Conjuring Question, a question about spirits and standby Options

[mjorkk]

In SR4, can you put a conjured spirit on standby, or does it have to be bound in order for you to do that. I've scoured the rulebook (both printings) and the errata and found nothing one way or the other. Obviously if the conjured spirit could be put on standby, you wouldn't be able to call it out of standby after the next sunrise/sunset, but can you do it in the first place. This has come up in my game, and none of my players nor myself have been able to find a ruling.

[Neraph]

I would say yes, but only until you give it an order. Sending it on standby again would dismiss it and use up all your other Services. This is not based in the rules, just my GM-Hat-Approved House-Rule on the matter.

[Thanee]

SR4A p. 188 "Summoning"

Summoned spirits appear on the astral plane and manifest so that they are visible in the physical world as a ghostly image. The spirit can hang around in astral space awaiting orders, or the magician can instruct it to return from where it came to be called at a later time—as long as it is called before its services expire. Calling a spirit placed on “stand-by” takes only a Simple Action.
A magician may only have one unbound spirit summoned at any given time, and no more bound spirits than her Charisma attribute. Spirits on remote service and on standby count toward this total.

Bye
Thanee

[darthmord]

From that reading, it also appears that putting a spirit on standby doesn't use a service either. If anything, you are telling them to end their existing service (if performing one) and enter their default state.