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[lowendz113]

I know the book talks about a pilot not being able to pilot different drones, but I have not seen it discuss this matter with autosofts. Can one autosoft be duplicated then programmed into multiple drones? For example, could a get the clearsight autosoft, duplicate it, then load it into a fly spy and a doberman?

What about autosofts that requite physical actions, such as covertops? Or Adaptability?

[DireRadiant]

Yes, subject to all usual copying constraints.

[lowendz113]

Yes, subject to all usual copying constraints.

Sweet. Thank you.

[Heath Robinson]

Sweet. Thank you.

DireRadient has hidden a lot in his answer. You can only copy Pirated Programs - and they degrade a Rating point every month. You can pay 10% of the difference between the degraded Rating and it's original Rating to patch it back up to full Rating. Or you can make some longwinded Software Test to write the patch yourself - but, really, nobody uses Software for that because it takes so very long to do.

[lowendz113]

DireRadient has hidden a lot in his answer. You can only copy Pirated Programs - and they degrade a Rating point every month. You can pay 10% of the difference between the degraded Rating and it's original Rating to patch it back up to full Rating. Or you can make some longwinded Software Test to write the patch yourself - but, really, nobody uses Software for that because it takes so very long to do.

You gotta love it when people do that. So could I install the same autosoft in multipule drones without duping it? I think I remember reading that you just can't use them at the same time or something like that. Am I remembering correctly?

[lowendz113]

Or you can make some longwinded Software Test to write the patch yourself - but, really, nobody uses Software for that because it takes so very long to do.

Does anyone actually write their own software? It seems like it would take waaaaaaay to long to actually be useful. Unless you can get a program/sprite to write software for you. That would be sweet. Is that possible?

[BlackJaw]

So could I install the same autosoft in multipule drones without duping it? I think I remember reading that you just can't use them at the same time or something like that. Am I remembering correctly?

Nope.

I think your thinking of "mooks"... You can't have the same (cracked) Agent running in the same node at the same time.

Copy protection (found in all legal software) on the other hand prevents you from making more then one copy of the program, even if you only have 1 running. When you load the Autosoft into Drone 1, it loads off your Commlink, so it isn't there to put into Drone 2.

Those cracked versions can be run in as many drones as you want, just keep them patched (with cracked patches) so they don't degrade on you. Remember that you only pay 10% of the price difference between your version and the degraded version, which means if you are patching every 2 months, you only pay 10% the difference between your version and the version one less. It's not very much.

If you don't want to mess with patching, consider getting Open Source software (which isn't free in 2070) which I don't think degrades anymore (wasn't it in the Errata for unwired?) or you have to program the software yourself from scratch (which I know is in the errata.)

[lowendz113]

Ah, thats not bad. I just checked the errata, and they do not degrade.

Any opinion on an agent/sprite writing a program?

[DireRadiant]

Do they have the skillz?

Agents don't have Software for example.

[BlackJaw]

Any opinion on an agent/sprite writing a program?

In theory you could get a Programer/Software Autosoft loaded onto an Agent or Drone, but I don't like the idea of that. It's not spelled out anywhere I've seen, but I wouldn't let software write new code without it being sentient first. That means no Drone programmers and no agent programmers. I would allow an agent to replicate the same bit of coding over and over again, but you would have to do the coding first. (Kind of like building a worm that would travel through various duplicate/nearly identicle programs adding in the Limitation program extra, or something like that). In most cases that won't apply, and this is one of those cases.

I'm honestly (and intentionaly) not all that knowledgeable on Technomancers & Sprites, but I think sprites are intelligent and sentient in a way not all that separate then spirits, so I could see a Sprite writing code. What kind of service that would be and how good at coding they are are questions I don't have answers for.

[Tymeaus Jalynsfe...]

Does anyone actually write their own software? It seems like it would take waaaaaaay to long to actually be useful. Unless you can get a program/sprite to write software for you. That would be sweet. Is that possible?

I am playing a character that indeed writes his own software... and it is intensive... with judicious use of programming suites or Nexus Programming Environments, it is not too bad though... Common programs are a 1 Month Interval and Rating Target while Hacking Programs are Rating x 2 Difficulty with the same 1 Month Interval...... not too very difficult at all...

The really tough ones are the System, Tactical, Malware and Firewall programs, which can take a while... Though still very doable if you really want to have something unique...

