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Final Skynet Satellite Launched

Posted by kdawson on from the head-for-the-hills dept.

kamochan writes "If you are a fan of the Terminator series, this headline in BBC News sent shivers down your spine today. The idiots actually did it, the countdown has started! What the BBC claims the story is about: 'An advanced satellite that will improve greatly the ability of UK military forces to communicate around the globe has been launched into space.' Quite frankly, that sounds scary enough as it is, but why the heck did they have to name it Skynet?"

15 of 39 comments (clear)

  1. Skynet precedes Terminator by clang_jangle · · Score: 4, Informative

    The UK's use of the name Skynet precedes the Terminator movies.

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    Caveat Utilitor
    1. Re:Skynet precedes Terminator by Jekler · · Score: 4, Funny

      You mean they sent operatives back in time to create the company before the warning documentary was filmed?

    2. Re:Skynet precedes Terminator by Candid88 · · Score: 4, Informative

      http://www.bnsc.gov.uk/assets/channels/about/UK%20registry%20of%20Space%20Objects%202006.pdf
      centaur.sstl.co.uk/SSHP/mini/mini60s.html
      http://www.astronautix.com/project/skynet.htm

    3. Re:Skynet precedes Terminator by SpeedBump0619 · · Score: 4, Funny

      The UK's use of the name Skynet precedes the Terminator movies.

      Temporal or Causal Precedence?

  2. Re:It is now just a matter of time.. by RickRussellTX · · Score: 4, Funny

    Bow before your new robotic overlo...

    Stop 0x0000000A or IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

  3. Boh by cheesybagel · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Nothing special. The USA has MILSTAR satellites to do the same thing. What's in a name anyway.

  4. Whatever by eebra82 · · Score: 2, Informative

    Quite frankly, that sounds scary enough as it is, but why the heck did they have to name it Skynet? As if the UK started using the Skynet name now? It's been in use ever since the launch of Skynet 1 in 1969.
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    Full Tilt
  5. What's in a name by camperdave · · Score: 2, Insightful

    What's in a name anyway

    Like Shakespeare said: "That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell..."

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    When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
  6. Re:You're over a year too late... by TurboTas · · Score: 2, Informative

    Skynet started March 2007. Try again, this article was for Skynet5A. Clue is in the name ;-)
  7. Obviously by Rob+T+Firefly · · Score: 4, Funny

    but why the heck did they have to name it Skynet?" Because "Colossus: The Forbin Project" would have just been too long and awkward to keep writing on paperwork.
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  8. Simple by geekoid · · Score: 2, Funny

    See, by creating a new system called Skynet, people saw it for what it was, so they went back in time to start using it sooner(1969) so people could claim it was in use before the documentary was made...

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    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  9. Re:It is now just a matter of time.. by geekoid · · Score: 2, Funny

    Man, you're right. We must at now against the terminators, and the subversive Ha..Ha.. I was joking in the normal human manner. It would be pure human lack of logic to come to that conclusion. Carry on Human friend.

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    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  10. Hang up the phone by problah · · Score: 2, Interesting

    So can we just send out a burst of ATH0's into the evening sky to kill it, or is it a little more advanced than the 1980-something documentary?

  11. Funny, but... by Thought1 · · Score: 2, Informative

    Admittedly, it's funny, but it's really just a communications satellite; they didn't put it in control of anything, and it doesn't have any neural net capabilities.

  12. You want scary? by Captain+DaFt · · Score: 2, Informative

    here's a few quotes from BBC:
    "Software on the launch vehicle did not behave normally during a test sequence."
    "The new system will enable British forces to make use of next-generation weapons systems, such as the recently introduced Reaper drones."
    "This is made possible only by Skynet's ability to handle the drones' real-time video feeds."
    Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7419751.stm
    The only thing to add is... BOO!

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    The U.S. really needs an English to Wisdom dictionary.