[vitruvian]

Well, the AI metatrait has the same PM as some human characters. Computer Brain is okay for programs. But what trait describes someone who can instantly memorize data from any medium if not PM? There isn't a trait that allows conversion of books into programs . . .

I think what's needed is not the combo of Super-Memorization (from books) and PM, necessarily, but rather upgrading the Modular Ability to Computer Mind or Cosmic and combining *that* with Photographic Memory to allow for having hundreds or thousands of 'scanned' titles in your memory; heck, with Cosmic you don't even need PM.

Sure. That represents the ability to play back experiences. This is fine, but not the same as understanding those experiences.

No, but I can see the argument that if you play back the experience of cramming from a book, however long that may take, it's the same as reading from it directly.

Converting experiences or readings into skills you can use is called learning. PM has nothing to do with learning, just memorizing.

Sure; all that was being discussed was whether with PM you actually needed the physical book on hand in order to learn from it, so long as you had the text memorized verbatim.

Learning costs points and takes the usual amount of time, even for an AI. I don't buy that an AI needs seconds to learn Physics from a book while a human needs months.

Unless they have the appropriate ModAB, right?

I think what was essentially being asked was whether the combo of Super-Memorization and a Photographic Memory couldn't let the Modular Ability work a little bit more like Computer Mind, since after all you could have access to any of the books you've 'scanned in'. I'm fine, however, with saying that you need to pay for what you get with Modular Abilities in terms of how easy it is to access different abilities and how long it takes.

That said, I know if we did this with Cosmic MA, we could take some small limitations for getting only skills and languages. Would the additional limitation that you need to have read it in a book *sometime* in the past be worth anything, though? Even -5%?