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==================== +----+ | | | | | +--+ --+ | | | -+| | | +--| | | | || | | | | | | +---|+ +--+ +--+ + + +- ver 2.00 ==================== SMALL ARMS EXTERIOR BALLISTICS FOR IBM PC's and COMPATIBLES equipped with Enhanced Graphics Adapters by Benjamin W. Hartley Forest Park Estates #103 Jaffrey, NH 03452 603 532 6248 CompuServe: 70033,2612 ( This is ASCII-formatted QBALL.DOC, the On-disk documentation.) "QBALL" -- Source code, executable files, and documentation are (c) 1991 by Benjamin W. Hartley. All rights reserved. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- i ] ===================== D E D I C A T I O N --------------------- QBALL was inspired by the many computer programs published in The American Rifleman, and is respectfully dedicated to their author: William C. Davis, Jr. ==================== DISCLAIMER ---------- The application described in this documentation, this documentation itself, and all programs and/or files written or modified by the application are supplied "as is." Responsibility for determining its suitability for any purpose rests solely with the user. The au- thor will not be held responsible for injury or damages resulting from the use of the application; all remedies rest solely with the user. The application is distributed without any warranties, express or implied, with this SINGLE exception: copies of the pro- gram files distributed on author-supplied disks will be replaced if the disk(s) prove defective. +=================================================================+ | LIMITED LICENSE | | =============== | | Individual users may make copies of the program files for | | backup and personal use. Individual users are also encouraged | | to distribute copies to others, provided that all files are so | | distributed in their entirety and without modification. | | Computer clubs may make copies for distribution, with the | | same provisions, and also provided that no fee in excess of a | | reasonable copying/media fee is charged. (Reasonable is taken | | to mean $10.00). | | Commercial distribution by "library" companies is subject | | to the same conditions imposed upon computer clubs. | +=================================================================+ +=================================================================+ | QBALL is distributed as user-supported software, ("Shareware"), | | and should be registered. See Appendix G for registration form. | +=================================================================+ COPYRIGHT INFORMATION --------------------- IBM, PC-DOS are trademarks of International Business Machines. MS-DOS, QuickBASIC, GW-BASIC are copyright, Microsoft, Inc. GRAFWIZ, PBCLONE, PTCLONE are copyright, Thomas G. Hanlin III. --------------------- [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- ii ] TABLE OF CONTENTS ----------------- Dedication, Disclaimer, License, Copyright Information..........i Table of Contents..............................................ii Introduction..................................................iii Chapter page ------- ---- 1. Getting started..............................................1 1.1 Files required......................................1 1.2 Will It Work ?......................................1 1.3 Copying the program.................................2 1.4 Printing the documentation..........................2 1.5 General Instructions................................3 1.6 Starting QBALL......................................4 2. Computing ballistic or gun data..............................7 2.1 Preliminary data entry..............................7 2.2 Computing and displaying a range table..............8 2.3 Displaying graphics................................11 2.4 Changing input data................................14 2.5 Other ballistic procedures.........................15 3. Inferring ballistic coefficients............................20 3.1 First Run: r1 = 0..................................21 3.2 Second Run: r1 = 25................................22 4. Printing tables.............................................23 4.1 Printer warnings...................................23 4.2 Screen dumps.......................................23 4.3 Printer setup......................................23 4.4 Print functions....................................23 4.5 Typical printed output.............................24 5. Configuring display and default starting values.............25 5.1 The Configuration Menu.............................25 5.2 Switch toggles (set defaults)......................25 5.3 Configuring display colors.........................26 5.4 Using the values you've set........................26 5.5 Some other considerations..........................27 Appendices:-- A. Glossary....................................................29 B. Example of Ballistic Coefficient from Tabular Data..........35 C. Example QBALLSAV.