Software of the Month Club 1995 December/SOFM_Dec1995.bin/pc/dos/child/wng/namegame.doc

Text File | 1995-10-31 | 16KB | 451 lines

                     The WORLD Name Game

PURPOSE


        The WORLD Name Game is an educational program in a form which
appeals to children. It provides the user with maps of areas surrounding
national and state capitals and challenges him to name country, state, or
city. The maps permit the user to learn countries and cities in relation
to the surrounding territories. This methodology increases the learning rate
and facilitates recognition.


OPERATION

                     THE OPENING SCREEN

        The title page displays a stylized world and asks the question.

Who is going to play?

        Answer with an identifying name.  This will become the name of a
file which will have an extension of .WNG (for WORLD Name Game). Because
it will be a file name it can be no more than 8 characters long. The
WORLD Name Game will chop it to 8 characters if you enter too many - it
will then ask you if the chopped name is OK. If you answer N for no the
program will ask you for a new name or symbol. Because it will be part
of a file name you can not have a space or any of the following symbols
in your identifying file ./\[]:|<>+=;, or the " symbol (See your DOS
manual).


        Use something that you will remember! Your first name or
nickname is a good idea! The file that is saved with this name will
store your 10 best scores and the way you like to play the game.


                    "WHO"

        If you forget the name you used you can answer the question
with the word WHO. The screen will clear and you will be shown the
names of all the player files that the WORLD Name game knows about
(all the *.WNG files in the same subdirectory as the game.) You
can then hit enter and WORLD Name Game will, once more, ask for the
name you want to use.

        If you use another player's file you will find that the game is
setup the way that player last played and your scores may be credited to
that player. PLAY FAIR - use your own file! You can have more than one
if you want to keep track of how you do with different set ups - just
give yourself different names. You could name them BOB, BOB1, and BOBA
for example. Remember files all have CAPS even when you enter them as
lower case.

                         -1-



                  YOUR ".WNG" file

        Once you have entered a valid name the WORLD Name Game will
check to see if the file already exists in the directory.



If the name does NOT EXIT:

        WORLD Name Game will ask if you want one created. It will
report:

I didn't find your file xxxxxx
Would you like me to set up your score file [Y] or N?


        The xxxxxx will be replaced by the characters that you
entered in response to the who's playing question. The [ and ]
surrounding the Y indicate that it is the default answer - if you
simply hit the ENTER key, it is the same as if you typed the Y (for
YES) and hit ENTER.
        If you type N and hit ENTER no file will be created.  This
will allow you to play the game but no record of the session will be
kept and if you use the set up option to select save the record, an
error will occur.

        If you answer Y for YES or just hit the ENTER, a file with
the extension .WNG will be created. This file will consist of the
default settings for the game as well as up to 10 high scores. The
screen will clear and indicate the identifier followed by a row of
stars and the statement that you have:

0 correct out of 0 attempts on dd-mm-yyyy 0 Percent 3-1N-1C 0          |

        dd-mm-yyyy will indicate the date the computer believes is
today. If it is not correct use the DATE command before starting the
program (See your DOS manual for DATE). It will then ask you to hit
the ENTER key. The code after the Percent indicates a mode (see later).|

If the name DOES EXIST:

        The WORLD Name Game will read the record of how the last saved
game for this player was set up and any scores saved for this player (up
to 10 sessions)

        The Screen clears and the name is printed at the top of the
screen followed by a row of stars. This will be followed by up to 10
sets of scores in the format:

X correct out of Y attempts on DD-MM-YYYY 0 Percent 3-1N-1C 0          |

        The code following the word Percent indicate the mode used     |
during the session.                                                    |


                         -2-




        These lines will be followed by a summary line that indicates
the total correct, the total attempts and the overall percentage of the
top 10 scores for this player.

        Hit ENTER to continue:



        The screen will clear and present you with the WORLD Name Game
control screen.  You will end up here often! TO STOP A FUNCTION TYPE   |
END at any input.                                                      |

 The CONTROL SCREEN:

                        THE WORLD NAME GAME



               [1] - Play The WORLD Name Game
                2 - Study Capitals of the USA
                3 - Study National Capitals
                4 - Set Up the game




               Monitor is CGA          Countries only is ON
               Save game is ON         Area is set to Nations
               Maps are set to  1      Names are set to ON


                    99 - EXIT to DOS  ?


