DP Tool Club 15/CD_ASCQ_15_070894.iso/vrac/wchase10.zip/WCJFM.HLP

Text File | 1994-04-30 | 28KB | 457 lines

                  WORDCHASE V1.0 INFORMATION FILE

    WordChase is a Word Challenge Game you play against
the computer or yourself.  The object of the game is
to form as many words as you can from the puzzle, as
fast as possible.  The games are timed, and you choose
from 5, 7 or 10 minutes.  There are 5 difficulty levels
that determine how smart the computer will be.  Overall,
it's the best Word Challenge game YET!

The files provided with WordChase v1.0 are:

01. WC.EXE-            Executable File
02. WCDICT.WC-         Dictionary File
03. WCJFM.HLP-               Help File
04. WCJFM.REG-       Order Information
05. WCJFM.001-   WordChase System File
06. WCJFM.002-   WordChase System File
07. WCJFM.003-   WordChase System File
08. WCJFM.004-   WordChase System File
09. WCJFM.005-   WordChase System File
10. WCJFM.006-   WordChase System File
11. WCJFM.007-   WordChase System File
12. WCJFM.008-   WordChase System File
13. WCJFM.009-   WordChase System File
14. WCJFM.010-   WordChase System File
15. WCJFM.011-   WordChase System File
16. WCJFM.012-   WordChase System File
17. WCJFM.013-   WordChase System File
18. WCJFM.014-   WordChase System File
19. WCJFM.015-   WordChase System File
20. WCJFM.016-   WordChase System File
21. WCJFM.017-   WordChase System File
22. WCJFM.018-   WordChase System File
23. WCJFM.019-   WordChase System File
24. WCJFM.020-   WordChase System File
25. WCJFM.021-   WordChase System File
26. WCJFM.022-   WordChase System File
27. GAMES.WC_-              Games File
28. WCJFM.FON-     WordChase Font File

      WordChase was written in Visual Basic v3.0 and will
only run if you have VBRUN300.DLL loaded into a directory
on your path.  This file is available on any local BBS
system, COMPUSERVE, AOL, ETC.  If you don't have this
file and can't locate it, I will send you a copy when
you register.

              DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY

    THIS SOFTWARE IS SUPPLIED "AS IS". THE AUTHOR HEREBY
DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES RELATING TO THIS SOFTWARE AND
ITS DOCUMENTATION FILE, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING
BUT NOT LIMITED TO DAMAGE TO HARDWARE, SOFTWARE AND/OR
DATA FROM USE OF THIS PRODUCT. IN NO EVENT WILL THE
AUTHOR OF THIS SOFTWARE BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY OTHER
 PARTY FOR ANY DAMAGES. YOUR USE OF THIS SOFTWARE INDICATES
THAT YOU HAVE READ AND AGREE TO THESE AND OTHER TERMS
INCLUDED IN THIS DOCUMENTATION FILE.

    DUE TO THE NATURE OF EVOLVING PROGRAMMING AND THE
VARIOUS HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE ENVIRONMENTS IN WHICH THIS
SOFTWARE MAY BE USED, IT IS UNDERSTOOD THAT OCCASIONAL
"BUGS" OR UNFITNESS MAY ARISE. THE USER SHOULD ALWAYS
TEST THIS SOFTWARE THOROUGHLY BEFORE DECIDING TO KEEP IT
ON LINE.

                          LICENSE

         WordChase is neither free software nor is it in
the public domain. The software and its documentation,
this file, are property of the author and may not be
sold without written permission from the author. WordChase
is distributed as shareware. This means that you are
granted a limited license to use it for a period of
30 days. If you find it useful and decide to continue
using it after the trial period registration is required.

                    TERMS OF DISTRIBUTION

Redistribution of  WordChase must include the software,
its documentation file, order form and all supplemental
files (see list above) as a single unit without any
modification AND subject to the following conditions:

A.  Any individual is welcome to make copies for his/her
friends and/or colleagues if NO FEE is charged.

B.  Electronic bulletin boards, whether they charge
or do not charge their users a subscription fee,
are welcome to post the program for downloading as long
as they do not charge any fee in particular for
the distribution of WordChase.

C.  Computer information services such as Compuserve
(CIS), AOL, etc., may post this software for
their subscribers.


              INSTRUCTIONS TO LOAD WORDCHASE v1.0

1.  PKunzip the file WCHASE.ZIP into a directory on
your hard drive or floppy disk, keeping all files in
the SAME directory.  If you are still running Windows 3.0, copy
ALL files into your main Windows directory.