[lowendz113]

Agents do not possess a Software skill and are not able self-patch/program.

Well that answers that lol.

[Cadmus]

there is a drone autosoft that gives them a tech skill though if i remeber correctly, I think I do.

Hey bob that flyspy of yours has been siting on your desk for a week...don't you use it? ya, Its doing my taxes right now. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Kingboy]

Someone with access to books may have to refresh my memory (not being close to mine at the moment), but what about running the Autosofts as server-side programs? Load them up on one node to which all the drones are subscribed, have them run the programs from there. Might need a nexus to do it, but that's what you bought a big van for right?

[Warlordtheft]

I just hand waived it and said you only need to buy the program once. By raw it is vague, and I am sure any programs a runner uses isn't registered. So why wouldn't you be able to. How does the copy know it is not the original and is a copy? I know in wireless they spent a few pages on this, but for game play it is much easier.

Ok-I have a firewall 3 on my flyspy, 4 on my steel lynx and a 2 on my busta-move. It is easier to just say have a firewall 4 on all my drones.

[Heath Robinson]

I'm just going to post some prospective houserules. You can ignore them if you want - at the very least it's an alternative way of going about things.

EDIT: Let's be polite and not take up screen real estate with something you're likely to ignore.

[ Spoiler ]

Degradation
Degradation happens once a year as new standards become mainstream. Support efforts really don't add anything new, they just tirelessly fix the major flaws to keep something in the market and this shows when things drop off the face of the planet. Even legal programs degrade - Microsoft Office 2000 is no longer good enough.

Patches
Given that they're going to see most people buy a new copy in a few years, Corps don't actually care about peolpe using Pirated programs getting their Patches. So long as you're in signal, and willing to risk the papertrail you can grab patches off their servers. Patching a Program requires you stop using it temporarily (unload it, or reboot the node) but also clears out Malware that's infected that program. If something has damaged the program then that damage is also fixed.

Going unpatched for a month applies a negative dicepool when making defensive or offensive rolls.

Running Multiple Copies
It's impossible to stop machines being able to copy data from one place to another. I mean, people have tried to stop it, but it's frankly impossible thanks to the very nature of computers and certain fundamental problems.

So, instead you can copy programs endlessly, but only one will ever run at a time. You're allowed to have a backup copy in case your Commlink gets shot into pieces by an angry barrens resident, but they can't run both at the same time. Incidentally, they need to communicate with a Corp server to okay this, so when your connection is being jammed, or otherwise prevented, you lose access to your programs.

Unrestricted
Whether it's an actual legal program that lets you do this, or it's a pirated, cracked copy of a program, these programs cost twice as much. The benefits of unrestricted programs are that they run without signal and you can run as many of them as you want at a time.

Piracy is more dangerous now that you have software companies that make their own laws. The actual cracker is liable to be shot in the head, or forced into debt slavery if they're caught. So, mostly they sell to small groups of people. Piracy is now quite expensive, since you need to have plants in companies that make these products, and also spend quite a bit of time working on a particular program. Security systems are now advanced enough that nobody except a dedicated team has any real chance of cracking important programs.

Licencing
A new option is to have a Licenced program - you pay the full normal cost upfront, but you also pay 10% of the original cost per copy that you're allowed to run (the player can just choose this, and change it with a call to their Licencor) per month. On the other hand, this program never degrades. You still need to patch monthly, but these patches also include feature enhancements that keep it current.

It's a business model. As per usual, lose signal and the programs stop working.

Software as a Service
Whilst some people would say that Licenced programs are evil enough, those in the know reserve their invective for Software as a Service. They say that depriving a person of control of the very bytecode of their programs is a grand travesty of the rights of man. Meanwhile most people use it and don't even realise what it is.

Software as a Service provides access to a program on a foreign machine. You gain all the benefits of having that program loaded so long as you can maintain this subscription. These programs never degrade, and never suffer from being unpatched. You pay 20% per month, but you can access it from extra machines at a cost of an additional 5% per month per extra machine.

As per usual, if you lose signal then you lose the subscription and the program stops working.

[Cabral]

Does anyone actually write their own software? It seems like it would take waaaaaaay to long to actually be useful.

Yes. My wife's hacker whipped up a Firewall program during downtime.