* file.....................................37 D. Selected bibliography.......................................39 E. Error analysis..............................................40 F. Error Messages, Default Starting Values.....................43 G. Enhancement form............................................47 H. Registration form...........................................49 [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- iii ] INTRODUCTION ------------ QBALL is a menu-driven application for the rapid computation of ballistic values for small arms projectiles. QBALL will quickly compute point-of-impact data, velocity and energy levels, trajectories relative to line-of-sight, and times of flight. Additional routines permit the calculation of ballistic coefficients, point-blank range, wind deflection corrections, sectional densities, impact variations for non-horizontal fire, and free recoil energy. Printing routines provide for the production of hard copy where appropriate. Starting values to which the program will default may be modified using the built-in configuration routines. It is assumed that QBALL users will have some knowledge of exter- ior ballistics. QBALL is not intended as a means of learning the subject; several of the references in the Bibliography contain basic introductions to ballistics. Study of the references will amply repay the effort involved. QBALL uses the "G1" drag function for computation of trajectory and other values. Appendix D of this documentation compares values from selected published tables with values calculated using QBALL. Warning! QBALL users are cautioned that data computed using the routines contained herein should be used as guides to the determ- ination of ballistic performance! Should the user be engaged in reloading small arms ammunition, it is incumbent upon the user to verify the values obtained using QBALL with a standard published reloading manual. Several such manuals are listed in Appendix C. The application title, "QBALL" does not in any way refer to the game of billiards; it's short for "Quick BALListics." Seemed appro- priate, somehow: QBALL's written in QuickBASIC. If you find QBALL of use, but would like it to do something that it doesn't do now, or have suggestions to improve what it does already, you are invited to send in a copy of the Enhancement Form. While no promises are made that your suggestion will be incorporated, the first person suggesting an improvement which is subsequently implemented will receive a free copy of the first release in which that improvement is implemented. The latest version of QBALL is available from the author for a $25.00 registration fee. Registration entitles the user to the most recent version with one free upgrade, and a 3-hole punched printed manual. The QuickBASIC 4.50 source code is available to registered users for $50.00. You may register and obtain the source code at the same time for $60.00. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 1 ] Chapter 1 --------- GETTING STARTED """"""""""""""" 1.1 Files Required. -------------- QBALL.ZIP -- or whatever the name of your downloaded archive file is -- is initially distributed with the following files: QBALL DOC -- This documentation file. QBALL EXE -- The QBALL executable file. QBALL CFG -- The QBALL configuration file. QBALLODD DOC -- Odd-numbered documentation pages. QBALLEVN DOC -- Even-numbered documentation pages. QBREADME BAT -- Prints short intro on screen. QBALLENH FRM -- The QBALL enhancement form. QBALLREG FRM -- The QBALL registration form. (Note: Registered copies of QBALL are distributed in non-compressed format.) The only absolutely, positively, gotta-have file is QBALL.EXE. The documentation is nice, but extra until you've played with the program; the built-in configuration routines will write QBALL.CFG for you if it is not present. 1.2 Will It Work ? -------------- In its present incarnation, QBALL is written in and compiled as a stand-alone .EXE file using Microsoft QuickBASIC 4.50. QBALL was written on a Gateway 2000 AT clone, with an 80286 pro- cessor, AMI BIOS, MS-DOS 5.0, 5 1/4" (1.2 meg) and 3 1/2" (1.44 meg) floppy drives, 40 megabyte hard-disk, and Samsung CM4531 EGA monitor. No coprocessor was used. Several routines from Thomas G Hanlin's GRAFWIZ, PBCLONE, and PTCLONE libraries are included; acknowledgement for the use thereof is hereby made. QBALL requires an EGA or better monitor. Given an EGA monitor, QBALL should run on any PC-DOS or MS-DOS computer. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 2 ] 1.3 Copying the program files. ------------------------- It is a good idea to make a copy of the original QBALL files, and keep it in a safe place. Run QBALL from copies of the original! Make sure that you copy both QBALL.CFG and QBALL.EXE to the same directory, or onto the same disk. QBALL.EXE will look for its associated .CFG file in the current directory. (Running the configuration routine writes the resulting .CFG file to the current directory.) If QBALL.CFG is not found, QBALL.EXE will default to its own internal values, so lacking the .CFG file is not fatal. (Just neater to put 'em both in the same place!) Put QBALL.DOC, QBALL.ODD, and QBALL.EVN wherever you can get at them. 1.4 Printing the documentation. -------------------------- QBALL.DOC is formatted to print with a wide-enough left margin to allow for puching to fit a 3-ring