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What Movies Got Computers Right?
boxturtleme asks: "There have been several posts recently about how movies have gotten computers, hackers, and other geeky stuff entirely wrong. A while back there was an article on Servers, Hackers, and Code In the Movies and another on Usability [of a GUI] in the Movies. Now we all know that most movies out there that have anything to do with technology get some part of it wildly inaccurate, though it often makes for a fun movie. This brings me to my question: What movies got technology right? This could range from movies about the past that represent it correctly to modern day movies or movies about the future that slashdot readers think present something within the realm of possibility. With all the complaining about bad movies, what movies do Slashdot readers think of as the good ones?"
Tron.
Psychotic Computer spying on my life and discussions, programmed with secret instructions and ultimately trying to kill me as it cannot control me ...
Looks a bit like Vista 8p
It takes 40+ muscles to frown, but only four to extend your arm and bitchslap the motherfucker
Yes, two AOL users who get no spam. Very realistic :D
Pulp Audio Weekly - Geek News and Reviews
As anyone who has had to maintain any amount of servers will know, you can never turn your back on them for a minute.
My little Linux and tech blog
Dexter isn't a movie, but they pretty much got the computer stuff right. Even the lab looked real (compared to CSI).
Actually, there's one fictional movie that seemed fairly accurate. I think it was called "Windows XP." It was pretty scary though. None of the icons looked realistic, either. And they had this application suite called "Office." Nobody would use that in real life. The TV series The Office seemed more realistic than this mythical "Microsoft Office."
... and then they built the supercollider.
The fact is, noone really knows how to make a computer think, and that's that.
That's what the botnets want you to think...
Moobynet? Movie Poop Shoot? Internet message board flaming? This movie has it all!
Jay: What the fuck is the Internet?
Holden: The Internet is a communication tool used the world over where people can come together to bitch about movies and share pornography with one another.
Jay: All you motherfuckers are gonna pay. You are the ones who are the ball-lickers. We're gonna fuck your mothers while you watch and cry like little bitches. Once we get to Hollywood and find those Miramax fucks who are making that movie, we're gonna make 'em eat our shit, then shit out our shit, then eat their shit which is made up of our shit that we made 'em eat. Then you're all you motherfucks are next. Love, Jay and Silent Bob.
(USS Enterprise D is on a mission to survey a newly formed star cluster somewhere in the Alpha quadrant; they had several computer problems before reaching their destination).
Picard: stand by for deploying probe class 9.
Data: Yes sir.
(Data presses some buttons. The replicators all over the ship produce giant amounts of vanilla ice cream).
Picard: Status report number 1. Why is not that probe launched?
Riker: We had a computer malfunction again sir. The driver for opening the launch doors was beta and has crushed again. The antivirus program thought it was a virus and halted execution of all non-essential services, stopping the replicators matter regulator drivers as well.
Picard: Engineering, how long to fix the problem?
La Forge: Sir, we need to restart all services. It will take about 1 hour, because the servers will need to be restarted.
Picard: Oh, not again! I thought computers would not have to be restarted in this day and age. Proceed...
(Everything goes out for 3 minutes, including lights, life support and gravity. Then slowly everything comes back).
Troi: I sense great joy onboard Captain:
Picard: (hmmm with all that ice cream...) Can we launch the probe now mr Data?
Data: I am trying sir, but a popup window with an Orion Slave Girl has come up.
Picard: what do you mean mr Data?
Crusher: wow Captain the same thing has happened in my console as well!
Data: Well, I tried to launch the probe but the trackball had a problem and I selected 'automatic updates' Sir...it seems that the 'automatic updates' subspace link has been hacked and it is downloading porn images from another station.
Picard: Lieutenant commander Data, what does that have to do with launching the probe? even if the console's screen was filled with other programs, all you have to do is select 'probes' from the relevant menu from the command control application.
Data. Sir, the window with the Orion Slave Girl is multiplying every time I click a button, and does not let me control the program.
Picard: Never mind, transfer control to that console over there.
Data. Yes sir.
(...after 20 minutes...)
Picard: mr Data, why is it taking so long?
Data: Sir, the previous shutdown caused the BIOS of the console to restore itself to default settings and therefore the operating system is reloading and reconfiguring itself. By the way, does anyone have a disk labelled 'common controls 8.0'? the console will not boot without that disk.
Crusher: Data, you are lucky today. It just happens I have the disk with me.
(Crusher opens his bag and hands out the disk to Data).
Data: Thank you Wesley. Unfortunately this console does not have a disk drive, so I need an external one to hook it in the ports at the back of the console.
Crusher: You are lucky again! I just happen to have a disk drive with me. Here.
Data: Thank you Wesley.
(Data inserts the disk in what it seems to be a port at the back of the console. Nothing happens).
Picard: mr Data! I gave an order an hour ago! what is the problem?
Data: Sir, the console does not recognize the drive.
La Forge: Data, you need to restart the console so as that the new drive is enabled from the BIOS and then recognized.
Data: thank you...I am doing just that.
(after 10 minutes, the console boots; the drive is recognized. Data inserts the disk and ...voila! the console finally works!).
Data: mr Riker, I have a question...could you come over here?
Riker: what is it, Data?
Data: if you come over here sir...
(Riker stands up and goes on the Data's console)
Riker: what is the problem?
Data: sir, the default configuration of the user interface is totally alien to me. On the bottom of the screen there is a button labeled 'start'...but the console is already started.
Riker: mr Data, you have to move the mouse pointer over it and pr
What part of "a well regulated militia" do you not understand?