For a long time it has bothered me that regardless of the tech level of the
planet is bought on, computers have the same cost, weight, and proccessing
ability. If you look at a computer of today and one of 20 years ago that have
the same proccessing power, you will notice that the more recent ones are much
smaller and much less expensive. There is a simple was to recreate this in
Classic Traveller (and perhaps MT, if it doesn't have rules for it already)
which is taken (in modified form) from GURPS Space: for every three tech
levels past introduction, a computer's cost and weight will be cut by one-half.
This means that a model/1 computer at TL15 is dirt cheap and incredibly small
(Cr 250,000, and a volume of 1/8 ton (or about 1.69 cubic meters)). In
actuality, the reduction in size and cost should decrease even faster, but if
it were halved at EVERY tech-level, the model/1 would cost a whopping Cr 1953
and have a volume of 0.013 cubic meters! If desired, the mass (or cost) could
be held constant, and the cost (or mass) and proccessing ability varied. For
processing ability, double the capacity for every three additional TLs.
As far as Earth's tech level being 8 or not, that might be based on the maximum
extent of our current abilities. Remember that each tech level encompasses a
large amount of time; it would not be unreasonable to assume that we are
at the beginning of TL 8 (some of the items at TL 8 we have, some we don't --
just because a world is listed at a certian TL doesn't mean that ALL the
sciences are at that level -- there is nothing to stop a planet from having
TL15 drives on their ships with TL13 heavy weapons and their marines armed
with TL12 personal weapons and armor -- each of which represents the peak
of the planet's development in each area).
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Brandon Cope ! "Every way I turn my eyes
Student Consultant, Stephen F. Austin State! Shadows pass in the night
[email removed] ! Haunted by reality
[email removed] ! Living out of dreams
- -------------------------------------------! Nothing is the way it seems"
a generous and sadistic DM ! Alan Parsons Project
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