binder. There is no need to set your printer to print the IBM graphics set as in earlier editions; this version of the on-disk documentation uses only the low-order characters. You need not set your printer to skip perforations in fanfold paper; the document file contains the appropriate form-feed control characters. QBALL.DOC is an approximately 125K file. (That's 50 pages; plan your paper and time requirements accordingly!) There are two ways of printing the documentation: one is to copy "QBALL.DOC" to your printer; otherwise, copy "QBALL.ODD" to your printer, then flip the paper over, and copy "QBALL.EVN" on the backs of the same sheets. The second option saves paper, but requires that you do a bit more work. In either case, log into the directory or onto the disk where you've put QBALL.DOC, and enter the following: COPY QBALL.[DOC][ODD][EVN] PRN (Now go do something else. Each pass) (using the ODD/EVN option takes about) (25 minutes to print at 10 cpi, near-) (letter quality; a single pass takes) (just about double that. If you're in) (a real rush, print in draft mode... ) [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 3 ] 1.5 General instructions. -------------------- Selecting menu options. Press the key corresponding to the letter which is highlighted/bracketed in that option. For example, to choose option "P", press upper- or lower-case "P." QBALL's menus are not case sensitive. If the option does not appear, QBALL will "beep", and do nothing further. Response to "Y or N". Press upper- or lower-case "Y" or "N". "Enter" is default for "Y". If another character is pressed, QBALL will "squeak" and do nothing further. ESC key. "ESC" will "back up" one menu providing a menu is dis- played on the screen. Each menu specifies where "ESC" will take you. There is one exception: "Quit to DOS" requires that you press "Q" and confirm with "Y". Data entry and error trapping. Type the value or string to be used, then press [Enter]. QBALL will not accept the wrong data type; values which are outside QBALL's ability to use will produce an error message. You may edit your entries before entering them. Special case of [Enter] in data entry. [Enter] pressed when a value appears in the prompt line will use that value in subsequent computations. The "default" values are displayed in [brackets]. Swap Units option. The unit of range measure may be swapped back and forth between Yards and Meters using the "New Input Data" menu. As distributed, QBALL defaults to "Yards"; this may be changed using the configuration routines. Noises. QBALL will "squeak" upon erroneous data value entry, and "chirps" upon completion of a computation, or upon invocation of <S>wap units. QBALL defaults to sounds "on"; sounds may be toggled "off" for peace and quiet. A "flash" replaces noises in quiet mode. Graphics. If appropriate, QBALL will query "Do Graphic ?". Press "Y" to display a graphic representation of trajectory data, or "N" to skip the display. There is no provision for toggling graphics "off." Print options. QBALL may query "Print This Table?" after every data table/listing is displayed on the screen. Press "Y" to get hard copy, "N" to return to the previous menu. ENSURE that your printer is on/on-line if you want hard copy; QBALL is not set up to detect printer faults of any sort! Display of the printer prompt may be toggled "on" or "off;" QBALL defaults to "on." Redirection of data output. QBALL does not support redirection of data output, e.g., to a disk file, except as otherwise provided within the graphics routines. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 4 ] 1.6 Starting QBALL -------------- Log into the directory or onto the disk where you've put QBALL.EXE and QBALL.CFG, and type: QBALL (+ [Enter]). The next thing you'll see is this screen, here somewhat modified to permit printing it without using graphics characters: +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +=====================================================================+ | +=======+ + + + | | | | | | | | | | | | +===+ | | | | | | +===+ +===+ | | | | | =+ | | | | | | | | | +=====|=+ +===+ +===+ + + | | += Reg #0000SW | | [ Exterior Ballistics for PC's & Compatibles ] | | [ Using G1 Drag Functions -- version 2.0 ] | | [ Copyright (c) 1991 - Benjamin W. Hartley ] | +=====================================================================+ Welcome to computer ballistics with QBALL! QBALL provides small arms trajectory data quickly and accurately. Users are encouraged to verify QBALL data with a standard reloading handbook! The author will NOT be responsible for the misuse or misapp- lication of QBALL-generated data. ===> press any key <=== (-SAV) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ QBALL "honked" at you, didn't it? That simply means that QBALL could not find a specialized *.INI file; there isn't any right now, but you'll be writing one later. If you heard two tones, the opening screen should also be displaying "(-CFG)," indicating that QBALL.CFG wasn't found, either, and QBALL started with its internal default values. Two pieces of information which you should note from the initial screen: the Version, and the Registration Number. When you register your copy of QBALL, please include these numbers on your order. Press any key to continue. