Object

Derelict Non‑Voice‑Activated Computer Keyboard

Aged late‑twentieth‑century computer keyboard recessed into a cramped control console: yellowed plastic keycaps, tactile mechanical switches, dust and grime film, and several faded legends. It sits amid analog gauges and a still‑running solar generator, clearly non‑voice‑activated and fragile. Data treats it with forensic caution—inspecting and preserving surrounding components—while Worf reacts with blunt impatience at its antiquated, delicate condition.

2 appearances

Purpose

Manual input interface for the derelict control console, used to enter commands, access archived logs, and operate the local computer system.

Significance

Functions as an era‑indicating prop and key forensic clue: its non‑voice design confirms legacy technology and motivates Data's meticulous preservation, setting up the physical disk retrieval that later enables identification of a cryo‑survivor.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S1E26 · STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION — The Neutral Zone

Analog Recovery: Data Counters Worf's Force

The yellowed non‑voice‑activated keyboard functions as a tactile clue demonstrating era and the limitations of the derelict's systems — Data inspects it to infer that voice commands would fail and to contextualize manual hardware interaction.

Before: Recessed into the control console, dusty, with faded keycaps and tactile switches.

After: Remains undisturbed as Data documents its presence; it helps justify manual access methods rather than relying on silent, nonfunctional computers.

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S1E26 · STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION — The Neutral Zone

Low‑Tech Discovery and Twelve‑Minute Countdown

The non‑voice‑activated keyboard is inspected by Data as evidence of antiquated, manual systems; it both illustrates why voice commands fail and anchors the team's conclusion that careful, tactile methods are required.

Before: Present, yellowed and dusty with analog readouts nearby; non‑functional in terms of the ship's modern voice systems.

After: Examined and left intact as part of a preservation approach; noted as contextual evidence for period technology.

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