Shadowrun 4: Hacking & Rigging Options

[SMDVogrin]

Question: If my starting Rigger buys a Pilot program (rating 4) to upgrade some of his drones, can he also use that program as an Agent on the Matrix? Or is the Agent/IC/Pilot listing for three separate program types with the same price?

The Reason I ask is because the listing is "Agent/IC/Pilot", and IC seems to be the exact same thing as Agent, so....

Would mean a very easy Hacker-in-a-Box for my Rigger. :)

[hobgoblin]

from what i understand the pilot is more like the system of a comlink then a agent or ic. i have a feel that they cost the same as its a system(os) merged with agent code so that it performs the task of both.

hmm, i wonder, can i set up my home with a pilot equiped telecom setup so that my place can be given orders like a drone?

[Vector]

I don't see why not. :)

[hobgoblin]

just hope i never hear the phrase "sorry, i cant do that dave".

for one thing, my name isnt dave. for the other, that phrase creeps me out...

[Demon_Bob]

[Demon_Bob]

Was wondering if it was worth it for a decker to try to write progam upgrades during a campaign. If I remember right some of those intervals are in months.

How many time does a program type have to be purchased?
Can I buy Clearsight, Gunnery, ect. and and use it on all my drones?

If the signal of a device is 3 can I decide to reduce the signal strength to 0 for a short time because that is all I need at the moment, and it make overhearing the data stream harder?

:cyber: Say I finally succeed at the +6 to hack someone's skillwires. (or happen to find secondary administrative commands in his employee file for all his cyberware, kept there as a security measureagainst the employee) Just what kind of negative modifiers could I cause him other than just turning off his cyberware?

A program flips a switch and the human goes to sleep.

[hobgoblin]

from what i understand a program have to be cracked to be used on more then one "device" at a time.

(heh, it said problem before i edited it. i wonder where my head was when i wrote the original text as it obviously not focusing on the text being written...)

[Eyeless Blond]

[Valentinew]

So I've been making a Technomancer for our SR4 game starting soon, & submitted it to my GM. He sent back that it looked fine except I needed a smartgun link on my glasses. My thought is that techno's wouldn't need that because they can live in AR without the hook-up.

Am I correct? Or do I need an Image & Smartgun Link on my glasses?

[SMDVogrin]

Yes, you'd need a Smartlink on your glasses. A Technomancer basically has a natural duplicate of a Commlink+Sim Module. A Commlink does not provide smartlink capability unless you have a Vision device with Smartlink.

[Eyeless Blond]

Well, there's an argument for and against needing the smartgun link.

For: Your techno can "hear" the data being sent through the smartgun itself, but you can't understand it without the glasses interpreting it for you.

Againse: Technos appear to have an instincive "feel" for any and all protocols that transmit wirelessly; if this were not so then they wouldn't be able to access most Matrix-enabled devices, as most things will be using their own (often proprietary, see Microsoft's ActiveX) encodings and even protocols. Therefore technos must be able to instantly interpret and understand everything sent to them in any exotic data form instantly, as they have no organic storage memory to load a bunch of interpreters on like modern-era computers do.
A Smartlink is a very simple encoding to understand--surely it's no more difficult than trying to interpret a Flash program on-the-fly without an interpreter!

And an Image link would surely not be needed; if a techno can understand and immediately interpret all Matrix-based data in full VR mode then surely they can build up a "lesser" form in their own brains without help from an image link.


(NOTE): I happen to think that a technomancer interacting with the Matrix through a wireless organic transceiver is an inherently idiotic idea, so take the above with that slight ironic twist.

[RunnerPaul]

[Vector]

I find it odd that according to the rules, Technomancers can use VR without any extra equipment but can't use AR at all without equipment. The technomancer in the book has no electronic equipment and somehow can still use the fake SIN they have...

[Xeros]

technos can use AR, no problem. The problem is determining what you are doing with that AR. The way I see it, is a techno could see the smartgun's output in a "window" without the need of goggles, but that's of limited use since it's not integrated with the rest of your vision. The goggles overlay the results straight onto your field of vision, integrating it with your normal view of the world. You could skip the goggles, and still use it as a periscope, just looking through your node window, but to get the combat bonus, you need it integrated with your normal vision.

That's how I see it anyways. I also first made my techno without the goggles, but then I thought about how I would see the results, and realized that it might make sense for even a techno to have the goggles.

[Valentinew]

I thought technos brains were able to translate AR (& VR) into a form her brain could understand...without any gear. She may not see things exactly like someone with an Imagelink up, but she probably had a close analogy.

I guess I don't understand why a smartlink would be different than any other wireless device. It seems to be implied that the smartlink is so completely different from any other kind of link that the techno would have no chance of using it effectively on her own, which I don't buy.

I'm wondering if the fact that no mods have chimed in here means maybe that's an ongoing discussion? Or are there articles/books that talk about this exact thing that I need to read?

[Vector]

I thinik I'm planning to go a head on the assumption that Technomancers have something that functions like an image link. Almost all AR is intended to be overlayed on your vision. It would be silly for them to need equipment for something like that. Although, I suppose that would mean that they shouldn't need AR gloves or simillar things by the same argument.

I'd love to see an official ruling on this though.

[RunnerPaul]

[Xeros]

I'd stand by the fact that a techno....or I think anyone with a commlink could see the smartgun image in a window, but using that would be like aiming a gun by looking at a tv screen. It can work, but you may be better relying on your own body's hand-eye coordination. The field of vision is a lot smaller, and the perspective is all wrong for your brain.

[RunnerPaul]

I would say it'd have to be treated as a generic GM determined AR modifier per the "AR Modifiers" sidebar on p.208, and if the GM has any sense, they'd make sure it's a lesser modifier than what you'd get for using real smartlink hardware.

[Valentinew]

[Vector]

It seems to me that you either have to go with the idea that Technomancers tend to only use VR (the book hints towards their strong preference towards VR) and so the lack of AR options without extra cyber or equipment is just part and parcel of being a Technomancer OR you have to rule that they also come with some basic cyber-like devices to percieve AR as well. The former being canon at the moment, the latter being what seems like more the spirit of Technomancers if not the letter of the existing rules.

[Vector]

Edit: Nevermind. Oops.

[RunnerPaul]

[NightRain]

[RunnerPaul]