very carefully in introducing Proscribed technology -- ie use the lowest level of tech that will accomplish your purpose until you can positively confirm the OBS has been disarmed.

Better an anti-climactic conclusion in finding a pile of junk in orbit than finding an active OBS by catching a KEW with your teeth.

I agree with most of this, Drak. I would add that the since the Key only works once, activating it makes a rather massive change on Safehold. To me that means waking the Sleepers. If activating the Key awakens the Sleepers, it will be the Sleepers that over ride the OBS constraints.

DrakBibliophile wrote:What we do know is that the OBS is still protected as Owl lost probes that got too close to the OBS.

While David Weber has fooled me before, I'm beginning to suspect that somebody disabled the actual OBS so it will not bombard any locations on Safehold without direct instructions.

That may be what the Key does. The person using the key is prompted to instruct the OBS in the "proper" course of action.

This is speculation on my part and while Merlin (& the Inner Circle) may suspect this as well, there's no way that they are going to risk being mistaken.

If I'm wrong, I'm slightly embarrassed.

If they're wrong, they may lose Charis.

=2014/05/30=
I don't think the bombardment system is junk.

In OAR, Owl reported to Nimue that the system destroyed an attempt to activily probe it.

Also, the text evidence states that |Nimue/Owl did not have the capability to build/use anything that would change this situation.

??Comments??

R
.

Weird Harold wrote:

phillies wrote:An interesting feature of that Weber comment is that he keeps describing the bombardment platform threat as an assumption, a hypothetical.

An assumption, yes. Hypothetical? Not so much.

It is known without a doubt that Langhorne destroyed Alexandria with KEWs. The logical assumption is that he used a known Federation system, such as an Orbital Bombardment System. There's nothing really hypothetical about that.

The Assumption is that the OBS is still present, armed, and programmed for automatic interdiction of prohibited technology. The only way to prove that assumption true is to exhibit sufficient technology to trigger a Rakuri strike, which would tend to ruin your day.

The only logical course is to act as if the OBS can detect any violation of the Proscriptions and move very carefully in introducing Proscribed technology -- ie use the lowest level of tech that will accomplish your purpose until you can positively confirm the OBS has been disarmed.

Better an anti-climactic conclusion in finding a pile of junk in orbit than finding an active OBS by catching a KEW with your teeth.

kbus888 wrote:=2014/05/30=
I don't think the bombardment system is junk.

In OAR, Owl reported to Nimue that the system destroyed an attempt to activily probe it.

I don't think it is either. Still it could be junk and the self-defense around it might not be. There's no way to tell without gaining access and looking, but every test Merlin's made suggests it is still there and still ready to smite uppity innovators.

Weird Harold wrote:

kbus888 wrote:=2014/05/30=
I don't think the bombardment system is junk.

In OAR, Owl reported to Nimue that the system destroyed an attempt to activily probe it.

I don't think it is either. Still it could be junk and the self-defense around it might not be. There's no way to tell without gaining access and looking, but every test Merlin's made suggests it is still there and still ready to smite uppity innovators.

A nit: every test Merlin has made suggests that it is still there and still functional--whatever the currently-programmed function is.

Oh, yes, the system may well still work, but the suspicion that it will complain about steam, diesel, nuclear, or the wrestling channel is hypothetical.

Merlin et al have assumed that steam is safe, but they have ignored the possibility that the OBS lets the COGA fix things first.

There is the possibility that the system is set up to give the people of Safehold a couple of decades to smite the steam evil, but if they are not repentant it will unload on every single continent, starting with all major population and industrial centers.

Of course, the author would never pull anything so sneaky.

DrakBibliophile wrote:If they're wrong, they may lose Charis.

Couldn't Merlin test it safely by using remotes to build electrical stuff on the south pole?

If the Rakurai hits it, no one but the inner circle will ever know -- people don't seem to live on Armageddon Reef, so how would anyone know that the south pole got bombarded?