129 References (Warp and Subspace - Star Trek)
Description
This article is from the Star Trek Tech FAQ, by Joshua Bell inexorabletash@hotmail.com with numerous contributions by others.
129 References (Warp and Subspace - Star Trek)
See the Reading List FAQ for more details on the reference volumes
mentioned above and below.
The question of "what is canon" has been argued for years in the Star
Trek newsgroup hierarchy. In the realm of technical discussions, this
can be refined to the question of "what evidence is factual, and what
is apocryphal". These FAQs follow the currently dominant notion that
"canon" is aired live-action material and nothing more, with the
caveat that materials produced off-camera by the production crew are
often (but not always) reliable predictors of the direction future
canonical material will follow, and are therefore granted a special
"quasi-canonical" status. Any other material falls into the realm of
speculation - it may be perfectly well grounded speculation useful for
building up technical arguments, or wild flights of fancy that have no
rational basis.
In addition, more recently presented information is considered to
supercede old information, unless the weight of the evidence supports
the original data. While this may seem highly biased and may be eyed
with some skepticism as a form of Orwellian "newthink", it is a more
useful predictor of what those directly responsible for the creation
of the series are likely to include as canonical material in the
future.
For example, the excellent and groundbreaking Star Fleet Technical
Manual, by Franz Joseph created in the 1970's was a very well thought
out look at the technical world of Starfleet just slightly beyond what
was seen in the original series. Unfortunately, and perhaps for purely
arbitrary reasons, the future development of "canon" Star Trek
diverged from this speculation. This in no way implies that there was
anything wrong with that volume or any others, merely that due to
later "evidence", it can no longer be regarded as an authoritative
overview of Trek technology. On the other hand, the author performed a
lot of research to create it, and therefore its speculation should not
be dismissed out of hand.
That said, we are dealing with a universe in the process of being
created by scores of (usually) non-technical people, aiming to provide
weekly entertainment for a mass audience. There are many
inconsistencies even amid the canonical material, and often times the
wildest speculation on the newsgroup makes more sense than what we see
in the episodes.
Canonical material:
* Star Trek: Voyager [VOY]
* Star Trek: Deep Space Nine [DS9]
* Star Trek: The Next Generation [TNG]
* Star Trek feature films
* Classic Star Trek [TOS]
Quasi-canonical material:
* The Star Trek Encyclopedia: A Reference Guide to the Future
* Star Trek Chronology: The History of the Future
* Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual
* Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Technical Manual
* The Making of Star Trek
* Other "behind the scenes" information from the production crew,
including:
+ Newsgroup postings
+ Convention presentations
+ Interviews
+ Email conversations
Highly regarded, but non-canonical material:
* Star Trek: The Animated Series [TAS]
* Mr. Scott's Guide to the Enterprise
* Star Fleet Technical Manual
* Starlog's Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Journal
* Other "reference" guides
* Novels, incl. novelizations of films and episodes
* Blueprints, drawings, photographs, models, etc.
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