From:	Mongoose m0ng005e@*********.com
Subject:	skillsoft chips
Date:	Wed, 24 Feb 1999 17:21:29 -0600

:Another question on skillsofts. Can they be specializations? If so, what
:rating do you use for max rating in skillwires? does a 3/5 count as 4 or
5?
:Or would the chip ONLY contain the specialization, like Ares Predator but
no
:other pistols?
:
:Peace,
: Keldon Mor

Skillsofts can be purchased as Specializations. Such a soft ONLY
grants the specialized skill, and not any level of the generalized skill.
Specialized skillsofts always have a lower size in MP, making them less
expensive to buy. If running on a Skillwire system, they still are
limited as usual by their rating (equal to the skill granted), meaning
that they do not offer better performance- just a cost savings.

In S2, for example, a "Firearms 3" chip is 30 MP, a "Pistol 3"
chip 18
MP, and "Predator 3" chip is 12 MP. All would cost 100¥ per MP. All
would require rating 3 skillwires to operate.

In SR3, General skillsofts have a size of (rating x rating x 3) and
Specializations (rating x rating x2). "Pistol 3" would be 27 MP, and
"Predator 3" is 18 MP. Again, all would require rating 3 skillwires to
use. In SR3, this may offer additional savings; since you can buy
skillwires with more or less MP space, you could run the Specialization
Skillsoft on a cheaper set of rating 3 wires (one with only 18 MP space).
The savings for using only specialized Skillsofts gets significant when
you start looking at rating 6 (and higher) skillsofts and the Skillwires
needed to use them.

Mongoose