Xbox marks the spot

Published 8:00 pm Thursday, September 28, 2017

notforsale

Here’s one for the maritime history books: The U.S. Navy is going to start using the Xbox 360 controller to maneuver the digital periscopes on the Virginia class submarine, ExtremeTech.com reports (http://tinyurl.com/USNxbox). One of the subs is pictured, courtesy of Christina Shaw/US Navy.

Each vessel costs a hefty $2.6 billion, and the original periscope controller, which was bulky, heavy and difficult to use, costs $38,000 and requires several hours of training. The Xbox 360 controller costs about $40, and sailors who have gaming experience — and most of them do — already know how to use it.

Thrifty: A concept not applied often enough in government expenditures.

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