DHD confusion

[keybuk]

I've just finished watching 48 Hours, the one where they negotiate with the Russians to borrow their DHD so they can get Teal'c out of the Stargate's memory, and I'm confused about something. Chances are that I've just missed something in an earlier episode, but hopefully one of your guys will know.

Earth has two Stargates.

The "alpha" gate was discovered buried under Giza Plateau, and became the gate used by the SGC for the first few years. No DHD was discovered with it, instead the Germans found it and was recovered by the Russians at the end of WW2.

The "beta" gate was discovered buried in Antartica along with its DHD. Both were placed in storage at Area 51, and while there were used by the rogue NID operation until its discovery in Touchstone. After this the beta gate is transferred to the SGC (presumably with its DHD).

During the events in Nemesis/Small Victories the alpha gate is presumed destroyed in the Beliskner crash, and replaced at the SGC by the beta gate.

In fact, the alpha gate is recovered from the bottom of the ocean by the Russians, connected to the DHD they recovered from the Germans, and used (briefly) in their own Stargate program.

In 48 Hours, the Americans borrow the Russian's DHD to rescue Teal'c, and in the process blow it up.

What I don't understand is why this is necessary; from above, the SGC has the DHD from the beta gate and the Russians had the DHD from the alpha gate. So why didn't the SGC just plug in their DHD? In fact, why haven't the SGC done this before and replaced their jury-rigged dialing computer?

Almost certainly, I've missed the loss or destruction of the beta-gate DHD (I can't believe there would be a plot-hole that big in the series), but where did it happen?

[_Owen_]

The Beta gate DHD was one of the oldest in the network and probably low on power, I think they said this in the show, but I can't remember. I do know one thing for sure, the Beta gate DHD remained at Area 51, presumably for study.

Owen Macri

[spg_1983]

the beta DHD was mentioned by carter in "Frozen" she said that they studied it and it was one of the oldest they had come across, the power supply died shortly after it was recovered, indicating that the power supply in the DHD's is a finite source

[_Owen_]

Thank you, I knew that I had heard that somewhere.

Owen Macri

[Mio]

indicating that the power supply in the DHD's is a finite source

At least in that particular DHD. It could have been using outdated hardware in comparison to the rest of the network due to its age.

[_Owen_]

Yes that is a possiblitiy, it was one of the oldest gates in the network, therfore it was probably an earlier model.

Owen Macri

[spg_1983]

At least in that particular DHD. It could have been using outdated hardware in comparison to the rest of the network due to its age.

while anything is possible there has never ben any indication that the ancients had different models of gates or DHD's in the same galaxy. we know they had a different style for pegasus, but even then it seems to just be cosmetic, as far as we know and have ever been given any indication, every gate and DHD is exactly the same in this galaxy.

[_Owen_]

There obviously was more than one model of the DHD in a galaxy, if this DHD was far older and had a less powerful source of energy than it was another model.

Owen Macri

[keybuk]

Ah, cool; I hadn't missed anything because the episode you find out is a later in the series... sounds a bit like post-hole patching to me but the writers are only human I guess, well most of them <g>

[_Owen_]

That is good, I hope we could help.

Owen Macri

[spg_1983]

There obviously was more than one model of the DHD in a galaxy, if this DHD was far older and had a less powerful source of energy than it was another model.

Owen Macri

where did it ever say the power source in the antartica DHD was different or less powerful than other ones they have found. they never said anything about the antartic DHD being different in any way other than being one of the oldest they had found so far. sam said that the DHD died shortly after they found it which implied to her that the power source the DHD's is a finite supply. she never said or gave any indication that the one that died was different in anyway, and her implication was that it was the same as the rest, only older so it may be that all DHD's will eventually die. it has never been said or implied that there are different models of DHD's in this galaxy, and it has been generally accepted that almost all gates and DHD's are exactly the same except for ours because our system is jerry-rigged.

[_Owen_]

They never specifically stated that it was less powerful, but it is reasonable to assume that this was an earlier model with some diffrence from the current ones. I base this on the fact that it seems as though the ancients put out some gates and then put out more gates a significant amount of time later, it is reasonable to assume that they would have improved the device since then.

