Terry Richards
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA —
In the television series "Star Trek: The Next Generation" and subesquent spinoff series and movies, the crew of the starship Enterprise could often be seen using a flat, portable computer terminal called a PADD - Personal Access Display Device.
This portable terminal could be used as a standalone computer or could be wirelessly linked to the ship's main computer, other PADDs or other Starfleet equipment - not unlike today's Bluetooth networks.
The idea, if not the name, goes even farther back in "Star Trek" lore. The crew of Captain Kirk's Enterprise could often be seen using a large and slightly clunky-looking unnamed electronic clipboard in the original "Star Trek" from the 1960s.
