# The Holodeck Society **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 11, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884 "2005-06-11T19:40:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Gene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@Soylent\_Gene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Gene)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/1 "2005-06-11T19:40:57Z")
Someone mentioned in another thread that the last invention will be the Holodeck and we’ll all be living inside of them. Unfortunately, I’m afraid that only the richest will have them. Here’s how I see the caste system in our future holodeck world. 1. Holodeck owners/users 2. Holodeck repairmen 3. Holodeck designers 4. Holodeck janitors (someone has to clean up the body fluids) 5. The rest of us ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/2 "2005-06-11T19:49:29Z")
You completely left out the merchantile class. Somebody has to stock, advertise and sell the durn things. Also, provide accessories like period clothing and actual weaponry. Taking a cue from the cable television industry, there will be somebody around who can set up an illegal holodeck that taps into someone else’s legally paid for holodeck services. Also you’ll need someone who can disengage the safety protocols. ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/3 "2005-06-11T20:08:21Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > Also, provide accessories like period clothing and actual weaponry. Can’t the holodeck provide those itself? A weapon rack over to the right, project a new outfit over the one you’re wearing, and you’re good to go. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/4 "2005-06-11T20:22:18Z")
Seems like a lot of those Starfleet guys would go into the Holodeck dressed in costume and such. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/5 "2005-06-11T21:11:57Z")
I must be missing something. None of my holodeck programs require a stitch of clothing. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/6 "2005-06-11T21:15:47Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > I must be missing something. None of my holodeck programs require a stitch of clothing. Could you burn me a copy of some of those? ---
**Author:** ![citybadger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/45deac/32.png) [@citybadger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/citybadger)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/7 "2005-06-11T21:16:04Z")
Whay about guys who come around to get rid of those annoying popup characters. “Hi, I’m Serena. Are you having problems with erectile disfunction?” ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/8 "2005-06-11T21:25:53Z")
I would think there would be holodeck stars. People who allow themselves to be digitized. They would also have to probably do some acting so the computer will have something to work with as it does the program. I mean, Kathy Ireland’s smile is completly different from Martha Quinn’s smile. Ummmmm… I need to be alone now. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/9 "2005-06-11T21:59:11Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Could you burn me a copy of some of those? I would but I’m all out of 100Tb disks. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/10 "2005-06-11T23:32:07Z")
Holodeck hackers. When the lady plans for the pirate lover…the hacker could sneak in. Lawyers gonna make money off of this, too. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2005, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/11 "2005-06-11T23:36:56Z")
Possible hack: Someone figures out a way to record your holodeck adventure and broadcast it to the world. Now your secret goat fetish is not so secret anymore. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2005, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/12 "2005-06-12T00:40:08Z")
Thanks, Blue. Knew I could count on you. “Don’t try nothing funny. Have holodeck recording of you with duck.” ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2005, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/13 "2005-06-12T05:46:02Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Could you burn me a copy of some of those? You’d need to pony up some gold-pressed latinum. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2005, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/14 "2005-06-12T11:37:46Z")
Holodeck authors and artists—guys to write really interesting stories and situations. As fun as living your fantasies is, the allure of passively being told a story seems too much of a “hook” to completely disappear. So “Hollywood” might survive, in a sense. You’d probably need librarians and historians, too, to provide the raw data and reference material. Well, unless AIs are able to take up those function well enough on their own. In which case, you might be able to cut humans out of that loop entirely. There might be a surviving cottage industry of human artists, but if the AIs are just overall _better_ artists, I’m afraid human creativity won’t be able to compete. And…does this theoretical Holodeck include matter replication? If so, that could provide for a lot of material needs (food, clothing, etc.), assuming you have enough energy to sustain it. Well, actually, if we have enough technology to build replicators, and A.I.s advanced enough to gain at least semi-sentience, I get the feeling that we won’t really have to worry about the lot of the “sub-holodeck plebe” caste. But someone _will_ have to worry about what to do with all their bodies. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2005, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/15 "2005-06-12T14:32:57Z")
> [@Ranchoth](#): > > worry about the lot of the “sub-holodeck plebe” caste. But someone _will_ have to worry about what to do with all their bodies. :eek: Set phaser to “Marie Antoinette”. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2005, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-holodeck-society/307884/16 "2005-06-12T17:24:57Z")
> [@Soylent Gene](#): > > Someone mentioned in another thread that the last invention will be the Holodeck and we’ll all be living inside of them. > > Unfortunately, I’m afraid that only the richest will have them. > > Here’s how I see the caste system in our future holodeck world. > > 1. Holodeck owners/users > 2. Holodeck repairmen > 3. Holodeck designers > 4. Holodeck janitors (someone has to clean up the body fluids) > 5. The rest of us And ranked even below “the rest of us” will be “Guys who used to write Letters to Penthouse Magazine.” 😃