2.  Start Windows by typing "WIN" at a DOS prompt.

3.  Under "FILE" select "NEW".

4.  Select "PROGRAM ITEM" and click on "OK"

5.  Select "BROWSE" and go to the directory the files
are located in.

6.  Highlight "WC.EXE", and click on "OK"

7.  With Windows 3.1 set the WORKING DIRECTORY to the
directory all of the WordChase files are located in.
(Or WordChase will not be able to locate the dictionary)

8.  Click on "OK" again, and the icon for "WordChase
v1.0" will appear in the Program Manager.

9.  Double click on the icon and the program will begin.

                 SPECIAL FEATURES OF WORDCHASE

    NO DUPLICATES:  WordChase won't keep duplicate words
in the dictionary or the playing board.  It will always
check the word entered against the words in the dictionary.
 During the play of the game if the user and the computer
have both entered the same word, it discards the word
and neither player will receive points.  The duplicate
words are kept at the bottom of the screen so you can
view them at the end of each round.

    PRACTICE MODE:  Practice mode allows you to play the
game in one player mode.  In practice mode the high
scores and playing history are not kept.  The default
mode is competition mode.

    COMPETITION MODE:  Competition mode allows you to play
the game against the computer.  In competition mode
the program keeps track of all high scores made in the
round and at the end of the game.  The round and game
statistics are kept in the playing history information
screen, and can be viewed by the user at the end of
each round.

    STATISTIC SCREEN:  The statistic screen is used to
view the current scores for the game in progress.  It
displays the current status and scores for the user
and computer, the number of rounds played and the difficulty
level.  The bottom of the statistic screen tells whether
you are winning or losing and the point margin between
the user and computer.

    DIFFICULTY LEVELS:  There are 5 difficulty levels to
WordChase.  Difficulty one is the easiest and difficulty
5 is the hardest.  On difficulty 5 the computer scores
all of the words it has for that particular puzzle.
 This is definitely the level for the advanced player.
 As the author of the program I have yet to beat it
on this level.  Good Luck!

    TIMED GAMES:  There are 3 time levels you can play,
5, 7 or 10 minutes. The time is kept on the board and
counts down from the level set to zero.  During the
last 10 seconds of the game the timer will beep to let
you know that the game is about to end.

    SET GAME END:  You can play the game to either 500
or 1000 points.  Once the game has begun you cannot
change the selected options until the game is over.

    ROTATION OF PUZZLE LETTERS:  During the course of the
round you may get a "mental block" from studying the
same grid of letters from the default layout.  Wordchase
allows you to rotate the letters on the grid without
altering the integrity of the grid.

    CHANGE PLAYERS NAME:  When you begin the game it asks
you for your name.  This is kept throughout the game
and all scores are asscociated with that name.  If you
entered it incorrectly or want to change it after a
game, Wordchase provides you with this option.  However,
once the name has changed all NEW scores from that point
forward follow the new name.

    DICTIONARY:  WordChase's dictionary is a unique
interactive dictionary.  The dictionary allows you to view
words, add new words and delete words all from the same
screen. The dictionary keeps track of the words as you're
making the changes, and WILL NOT keep any duplicate words.

    OPTIMIZING THE DICTIONARY:  When the game has been
played awhile and you've added, deleted and changed
the dictionary many times over, you may need to optimize.
This option puts all words in alphabetical order to
maintain the speed of the game, and rewrites the dictionary
file to disk.

    SINGLE ROUND HIGH SCORES: These are only kept during
competition mode, and can be viewed by the user at almost
anytime.  WordChase keeps 10 high round scores at a
time, showing the player's name and the high score received.
 The high score screen can be cleared at any time to
start tracking new scores.

    SINGLE GAME HIGH SCORES: These are only kept during
competition mode, and can be viewed by the user at almost
anytime.  WordChase keeps 5 high game scores at a time,
showing the player's name and the high score they received,
along with the number of rounds it took to win and the
margin of points won.  The high score screen can be
cleared at any time to start tracking new scores.

    HOTKEYS:  WordChase has 11 Hotkeys that allow you to
get around the game faster.

