Space Turtle:
You stated that >We are dealing with the equiv. of
young children and have to work within those constraints.<
You are absolutely correct. Which brings to mind more speculation: As the probes experience more will they act more mature (bad choice of words, but for now the correct term eludes me.), or will they continue to function at their current level?
I have one other answer: What is the power supply of the probes? Solar, Nuclear. . .?
Jet