This release, v1.6, replaces the MacSki application and makes minor changes to the color file. The preferences and courses remain fully compatible with the previous version.
It is recommended that all users switch to MacSki v1.6, but especially PowerPC users. There is no cost for registered v1.5 users.
CONTACT ADDRESS ***** WE’VE MOVED! *****
Storm Impact, Inc.
316 Nottingham Avenue
Glenview, IL 60025-5022 USA
America Online: “StormImpac” [no spaces or final ‘t’]
Internet: stormimpac@aol.com
Our phone numbers haven’t changed, but after January 1996, the phone company is changing our region of the “708” area code to “847”.
Current (pre-1996)
Voice (toll-free domestic): 800-786-7696
Voice (domestic / international): 708-729-2666
Fax: 708-729-2667
After January 1996
Voice (toll-free domestic): 800-786-7696
Voice (domestic / international): 847-729-2666
Fax: 847-729-2667
THANK YOU!
The software has proven amazingly stable and compatible across a wide variety of computers (thanks Apple). We take every single bug report seriously -- and every single comment and suggestion, too! We constantly update and improve our products. We hope this document shows our continuing commitment to high quality, stability, and compatibility.
Below is a list of bug fixes and other improvements (and despite David’s fragile programmer’s ego -- we’ve listed everything). No doubt you’ll find something you reported in this list.
------ CHANGES FROM v1.5 to v1.6
Friday, August 11, 1995
ACCELERATED FOR POWER MACINTOSH!!!
• MacSki now runs natively on 680x0 AND Power Macintoshes. Officially, MacSki is now a “FAT binary”, but it might be more polite to say “there is just more of it to love”.
Warning: Don’t use any code-stripping utilities to remove either the 680x0 or PowerPC code from MacSki. The built-in virus protection will prevent the altered copies from running.
• In the Technical Support dialog, either “680x0” or “PowerPC” appears after the Machine Type to indicate whether the software is running in 680x0 or PowerPC mode.
NEW ADDRESS
• Storm Impact’s address has been updated (see the top of the document).
INTERFACE
• The General Preferences dialog has two added choices: You can turn off the zoom rectangles which animate the appearance and disappearance of windows by checking “Animate opening & closing of windows”. While skiing, you can see the number of frames per second by locking the caps lock key and checking “Caps lock for frames per second”.
• To smooth animation, MacSki waits for a 1/60 second change in the Mac’s internal clock. This may or may not actually smooth animation, and the downside is that it limits the frames per second to a maximum of 60 (or “1:00.00” if you’re using the caps lock display).
COURSES
• Thanks to Lloyd L. Chambers for explaining why MacSki wouldn’t read AutoDoubler compressed courses and for pointing out the appropriate change.
• Aliases are now supported.
• MacSki’s author no longer neglects the quiet ioFVersNum byte which previously caused the standard Apple file dialog to act very strangely and not display some courses.
SUPPORT FILES
• We’ve moderately improved our internal compression routines. As a result, older versions of MacSki crash if they attempt to use the new color art file (because the new color art won’t decompress correctly with the older algorithm). The solution: Don’t keep older versions of MacSki on your hard drive. This and future editions of MacSki will always look locally for the color art and sound files before looking elsewhere on the hard drive.
• If the MacSki Colors file can’t be found, a dialog will appear suggesting that the user might have forgotten to download the file if they obtained the software by modem. You can’t believe how many people e-mail us asking where the color or sound file is because they didn’t download it.
• If the preferences file can’t be read, an alert will now suggest throwing the preferences file into the trash.
• If the color, sound, or preferences files are opened (or double-clicked) in the Finder, MacSki will now display an alert telling the user that the file is not a course and therefore can’t be skied.
ORDER FORM & REGISTRATION
• Using AtEase to switch between users on the same computer no longer mistakenly causes MacSki to repeatedly ask for a registration number. (Sorry about that one).
• Users upgrading from v1.0 need only send a “photocopy” of their manual or disks, not the original. We’ve changed the word “copy” to “photocopy” in all references to make that clear.
• Attempting to open an order form in System 7 without TeachText (or SimpleText) will now display a message directing the user to find “TeachText or a word processor”.
• Fixed a bug which prevented the order form from including the complete note about our change of address.
• When registering, if a user types a serial or customer number (as opposed to a registration number) an appropriate alert informs them of the mistake.
WORDING AND ESTHETICS
• Color “art” file has been changed from color “data” file.
• Added Software Of The Month Club as an organization that is specifically prohibited from distributing our software under any circumstances.
• Removed disk space requirements and revised memory requirements in opening text.
• The indexes on the opening text screen now highlight edge-to-edge when they are clicked.
• Enlarged some dialog boxes and dialog text items so they won’t get cut off -- especially the Keyboard Controls dialog which had an item cropped in System 7.5.
• Updated copyright and version information.
• MacSki now ignores the initial mouse click if the click was as a result of making MacSki the front application.
INTERNAL CHANGES
A reasonably sized updater isn’t available to change MacSki v1.5 to v1.6 because of the major changes necessary to become PowerPC native.
• Moved some resources to standard 'STR ', 'STR#', and 'TEXT'.
• Updated the list of Macintosh model names. Apple’s marketing of different names for the exact same motherboard has made it very difficult to provide the correct Macintosh model names for technical support purposes. The non-Apple clones are going to make the situation even worse. HELP!! Apple needs to create a standard method of obtaining the correct model name (how about putting the Model Name in a pop-up menu in the Sharing Setup dialog, next to the Owner Name and Macintosh Name?)
• Extended the built-in virus protection to protect a lot more resources (including the PowerPC code in the data fork).
• Improved the AppleTalk functions to hopefully provide all the right parameters and be a little faster. Apple’s documentation of AppleTalk is inconsistent and contains errors.
• Thanks to Greg Marriott for EvenBetterBusError, DisposeResource, and DoubleTrouble. Thanks to Ian Hendry for MemHell. These four utilities from Apple found a few errors in our software that would have otherwise been very, very difficult to track down.