        Note the [] around the 1  - this indicate that Play the Name
Game is the default. If you just hit ENTER, the game will start. The
game will be played according to the selections shown at the bottom
the screen.

        If you type 2 and hit ENTER, you will be presented with a list
of the Capitals of the United States. When you select one by typing
its number (5 for Austin, TX), it will be displayed in accordance with
the selections shown at the bottom of the CONTROL SCREEN. Typing END will
return you to the CONTROL SCREEN.

        If you type 3 and hit ENTER, you will be presented with a list
of the first 60 National Capitals that the WORLD Name Game knows
about. There are OVER 200 of these. To advance to the next page
you must type M. Simply type a number or the word END. Typing END will     |
return you to the CONTROL SCREEN. Note: Column width only allows a portion
of the name to be shown on these screens. You will see the whole name on
the map.

         When you type 4, you are presented with another screen.

                     -3-


          The normal mode is Cities AND Countries (or States)
         If you just want to answer with country names, press
         C for COUNTRIES ONLY otherwise, just Enter?


The C in the Word COUNTRIES is highlighted to indicate that you must
type the letter C if you want the COUNTRIES ONLY option. This option
allows you to gain correct responses by simply answering the name the
city questions with the name of the country only. (EG. the correct
response for London, United Kingdom would be United Kingdom).

        The NORMAL mode (DEFAULT) is that you must type both the name
of the city and the name of the country to be correct. The city name
must be separated from the country name by a comma.




        The next prompt is:


       You have selected XGA as your display choice.
           To change  Type CGA EGA or VGA?

The X will be replaced with a C the first time since that is the
common mode.  It will be replaced by whatever you used last in
subsequent games.

The C, E, and V are highlighted to indicate that these are the key
letters. If you just hit ENTER, then whatever is in the place of the X
will be retained.

        If you have a VGA system any response (C, E, or V) is
acceptable.
        If you have an EGA system any response (C, E, or V) is
acceptable. -- Note: this is only because the WORLD Name Game does not
use VGA only screens. -- no improvement can be gained from the data
that the game uses. The VGA option is provided for convenience only.
        If you have a CGA system, you must select C. Any other
response will create an illegal function ERROR when the game goes to
draw a map.  Nothing will be damaged! The game will end and your
score will not be saved.
        If you have a Monochrome system that is compatible with a
HERCULES board you can run the program with the C option ONLY AFTER
running a CGA SIMULATOR such as SIMCGA.
        If you have a MCGA, you can run the program in CGA mode only.
        If you have a MDPA, you can NOT use this program.

        The next prompt is:

            You have selected X as your study area
 You can choose USA only, National Capitals only, or Both  (U,[N],B)?

X will be replaced by the last choice that you made for this option.

N is the DEFAULT and stands for National Capitals only -- You will
only be questioned about National Capitals not State Capitals.
                 -4-



U stands for USA only -- You will only be  questioned about U.S.
Capitals.

B stands for Both -- You will randomly be asked for U.S. as well as
National Capitals.


        The prompt:

Chose area surrounding the target (1,2,[3],4,5) 1=largest area shown?

The default is a medium sized map (3)



"1" shows the largest area centered on the target city and "5" the
smallest.  You must experiment with different sizes based upon your
level of knowledge. The "1" provides a large amount of data - generally
too much - capitals often overwrite each other. The "5" provides minimal
data - you may or may not have a border visible - you may have to
answer based upon the latitude - shown at right center and the
longitude - shown at center bottom!


        The next prompt:

     Label surrounding Capitals [Y] or N?

The default is Yes.  This will put the name of every capital visible
on the map to the right of it's location circle.

A N response provides the added challenge of not knowing what the
surrounding capitals are!


        The final prompt:

             Should I Save your results [Y] or N?

This allows you to decide if you want the scores and setup saved to
your file.  The DEFAULT is Yes.