    F1 = Help Menu
    F2 = View Statistic Screen
    F3 = View Single Round High Scores
    F4 = View Single Game High Scores
    F5 = View Dictionary Screen
    F6 = Start a New Game
    F7 = End the Current Game
    F8 = Rotate Letters in the puzzle
    F9 = EXIT the program
    F11 = View your System Information
    F12 = HotKey Template (The List)

    SYSTEM INFORMATION: WordChase has an option that allows
you to view the System Resources of your computer and
other information about your system.  Some of these
options will not work in Windows v3.0, but ALL will
work with Windows v3.1.

    SAVING GAMES: WordChase allows you to save the current
game AT ANY POINT during play.  It will keep seconds
remaining, current scores, number of rounds played,
difficulty level, etc.  It will also keep the words
you've created, regardless of how many.  You can only
save ONE game at a time.  If you have a saved game and
try to save another game, it will overwrite the previously
saved game without warning!  The object is to save and
reload the saved game when you start WordChase the next
time.  WordChase prompts you at the beginning of each
game if you have a saved game present.

    LOADING SAVED GAMES:  The saved information is all
kept in the "WIN.INI" file and is removed from the file
when loading a saved game.  A game can be stopped and
reloaded many times over, picking up EXACTLY where you
left off each time.  If you have a saved game and decide
to not reload for awhile, WordChase will not lose the
game number advanced to.  It will load the saved game,
and allow you to complete it.  Then, the next game you
play, pick up on the game number you had advanced to
before loading the saved game.

    PLAYING HISTORY INFORMATION: WordChase tracks all scores
made in the game DURING COMPETITION MODE only.  Scores
are always associated with the player who made them,
and the HIGH SCORES of the player are kept in the Playing
History High Score screen.  The information that WordChase
keeps is:

         1.  Most Points in a Game.
         2.  Most Words in a Game.
         3.  Most Points in a Round.
         4.  Most Words in a Round.
         5  .Number of Games Won.
         6.  Number of Games Lost.
         7.  Number of Rounds Won.
         8.  Number of Rounds Lost.
         9.  Most Won by in a Game.
        10. Most Lost by in a Game.
        11. Most Won by in a Round.
        12. Most Lost by in a Round.

    Scores are constantly updated as long as the SAME player
is playing the game.  If someone else is playing, the
Playing History Tracking is bypassed until the original
player is playing again, or if  Playing History Scores
are cleared. The game can only track one player at a
time.  To find out who the computer is tracking, select
View Playing History Scores from the Menu Bar.  If it
is tracking your scores they will be shown.  If the
computer is tracking someone else, it will tell you
who it is tracking and ask you if you want to clear
their scores and begin tracking yours.

    INTERNAL CLOCK:  Your computer has an internal clock
which is used by WordChase.  If you choose to use this
option (Under File on Menu Bar), it will show the current
time between rounds, or idle time.  The time is displayed
in the Timer Box located at the bottom right hand corner
of the screen.

    STARTING FEATURES:  If you accidently try to load WordChase
a second time while the game is minimized or out of
view, it will either maximize the program or bring it
to the front.  It will not load two versions of the
game into memory at one time.  This will save you time
and memory in case you accidently double-click on the
icon.

                  WORDCHASE INSTRUCTIONS

    When started, WordChase will go through its initialization,
loading the playing board and  screen where the user
enters their name.  YOU MUST enter a name or the screen
will not disappear.  The name must be at least 3 characters
long.  Once a name is entered CLICK on the "OK" key
and  initialization will continue.  Upon completion,
it will check to see if you have a saved game. If so,
it will show you the scores and ask if you want to reload
it.  If you choose no, it will continue to save until
you say yes or overwrite it with another saved game.
If you choose yes it will load the previous game you
were playing EXACTLY where you left off.  The statistic
screen will inform you of the status of the game.  If
there was no game saved the program will continue loading
and stop at the beginning of play.  You can select "Start
a New Game" and begin playing, or change the default
settings to your liking and begin.

    SELECTING A LETTER: To select a letter click on it
with the left button of the mouse. To un-select a letter,
click on it a second time.

    FORMING A WORD:  To form a word, study the grid and
find a word.  Then, start at the beginning of the word
and select the first letter, with other letters in the
word to follow. All letters in the word MUST be attached,
next to or touching each other.  They can be attached
from any direction - horizontal, vertical, or diagonal.
If you try to select a letter out of the natural order,
nothing will happen.  If you mis-spell a word you can
un-select the letters in the order they were selected, or
you can select clear from the "round options menu" to
completely clear the grid.  Words must be between 3 and 9
characters long.