Owen Macri

[spg_1983]

They never specifically stated that it was less powerful, but it is reasonable to assume that this was an earlier model with some diffrence from the current ones. I base this on the fact that it seems as though the ancients put out some gates and then put out more gates a significant amount of time later, it is reasonable to assume that they would have improved the device since then.

Owen Macri

but thats just it, it is an assumption. logically, yes, if the gate network was set up in stages (which has never been said either) you would think there would be improvements or changes, but it has never been said or implied that that happened so it is a baseless assumption. what more than likely happened is that the gatenetwork was done all at the same time, but given the distances involved and the need to travel by ship to place gates in new systems, it would take a long long time, thousand or tens of thousands of years, to place them all so by the time the last gate was placed, the first gate is considerably older. an undertaking of that scale, spreading gates to thousands of planets would require a lot of work and resources just to manufacture and place the gates, and if they went and started making changes in the middle of establishing the network it would slow things down. thats why the pegasus gates are different, they are the new model. stargates v.1.1. the stargates in this galaxy are v 1.0.

[Col. Newman]

This is the Ancients we are talking about here, thousands of years my A.., i would think that they would have eventually updated all of them and that the gate in Antarctica was just an old model that they left lying around, remember Atlantis was is Antarctica for several million years and it has it's own Stargate, so there would be no need to update the earth gate because it probably wasn't use at all by the time they left

P.S. i hope that is not to confusing

[_Owen_]

I would have to agree with Col. Newman, it would not take the Ancients such an incredibly large amount of time to cross the galaxy, if it did do you have any idea how long it would have taken them to put gates in the other galaxies? They would probably still be at it now!

Owen Macri

[Mio]

Plus, didn't Carter go rambling on about how incredibly awesome the DHD power source was in Heroes? That doesn't sound like our wonderfully dead Antarctic DHD.

[_Owen_]

Which point do you agree with? Sorry, I'm not sure.

Owen Macri

[spg_1983]

I would have to agree with Col. Newman, it would not take the Ancients such an incredibly large amount of time to cross the galaxy, if it did do you have any idea how long it would have taken them to put gates in the other galaxies? They would probably still be at it now!

Owen Macri

the antartic gate was something like 50 million years old. the ancients have been around for a very very very long time. they could have taken a couple million years to disperse gates across the galaxies and they still would have been done a couple million years before we appeared on the scene

[_Owen_]

They never specified exactly how old the Antarctic gate was, however when the Ancients designed the gate network, they designed it to travel among planets in the Milky Way, seeing as life had not evolved on most of them yet, so they terraformed them. It is reasonable to assume that they planned to put gates on more than two planets, and that they wanted to disperse them at least throughout the galxy, this is supported because they wanted to travel freely among thier worlds, life had not evolved on most of them so they could terraform them and they could do whatever they wanted with them, and the stargates are designed to go to an incredibly large number of places. So it is reasonable to assume that the ancients wanted gates all throughout the milky way, therefore it is also reasonable to assume that they wanted to put them all up at pretty much the same time, so they wouldn't have to wait millions of years to use the network. Since most of the gates in the milky way, are the newer model, it is reasonable to assume that there was somekind of update made to the gates, therefor it is reasonable to assume that that the new DHDs' and or Stargates have some improvements. Seeing as the ancients were always coming up with new technology and new way of power generation, it is reasonable to assume that a new powersource was developed in the vast amount of time between the creation and dispersion of the older gates, and the creation and dispersion of newer gates, it is also reasonable to assume that this new and more advanced power source was included in the new DHDs.

Owen Macri

[BackStageJim]

the antartic gate was something like 50 million years old. the ancients have been around for a very very very long time. they could have taken a couple million years to disperse gates across the galaxies and they still would have been done a couple million years before we appeared on the scene

Talk about a long time to wait for software updates ......

However, if we review the story where the virus is upload to the gates (Avenger?), then all DHD should be sub-hosting for updates. Which also negates the planet shift theory for dialing a now defunct location. Given that solar drift would be equal then what was there is still there, just farther apart.

Like an explanding balon. Take a ballon, put the six locations on it. Inflate and the points are still there equally apart (less ballon rubber factor), so the original gate chevon location would hold.

Not sure I explained this well, its late here.