[NCC-73515]

A starship cannot jump to warp speed without inertial dampers, as the rapid acceleration would smash the crew into the walls, killing them instantly. (VOY: "Tattoo") It also cannot jump to warp with external inertial dampers engaged. (Star Trek)

(http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Inertial_damper)
So what???

[Enterprise NCC-1701-A]

just a safety feature on starships i think.

[MrQ1701]

This is one of those "POOR TREK" moments I have been complaining about. First, why the hell would you need EXTERNAL inertial dampeners?? To dampen the space dust moving around?? Dum...dum...da, dumb!!!!!

It's obvious this was just a way to force a laugh by making Sulu look like he didn't know what he was doing. The Sulu we all know from the Prime Trek universe could fly just about anything, but this new version didn't even know the Enterprise had a parking brake!!

[Samuel]

Originally Posted by MrQ1701

It's obvious this was just a way to force a laugh by making Sulu look like he didn't know what he was doing. The Sulu we all know from the Prime Trek universe could fly just about anything, but this new version didn't even know the Enterprise had a parking brake!!

Remember when Sulu... who could fly just about anything... turned on the windshield wipers by accident?

[kevin]

Originally Posted by Samuel

Remember when Sulu... who could fly just about anything... turned on the windshield wipers by accident?

Of course!!

Although I suppose 1987 technology would be a bit different!

[MrQ1701]

Originally Posted by kevin

Although I suppose 1987 technology would be a bit different!

VERY different

[Big D]

Originally Posted by MrQ1701

This is one of those "POOR TREK" moments I have been complaining about. First, why the hell would you need EXTERNAL inertial dampeners?? To dampen the space dust moving around?? Dum...dum...da, dumb!!!!!

It's obvious this was just a way to force a laugh by making Sulu look like he didn't know what he was doing. The Sulu we all know from the Prime Trek universe could fly just about anything, but this new version didn't even know the Enterprise had a parking brake!!

It's only "dumb" if you completely fail to think about it for even a moment. The very name "external inertial damper", and the reference to a 'parking brake' made it blindingly obvious to me the moment it was mentioned: it's a station-keeping device. Something to maintain a particular location or momentum without having to tweak with thrusters or whatever. The regular inertial dampers cancel out the effects on intertia within the ship, the external dampers regulate the inertia of the massive ship itself, in relation to the outside universe.

Sure, thrusters can do that - but why waste fuel on something when there's a magical piece of technology, already established in canon, which can do the same but at far less cost? Internal inertial dampers allow a ship to survive the force of warp drive accelerating it from 0 to 1000 times the speed of light in a matter of seconds. The sheer power of a device like that is beyond anything that can be reckoned today. Why shouldn't such a technology be applied as a simple aid to keeping a ship stationary when it's not meant to be moving?

It's just another example of something in the film that makes perfect sense if you ponder it for a moment, but where people prefer to complain rather than think. Why use your brain when you can just post a slew of smiley icons?

[kevin]

It worked.

[MrQ1701]

Originally Posted by kevin

It worked.

What worked? The scene made Sulu look like an idiot? Then how the heck does a guy that can't even turn off the parking brake end up on the flagship??? Dumb....dumb!!!

[TheQ]

Well, it was still in Spacedock, wasn't it? Wouldn't it be beneficial for a crew working on the outer hull if there were external inertial dampners?