    ACCEPTING THE WORD:  Once a word has been formed,
click on the ACCEPT button and the word will be added to
your list of selected words.  If you've mis-spelled the word
and its already been selected, double click on the word
in the list and it will be deleted.  Then, re-select
the word from the grid and continue.

    ROUND OPTION MENU BAR:  When you select Start a New
Game, WordChase loads the letters into the grid and
displays a small menu bar called ROUND OPTIONS.  You
control the game from this small menu bar, as follows:

1. START - Starts a new round.
2. END   - Ends the current round.
3. PAUSE - Pauses the round.
4. CLEAR - Clears the playing board of selected letters
       if you made a mistake or want to start over.

    The round does not always have to end from the menu
bar.  Normally, the timer runs out to end the round.
The "End" option is available if you want to end a
round before the timer runs out.  The "round options
menu" is only visible during a game.  When the game
is over it disappears.  When you start the game the
Round Option Bar will be placed in the top left hand
corner of the screen.  You can position this bar anywhere
on the screen.  It is a "smart" menu bar that will remember
where you placed it and will always load into that spot.
The menu bar will  ALWAYS stay in front while it is
present and will never be lost behind many open windows.

WHEN ROUND HAS BEEN COMPLETED: When the round is over
the computer takes your list of words and does two things.
First, it checks the words against its list of selected
words for the game(Competition Mode Only), and discards
any duplicates.  It adds them to a list on the playing
board so you can view them.  Then, it checks the word
against its dictionary to see if it's valid.  Finally,
it scores the words and adds them back into your list
of accepted words.  If it finds a word that is not in
the dictionary it will "prompt you" to see if you want
to add the word into the dictionary and score it.
If it is not a valid word and you don't want to add
it into the dictionary, select "NO" and the word will
be discarded and not scored.

KEEPING UP WITH THE GAME IN PROGRESS: To keep track
of the game in progress WordChase shows you the statistic
screen at the end of each round, showing accumulated
scores, words and rounds played.  The status bar of
the statistic screen tells what part of the game you
are in, whether it is between rounds, playing a current
round, or waiting for a game to start.  The statistic
screen is designed to always keep you informed, and
can be viewed any time during the game.

USING THE DICTIONARY: To ADD a word into the dictionary,
enter the word into the box above the ACCEPT button,
and select ACCEPT to add the word into a temporary list.
Once you have finished entering all of the words, select
the ADD button and they will be added to the dictionary.
If you mis-spelled a word, double-click on it in the
ADD LIST or the DICTIONARY and the word will be discarded.
The changes to the dictionary are not permanent until
you select SAVE.  You can save your work during editing,
or wait until exiting.  If you try to exit after you've
made changes, the program will prompt you to SAVE the
changes made.

    Disclaimer: The dictionary file is a Fixed Field ASCII
file, and cannot have its structure changed.  JFGrafix
cannot take responsibility for the user adding words
to the dictionary through a Word Processor or Text Editor.
The file was designed to be updated strictly through
the program itself, not a third party program.  If you
change the structure of the file and the program does
not run properly, load the original dictionary onto
your hard drive from your backup and continue.

            Note:  The speed of all searches, reads and
writes to the dictionary file will depend on the size
of the file and the speed of your computer.

              LIMITATIONS TO WORDCHASE:

VIDEO MODE: WordChase is designed to run on a VGA System
with a minimum resolution of 640x480x16.  It will not
run on a EGA System.

MOUSE: WordChase was designed to work with a MOUSE present.
If you do not have a mouse installed, the program will
not load.

SYSTEM INFO: This option displays your system resources,
and will only work with Windows 3.1.  It also requires
TOOLHELP.DLL loaded on your system.

NUMBER OF GAMES TO PLAY:   The UN-REGISTERED version
of WordChase comes with 10 puzzles pre-set and ready
to play.  Once you register WordChase you will receive
the newest version of the game along with 100 more puzzles!

Thank you for downloading WordChase and I hope you enjoy
the program.  WordChase was written by Joseph Maguire.
If you have any comments please send them to:
            Joseph  Maguire
            P.O.Box 180185
            Casselberry, Florida  32718-0185

    Or send a message via E-Mail on AOL (America On-Line)
attention: "JoeFM".