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 5 ] Assuming everything is working, the screen has cleared, and you are now looking at the following screen: ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ > Ballistic Computations: Typical Firearm < +===================================+ | *** M A I N ME N U *** | | ------------------------------- | | <C>ompute Ballistic or Gun Data | | Infer allistic Coefficient | | Change <D>isplay & Switches | | <N>ew or Changed Input Data | | ------------------------------- | | <Q>uit -- Return to DOS | +===================================+ ----------------------------------------------------------------+ [ MV: ][ C1: ][ Wt: ][ Met: 59d 0' 29.53" 78% ]| | | | | | | | | | | Muzzle Ballistic Bullet Metro -- | Velocity Coefficient Weight, Temperature, degrees F. | (FPS) (grains) Gun Altitude, feet | Barometric Pressure, "Hg | Relative Humidity, percent | | +---------------+ | (Please make note of the information) +-------------- (contained in the "Information Line",) [ H: 1.00][Yds] (here shown "folded". The "Informa-) | | (tion" or "Info Line" is updated if) | | (changes are made to any of the in-) Sight Range (formation it shows. Note that some) Height Units (of the items are blank; values will) (inches) (Inverse) (be filled in presently. ) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Go on to the next page... [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 6 ] The most frequent use for QBALL will be the production of ballis- tics tables for a specific cartridge/load. With the menu shown on the screen, pressing "C" will open the menu for computation of ballistic or gun data. More information about using this option is contained in Chapter 2. If you wish to infer a ballistic coefficient, then press "B". More information is to be found in Chapter 3. "Change <D>isplay...", "D" provides a means to set display col- ors, the status of the printer and noise switches, and the values to which QBALL will default upon start-up. See Chapter 5 for more information about configuring QBALL. "<N>ew or Changed..." goes to a secondary menu which allows entry or modification of input data. We'll try this one a bit later. "Quit" -- press "Q" to return to DOS. QBALL will ask you to confirm that you indeed wish to quit. Press "Y" to return to DOS or press "N" to continue using QBALL. For right now, press "C" to compute ballistic data and to do the "tutorial" which follows. Go on to Chapter 2, page 7. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 7 ] Chapter 2 --------- Computing Ballistics or Gun Data """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 2.1 Preliminary data entry. ---------------------- Before doing anything else, we're going to have to enter some information for QBALL to chew on. QBALL will ask you for data which it does not already have. The items of information for which QBALL will prompt you are, in order, (with suggested "for practice" entries): a. The ballistic coefficient (C1) for the projectile in question . . . . . . . . . . . .250 (Note the leading decimal point!) b. The bullet weight in grains . . . . . . . . . 125 c. Whether or not to use the displayed metro . . "Y" (QBALL will default to "Standard Metro"; you) (can use nonstandard metro, but, just to keep) (things simple, stay with standard metro for) (now. ) d. The muzzle velocity . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2300 Enter values at the appropriate places when prompted. Try entering an impossible value or two, and see what happens. A complete list of QBALL's error messages is in Appendix E, with the most common causes for their display. For purposes of this tutorial, the gun/bullet is identified as "Typical Firearm." This may be changed using the "<N>ew or Changed" menu option. Continue with "Typical Firearm" for the time being. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 8 ] 2.2 Computing and displaying a range table. -------------------------------------- Assuming everything is going as it's supposed to go, the screen will clear, and you'll be presented with this screen: ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ > Ballistic Computations: Typical Firearm < +=================================+ | *** Computations Menu *** | | ------------------------------ | | <S>et/Reset Current Zero Range | | Range <T>able (0 MUST BE SET) | | <O>ther Ballistics Procedures | | <N>ew or Changed Input Data | | ------------------------------ | | <ESC> to M A I N M E N U | +=================================+ ---------------------------------------------------------------+ [ MV: 2300 ][ C1: .250 ][ Wt: 125 ][ Met: 59° 0' 29.53" 78% ]| | (Note: Info line shown) +---------------------+ ( "folded". ) +--------------- [ H: 1.00 ][Yds] ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ AHA! All the spaces on the Info Line now have values in them, some of which you just entered, and some of which are the QBALL de- fault (or starting) values. "<O>ther Ballistics Procedures" are described in Chapter 5. As you can see, you can change the Input