[pavel_lishin]

Looking back on it now, I think the one thing that's really not plausible is the idea that someone could write a system that can anticipate anything that can happen. It was a little too Foundation/Psychohistory for me.

But it was still a fantastic novel, I loved reading it, and will probably re-read it again and again.

[jefurii]

Did you read Freedom(TM)? It's a "sequel" but is really the second half of the novel. Addresses your critique in a very interesting way.

[pavel_lishin]

I did, yup. I was actually super mad at Daemon; I always try to get people to get both at once, to avoid the cliffhanger.

I don't think it address it enough; it made it more plausible by admitting that it can't be completely autonomous, but I'm not entirely sold. Having said that, I still love the series, much like I love any fantasy novel :P