Plot hole: About two thirds of the way through this episode, Data deduces how Moriarty was able to 'leave' the holodeck. The big reveal is that he never did leave the holodeck, he merely reprogrammed it to simulate the rest of the ship without Picard, Barclay or Data's knowledge. While it is believable that this would fool humans like Picard and Barclay, it is ludicrous to suggest that Data would be taken in by it, even for a second. Data is an android whose perceptions of sight, sound and the world around him are far more sophisticated than humans. To list what we know of Data's perceptive abilities from previous episodes would take up the entire page, but suffice it to say he should have immediately recognised the 'Enterprise' as force fields and holograms rather than the genuine article. Note: this goes beyond a 'character mistake' or anything like that. Data's enthusiasm for Sherlock Holmes style deduction should have led him to eliminate the impossible before considering what was probable. Data accepts the impossibility of a holodeck character existing is the real world before discounting the possibility that it was still a holodeck simulation. This contradicts an awful lot of what is known about Data's abilities and powers of deduction. Although it serves for a good mystery the fact is it takes Data far longer than it should to deduce, or even guess at, the truth of their situation.
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987)
1 plot hole in Ship in a Bottle - chronological order
The Best of Both Worlds (2) - S4-E1
Factual error: Shelby announces the Borg have entered Sector 001, and we get an exterior shot of the Borg ship flying past Saturn. The problem is that the Borg are approaching from the side of the planet illuminated by the sun, meaning they would actually be moving AWAY from Earth rather than toward it.
Commander William T. Riker: In your position it's important to ask yourself one question: what would Picard do?
Wesley Crusher: He'd listen to everyone's opinion and then make his own decision.
Trivia: Another joke from the set designers: whenever someone is in the Jeffries Tubes, you will see several pipes on the walls labeled "GNDN" this stands for "Goes Nowhere, Does Nothing."
Question: Were people able to "lock" the Holodeck doors so that others couldn't just walk in on them? I don't recall an episode where the doors were locked that wasn't because of some malfunction. It seems like Lieutenant Barclay, for example, would either lock the doors during his "fantasies" or have some "fail-safe" that shuts the program off when being walked in on. Otherwise, it's just a really dumb thing to do (for him or anyone playing out a fantasy) knowing they could easily be caught.
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Answer: Yes. The doors to the holodecks can be locked when in use by anyone aboard the Enterprise so they couldn't be disturbed. However, high ranking officers like Captain Picard could override the doors as it's seen that overrides are in use even for the crews quarters. Even Barclay, when he's indulging in one of his fantasies could have the doors to the holodeck unlocked by an override code.