¢THE MAKING OF NUMBER BUSTER¢By S.Roe - April 1993¢¢Background¢----------¢¢ The inspiration for programming this game came from me spending many a lunch-time in my last job playing a version on a mainframe computer. I'd tried several times to write my own version in Atari BASIC, but it just lacked the speed needed (in fact, it was even slower than the version on the mainframe). Then I came across Turbo BASIC and realised I could utilise the speed and some of the extra functions of this superb language.¢¢¢Writing the game¢----------------¢¢ The first thing I set about doing was to sit down with the trusty pen and paper and think how I was going to start off the program. I found the easiest way was to write small modules (procedures) for each section of the program. Next I had to filter through each module and write extra modules for any repitions I found.¢¢ When I thought I had all of the modules I needed, I set about entering them into the computer. I spent several nights entering all of the procedures and then linking them all together by use of a control loop. I now had a working version of the program.¢¢ Now that I had got the program working 'crudely' I set about designing the screen layout so that it didn't look too clumbersome or too complicated. Once I had done this I had to go through the program and change every PRINT and POSITION statement to refelect the screen positions I had produced above.¢¢ Next came the inclusion of sound effects and the redefinedd characetr set. Once that had been done, it was just a case of 'play-testing' it until I was sure it was bug-free. (Thanks to Joanne for testing and suggesting improvements. She now doesn't want to see another computer as long as she lives though!!!)¢¢¢Improvements/Modifications¢--------------------------¢¢ If anyone out there makes any improvements to the game, I'd like to know about them; I may even be able to give you some advice!¢¢¢Changing the program¢--------------------¢¢1) TIME LIMIT¢For more time (default is two minutes) you can change the variables on line 5020 accordingly to:¢¢ MD - Number of minutes (0-9)¢ SD - Number of seconds (0-59)¢¢Entering values outside the specified range may introduce errors into the program. I don't know what would happen as I haven't tried it!¢¢¢2) DIFFERENT FONT¢For a different font, you could swap the NUMBUST.FNT file for one of your own. But remember to take a backup of the original file.¢¢The file has to be a standard 9 sector font file. Also the program uses the SHIFTed characters on the numeric keys and some CONTROL characters.¢¢¢Variables Used¢--------------¢¢General Purpose variables:¢ A¢ B¢ D¢ I¢¢Used for converting values to string:¢ P Value to be converted¢ P1 Length that the string should be¢ P$ String returned¢¢Used for time calculations/display:¢ ET¢ CT¢ M¢ M1¢ M2¢ MD Number of minutes allowed¢ S¢ SD Number of seconds allowed¢ T$ Time display¢¢User score/status:¢ BON Bonus count (0-5)¢ P3 Flag for if calculation right¢ SC User's score¢ TOP High score¢¢Keyboard input:¢ C$ Character input (string)¢ CH Character input (ASCII value)¢¢Screen display variables:¢ BL$ String of spaces for wiping areas of the screen¢ M$ String for holding messages¢ PS Cursor position¢ X X co-ord for screen¢ Y Y co-ord for screen¢¢Other variables:¢ A(n) Holds number for calculation¢ A$ Holds the operators that the user has entered¢ ANS Contains the target¢ NUM Question number¢ P(n) Holds time values when paused¢ P4 Flag for Help¢ P5 Flag used in START SCREEN procedure¢¢¢ENJOY NUMBER BUSTER!¢¢¢(Ed: Thanks Simon! This insight into how you programmed Number Buster was of great interest to me and hopefully all other Futurians. Keep up the good work!)¢
