Xbox.

This is coolbert:

Herewith some amazing stuff. Item # 2 was covered in a previous blog entry but is well worth repeating.

American military often criticized as being extravagantly expensive. Beyond measure almost. Often seen as being wasteful in the extreme much to the detriment of national security.

GOOD news however not lacking. Some sort persons doing some thinking and coming up with cost cutting novel solutions to problems.

1. "US Navy & Xbox: Why Use a $38k Joystick When You Can Use a $30 Controller?"

From bigthink.com and the article by David Ryan Polgar.

"The US Navy will begin swapping out expensive periscope joysticks in exchange for off-the-shelf Xbox controllers."

"The U.S. Navy has begun using Xbox controllers to operate the periscopes on some of their most advanced submarines, replacing an expensive joystick with off-the-shelf game controllers. The price for the typical periscope joystick is $38,000. An Xbox controller? $30."

"While the move may appear surprising, it combines two major desires of the US military: capitalizing on the technological skills that people grow up with and reducing costs with off-the-shelf technology."

WHOA BOY! WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?

To reiterate, a controller the cost of as contracted part/device valued at $38,000 USD replaced with with what amounts to a "toy" the price tag being $30 USD! 

It DOES make you wonder about the entire USA military procurement process!

2. "When The Air Force Needed A Supercomputer, They Built It Out Of PS3 Consoles"

SUPERCOMPUTER USA PLAYSTATIONS!

Thanks to the Internet web site warhistoryonline.com

"In late 2010, the U.S. Air Force built their own supercomputer that would drastically reduce the time needed for pattern recognition, image analysis, and artificial intelligence research. It was one of the most powerful supercomputers in the world, capable of analyzing billions of pixels per minute of extremely high-resolution satellite images. However, this supercomputer was not built from traditional parts, but from a cluster of 1,760 PlayStation 3 gaming consoles."

ALSO DRASTICALLY REDUCES THE COST OF ACQUIRING A COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE SUPERCOMPUTER THAT SERVES THE SAME PURPOSE.

Amass a collection of Play Station 3, rip out the guts and assemble into one huge machine, proprietary! Big high-fives all around. Such a project requires a lot of innovation, brain-power, initiative and know-how. You cannot but be impressed!

coolbert.