168 Hours plus or minus 10 percent

[Icosahedron]

Originally posted by Mr TeK:
Now, this all brings me back to something I saw in the T20 rules.

It said that you got a series of jump plots that to the computer were all equally valid, and it requires some "skill" that the nav tech has to pick from among those possible plots, the most "efficient" as far as the computer could decipher these plots were all exactly the same. From this it seems there is something beyond pure math involved, or the computer would indeed be able to pick the most accurate plot. What that other determination was is never stated.

Any one of those plots would bring you in to your destination accurately to with in the 168 hours +- and the target distance.

The navigators skill allows them to pick a specific plot that is more accurate that the others.

When this came up in another thread, I conjectured several possibilities. So sort of “connection” to jumpspace that the nav tech has that allows him to assess variables that don’t translate into realspace math, or some sort of psi effect or metaphysical effect. Regardless, at least by t20 rules, people have a skill at jumpspace navigation that cannot be replicated in a machine. Since it is implied that Nav skill somehow plays a role, that quality can be quantified and trained for in some fashion.

Sounds good to me.
I'm not a great fan of the OTU, or 'canonisation' in general, and I'd go with Malenfant's view to throw out a set of rules that were never designed to be nitpicked to death.

My take is that there is an irreduceable uncertainty in Jump plots, owing to (quantum?) fluctuations in the Jump field, hence the 164 plus or minus whatever it is in the 'non-house' rules. This will affect where and when you materialise.
(Personally, I devised my own formula:
T = cube root (D + c^2) (SI units)
which I think works pretty well)
However, conscious creatures (specifically excluding all computers except possibly AIs) are part of the connectivity of nature (The Force, if you're that way inclined) and with appropriate training, can shave off some of the uncertainty, picking out a jump plot that is 'better' than the rest, hence reducing the amount of time spent getting from the actual exit point to the ideal exit point.

Just my Cr2.