Lord Revan wrote:The thing Jones doesn't seem to get is that to start reverse engineering any tech more advanced then your, you'll have to examine the items with the tech and theories you already have avaible. Even in an optimal situation(aka pristine item, full manual and a defector aiding you) that will take time and when we comes to examples like he put you're rarely dealing with an optimal situation. Most likely the items are damaged in some way, manuals are probably incomplete or missing and you won't have access to people who know the tech.
To use a computar motherboard as an example, people from 1910 could probably figure out that worked by using electricy in some way, however the actual function of the board would be beyond their understanding and alot of the important components would be too small to see in any meaningfull detail with the equipment of that era.
And that's ignoring the fact that items might be toxic or otherwise dangerous.
Aha... ok. I'd say that B5 powers then could recognize the forms of SW technology far easier than the 1910 vs modern naval example for a couple reasons: #1 SW tech is made for ease of use, modularity and is for a galaxy wide civilization meant to be used by multiple species. It HAS to be idiot proof. BUT I think, that B5 powers will be even MORE lost than the 1910s Brits when it comes to applying that technology in any meaningful sense.
Let's take to motehrboard analogy a step further then.... so they can tell it runs on electricity and is some sort of communications device or data storage device, but will probably fry any working components if they try to hook it up to a power source or turn it on. Now with the B5 powers, they will be in the same boat except #1 they have entire industries devoted to this sort of thing, the 1910 Brit navy doesn't and #2 even if they DO ruin the SW tech or kill themselves they will learn certain things (much like the 1910s) like that computing power they didn't think possible IS possible and they will have some inkling of how these designs are meant to work. I didn't mean to imply that they could just fire up the junk and make workable tech out of it, only that they could fill in some theoretical gaps with the research done over a number of years.