home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
The Arcade Companion 1
/
The Arcade Companion 1.iso
/
mahjong
/
mjvga31.doc
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1991-10-19
|
52KB
|
1,665 lines
Mah Jongg
-V-G-A-
Version 3.1
November, 1991
Program and Documentation
Copyright 1988 - 1991 Ron Balewski
Mah Jongg -V-G-A- is a User-Supported (Shareware) prooduct. It is
freely available through User's Groups, Bulletin Boards, etc. You have
the opportunity to try the game and see if it suits your needs. If you
find that you enjoy and use this game, please send the requested
contribution of $15.00 to:
Ron Balewski
412 E. Ridge St.
Nanticoke, PA 18634-2915
User-supported shareware can exist only as long as you, the users, will
support it!
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
-------------------
FORWARD: A Message to current users .... 4
WHAT IS MAH JONG -V-G-A- ............... 5
HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS .................. 4
THE GAME OF MAH JONGG .................. 6
The Tiles ......................... 6
The Suits ......................... 6
The Game Board .................... 6
Playing Mah Jongg ................. 7
Strategy .......................... 7
PLAYING MAH JONGG -V-G-A- .............. 8
The Basics ........................ 8
The Added Features ................ 9
Special ...................... 9
K submenu .................... 9
Messages ..................... 9
Restore ...................... 9
Quit ........................ 10
New Game .................... 10
Save ........................ 10
What's Left ................. 10
Back-up ..................... 11
Help ........................ 11
Done ........................ 13
Turning Off the Menu ........ 13
The Special Sub-Menu ............. 14
Background .................. 14
Info... ..................... 14
DOS Shell ................... 14
Sound ....................... 15
Timer ....................... 15
Keyboard Commands ................ 16
Load Tile Set ............... 16
Box Cursor Toggle ........... 16
Hall of Fame ................ 17
Book-Marks .................. 17
DOS Shell ................... 17
Stack Control Menu ............... 18
Peek ........................ 18
Rotate ...................... 18
Remove ...................... 18
- Page 2 -
Command Line Options ............. 19
B ........................... 19
D ........................... 19
F ........................... 19
L ........................... 19
M ........................... 19
R ........................... 19
S ........................... 19
T ........................... 19
IN CASE OF DIFFICULTY ................. 20
TECHNICAL SUPPORT ..................... 20
BULLETIN BOARD ........................ 21
WHAT'S NEXT ........................... 21
SHARWEWARE ............................ 22
DISCLAIMER ............................ 22
PERMISSION TO COPY .................... 23
Appendix A: The Files ................ 24
Appendix B: The MIDI Sound Files ..... 25
Appendix B: THe ADLIB.CFG Adlib file . 28
Special thanks to Warren Storosko for his valuable assistance with
this project. Many of Mah Jongg -V-G-A-'s special features are a
direct result of his helpful suggestions.
- Page 3 -
FORWARD
A message to current users
As usual, there's a WHATSNEW.V31 text file listing all changes made
to MJVGA since the last release. Not too many this time, though!
I'd once again like to thank those who have registered the various
versions of MJVGA (this is the sixth release already!). Your constant
support and encouragement is what keeps me working on MJVGA.
The bound manual that I mentioned in the last release still isn't
ready -- and probably won't be unless a LOT more of you want it. To
date, I've had at most four people express interest in it. It
definitely wouldn't be worth my time for so few people -- I'd much
rather spend the time programming!
That MJ8514 version of Mah Jongg is almost ready. In fact, it's
been in "public beta test" for several months now. All I have to do
is get around to doing the documentation!
The registration fee will be $25. Yes, I know that's a bit more
than MJVGA costs. Part of the reason is that it'll be distributed on
at least one high-density disk and maybe two. The rest is because,
frankly, I think it's worth it!
Registered MJVGA users can order a test copy of MJ8514 for my
usual $3 handling fee. Others are on their own to find it!
- Page 4 -
WHAT IS MAH JONG -V-G-A-?
Mah Jongg -V-G-A- is a high-tech simulation of the ancient Chinese
game of Mah Jongg. Some historians date Mah Jongg back to the time of
Confucius -- over 25 centuries ago!
It's believed that sailors and fishermen played Mah Jongg as a
diversion from the monotony of their long voyages. The game was
originally played with cards, but eventually bone and bamboo tiles were
substituted since these were less likely to be blown off the deck.
Mah Jongg -V-G-A- recreates the beauty and addictive pleasure of
Mah Jongg, but uses modern data processing techniques and
high-resolution graphics instead of bamboo tiles.
In an attempt to make this game as elegant and as enjoyable as
possible, the author has used some of the most advanced features of
today's state-of-the-art MS-DOS computers. Not all PC computers are
able to run Mah Jongg -V-G-A-. But if yours can, prepare yourself for
the meeting of the past and future!!!
WHAT DO I NEED?
Mah Jongg -V-G-A- will run on properly-equipped PC's and
compatibles with 640k of memory. It should run with less, but I don't
know the exact lower limit.
A VGA graphics card and a Logitech-compatible mouse are also
required. Certain convenience features require a three-button mouse.
However, the game can be played with a Microsoft-compatible two-button
mouse.
I also recommend a secondary monochrome monitor. Mah Jongg -V-G-A-
will use both the VGA and the monochrome monitors simultaneously to
display the game board and statistics. While you don't NEED the
monochrome display, I find it to be a useful part of the game.
A fast processor isn't really necessary. While a fast machine and
a fast graphics card will speed up tile removal somewhat, the game plays
just fine on a standard turbo XT.
- Page 5 -
THE GAME OF MAH JONGG
---------------------
THE TILES
There are 42 different tiles used in Mah Jongg as follows: 27 Suit
tiles (nine tiles in each of three suits), 3 Dragons, 4 Winds, 4
Seasons, and 4 Flowers.
THE SUITS
The Suit Of Dots - This suit goes back to the original sailor's
version of Mah Jongg. The dots probably represent money.
The Suit Of Bam - Bam stands for Bamboo. Because bamboo was used
to make deadly spears, this suit is thought to represent power or
victory.
The Suit Of Crak -