# Star Trek and 3D Space **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 13, 2004, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002 "2004-10-13T14:05:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/41 "2004-10-16T18:28:19Z")
Until the last couple seasons of DS9, almost all ships were models. It was only around 1997 that CGI got cheap enough to be used en masse and thank god for it too. The Dominion battles still give me chills. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/42 "2004-10-16T18:42:26Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > Until the last couple seasons of DS9, almost all ships were models. It was only around 1997 that CGI got cheap enough to be used en masse and thank god for it too. The Dominion battles still give me chills. You’re kidding, right? Babylon 5 was all CGI going straight back to the pilot in '93. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/43 "2004-10-16T18:49:22Z")
B5 isn’t Star Trek. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/44 "2004-10-16T18:50:50Z")
No, it isn’t. But it did have a lot of CGI before 1997. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/45 "2004-10-16T19:02:41Z")
Gotta side with **Aes** on the B5 CGI. It really wasn’t very good. In fact, at the beginning, it was virtually cartoonish. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/46 "2004-10-16T19:03:20Z")
Yes, but this is a Star Trek thread, which is what my statement was referring to, not all of science fiction. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/47 "2004-10-16T19:04:46Z")
And I agree it was cartoonish but that wasn’t why I didn’t mention it. A lot of the computer generated special effects on TNG are absolutely painful to watch nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/48 "2004-10-16T19:10:45Z")
> [@NoClueBoy](#): > > Gotta side with **Aes** on the B5 CGI. It really wasn’t very good. In fact, at the beginning, it was virtually cartoonish. Well, yeah, that’s pretty much right. But it was there, which is all I said. > [@Aesiron](#): > > Yes, but this is a Star Trek thread, which is what my statement was referring to, not all of science fiction. That wasn’t really obvious from what you said. btw, it’s worth nothing that for the most part, the space battles in B5 were fought in two dimensions, so it’s not just a Star Trek thing. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/49 "2004-10-16T19:14:14Z")
I assumed it would have been obvious within the context of this thread. “All [sci-fi] ships were models until 1997 or so” is blatantly false to even the most casual sci-fi fan whereas “All [Star Trek] ships were models until 1997 or so” is not. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/50 "2004-10-16T19:23:47Z")
Yeah, early CGI, from anyone, was pretty funky and cheesily obvious. One of the continuing hallmarks for Trek has been the detail available in even a mere flyby of the ships. For years, this meant models and well planned cinematography. Now, CGI is only limited in facial reproduction (from what I’ve seen). Intersting hijack subject, btw. Should we start a new thread? ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/51 "2004-10-16T20:31:59Z")
> [@NoClueBoy](#): > > Intersting hijack subject, btw. Should we start a new thread? Sure. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/52 "2004-10-16T20:49:08Z")
[CGI - A Discussion](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=281272) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2004, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/53 "2004-10-17T18:11:12Z")
For another example of realistic space combat, see the Honor Harrington series by David Weber (first book is _On Basilisk Station_). Not only do they fight in 3-D (standard fleet formation is a “wall of battle”, compared to the wet-navy line of battle), but in most fights, you can’t even see your opponent save by your long-range instruments (which generally only give you an estimate of your opponent’s size and acceleration). But I haven’t seen much of that sort of thing on screen. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2004, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002/54 "2004-10-17T18:23:51Z")
They did make one little nod toward 3D space in Trek, with their bearings and whatnot. You know, how they always said “255 mark 163” or some such. There was an episode (and I’m sure someone will be along momentarily to post the name of the episode, who was speaking, and the exact dialogue) where they explained that the two numbers referred to degrees on two perpendicular circles, allowing them to specify directions in three dimensional space. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-and-3d-space/269002.md?page=2)