Sampling thread removal
Thanks to Archimedes, Beagle, Blacksheep, Chairborne 0900, Flatiron, keithl, mcs7, Mike Jenvey, Pontius Navigator, redsetter, Shack, ZH875, for their valuable input on the historic aspects of the role (Vulcan and before).
I deleted the thread because two recent posters started straying too close to current capabilities and recent ops for my comfort, and with a negative effect on some folk's blood pressure. These capabilities may have been widely reported elsewhere, but in this instance, I thought it better that such reports were not repeated with an extra perceived credibility being provided by PPRuNe's first hand experts.