        The choices you make will be reflected in the appropriate
place on the CONTROL SCREEN. Check here to be sure that everything is
the way you want it. This information will be saved IF you have
chosen the Save game option, ON, AND you have made at least one
attempt at playing the game.

                      -5-

                         CODE

        The CODE displayed on the top 10 board indicates the mode used during
the session.

        It it in the form S DN RMO.

          S is 1-5 the scale.
          D is either -1 or 0. -1 indicates names are displayed.
          N is N for Nations, U for USA, B for Both
          R is either -1 or 0. -1 indicates save data
          M is for monitor type C=CGA E=EGA V=VGA
          O is for country only


                      -6-


                    Multiple Copies


        If you have a use for more than one copy of the program site
licensees are available based on the following schedule.


        School systems:
               Each individual system (1 school to 30 schools) can
               be licensed for $250. This license permits unlimited
               copies of the program to be used within classrooms
               belonging to the specific system. The system will be
               provided with a master disk. The final screen will
               identify the ownership of the program and state that
               the program is restricted to classroom use inplace of
               the shareware screen. Minor changes can also be made
               to the program by the author.

        Other Educational units:
               A license comparable to the above will be made
               available upon request.

        Commercial use:

        Single copy price is $15.........Disk/Envelope/on disk Doc
        2 to 10 .............$11/disk....       "               "
        11 to 50 ............$8/disk.....       "               "
        51 to 100 ...........$6/disk.....       "               "

        Over 100 copies is beyond my capabilities and would require
onsite reproduction at a cost of $2/user. I would supply a single
Master Disk, customized for your facility, which includes
documentation. You would reproduce program disks and/or printed
documentation.

        This program may not be sold! I own the copyright to the
program and reserve all rights with the exception of distribution.
You may distribute the program to others but you may charge no more
than $10 for your time, efforts, disk, and mailing costs.

                          -7-






                      Registration

        Registration is buying the program! It's as simple as that.
When you pay a distribution service a few dollars you have bought a
disk and paid for the service to search through many many programs to
find programs which are of value to their customers. The person or
company that created the program receive nothing from the
distributor.

        If you receive the program from a friend or BBS the creator
of the program again receives nothing.

        Shareware is like test driving an automobile. You have a 100%
operational, real program to test drive! You can take the car out of
the showroom and, in some cases, even take it home for a while. With
shareware you can even take it to work and see if it does what you
want it to do. But, until you register the program it is not yours!
Once you find that you are USING the program for something, not just
trying it out to see what it will do, it is your responsibility to
pay for the program. That alone is enough reason to register programs
but in most cases there are other benefits that accrue to those who
do register.

                          -8-




        The Cost of registering a single copy of this program is $15
in US funds.


        When you register this program you will:
           Be entitled to the latest update of the program on your
              disk for free and all future updates at $5 each.
              Updates will be the result of user suggestions and/or
              corrections. ($5 handling fee for all overseas orders)

           Receive you own personal serial number which will allow
              you to receive $1 each time someone registers the
              program and includes your serial number.

           If you don't already subscibe to COMPUSERVE you will
              receive information on how to subscribe to COMPUSERVE for
              free and receive a $15 usage credit.

           You will receive an acknowledgement from the author and a
              single page summary of other programs he has written.


                             -9-



   []                  2
   B                   4
   Benefits            9
   CGA                 4
   CODE                6
   Complaints          7
   Control screen      3
   Cost                9
   Country only        4
   DATE                2
   Default             2,3
   Does exist          2
   Doesn't exist       2
   Educational use     7
   EGA                 4
   Fair Play           1
   High scores         2
   MCGA                4
   MDPA                4
   Multiple copies     7
   Multiple files      1
   N                   4
   No record           2
   Ombudsman           8
   Partial names       3
   Redo from start     3
   Registration        8,9
   SIMCGA              4
   Scale               5
   School use          7
   Scores              1,2
   Size                5
   Surrounding         5
   Symbols             1
   U                   4
   Upper case          1
   VGA                 4
   WHO                 1
  .WNG                 1