Data by using option "N" on this menu; for now, continue with what you've got. "ESC" will "back up" one menu; try it and see. Then remember to press "C" to get back here. The other two options are described in the following section. (From here on, the Screen Header line, which ) (tells you what cartridge/bullet you're deal-) (ing with, and the Info Line will be omitted) ( from the printed examples. ) [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 9 ] Take a close look at the menu: it is telling you that the range at which you wish to be zeroed must be set. Press "<S>et Zero..." and enter: "150" -- without the quotes, of course. Having done that, it looks like you're right back where you started; but take a closer look. +=================================+ | *** Computations Menu *** | | ------------------------------ | | <S>et/Reset Current Zero Range | | Range <T>able (0 = 150 Yards) | | <O>ther Ballistics Procedures | | <N>ew or Changed Input Data | | ------------------------------ | | <ESC> to M A I N M E N U | +=================================+ The zero range for your range table is now set. In future, if QBALL has been provided a zero range, it will be displayed in the computations menu. If no valid zero range exists, the phrase "0 MUST BE SET" will be displayed instead. One of the useful tables that QBALL will generate is a range table from zero to a designated range with a fixed range increment. Press "T" and enter the following data when prompted: Range for List/Table/Comp.........: 150 Range Increment...................: 25 QBALL will clear the screen and display the following table, (here shown in somewhat compressed format): Range Table, Zeroed at Highlighted Range ---------------------------------------- Range R e m a i n i n g Total Path/Sight Line Defl'n Time Yards Velocity Energy Drop M.O.A. Inches 10 MPH Flght ----- ----------------- ----- --------------- ------ ----- 0 2300 1468 0.0 0.0 -1.0 0.0 0.000 25 2218 1365 0.2 1.5 0.4 0.1 0.033 50 2138 1268 0.9 2.7 1.3 0.5 0.068 75 2059 1176 2.0 2.4 1.8 1.0 0.104 100 1982 1090 3.6 1.7 1.7 1.8 0.141 125 1906 1008 5.8 1.0 1.2 2.8 0.179 [ 150 1832 932 8.6 0.0 0.0 4.1 0.219 ] 175 1761 861 12.0 -1.1 -1.9 5.8 0.261 200 1693 795 16.2 -2.2 -4.5 7.7 0.305 ----------------------------------- Do Graphic ? ([Y] or N) [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 10 ] This table is interpreted as follows: if, for example, a bullet having the given ballistic characteristics is fired at the given muzzle velocity, then, at a range of, say, 200 yards, it will retain 1693 FPS velocity, 795 ft-lbs of energy, will have dropped 16.2 inches below the line of departure, will have risen to a maximum of 1.8" above the line of sight, will have been blown 7.7" sideways by a 10 MPH crosswind, and will have taken 0.305 seconds to travel 200 yards downrange from the muzzle. Additionally, the height of the bullet above or below the sight line in both minutes of arc and inches is given at each listed range. Note that the tables displays "0.0" at 150 yards, the zero range. In similar fashion, data may be read from the table for each of the listed ranges. Should you try this procedure with a larger range, or a smaller range increment, QBALL will display as many lines as will fit on the screen, and display a prompt like this: ----------------------> More <-------------------. Press any key to continue with the next part of the table. The hardcopy print routines recompute the tabular data, so there is no need to be concerned with information which has scrolled off the screen. Put a marker in this page, and return to it to experiment later. Press "Y" to display graphics...(and turn the page). [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 11 ] 2.3 Displaying Graphics. ------------------- You should at this time be looking at a graphic representation of the projectile's trajectory as viewed from the side. Note the empha- sized line indicating the line of sight, and the curved line which delineates the bullet's path from the muzzle (0) to the maximum range (200). (Unfortunately, there's no way to provide a picture of the screen, except for the lower left corner, which provides some infor- mation, and allows for some options.) The "information block" should look something like this: +============================================+ | Current Previous | | Max Ht: 1.8" @ 86 | | Min Ht: -4.5" @ 200 <none> | | MuzVel: 2300 FPS | | BCoeff: .250 | | ZeroRg: 150 Yards | | Metro : Standard | | * = MaxHt | +==<Q>uit <S>ave <G>rid======================+ The information provided is pretty much self-explanatory. The options on the bottom line: <Q>uit <S>ave <G>rid, allow you to quit the graphics routine, save the current trajectory data to disk, and toggle the background grid on and off, respectively. Press "G" to see what happens; the screen is redrawn without the background grid lines. Press "G" again to redisplay the grid lines. (In its default configuration, QBALL will display the grid.) Ignore <S>ave for the present, and press "Q" to quit the graphics routine. The previously-displayed range table is again displayed, but with a different prompt: Print this Table ? ([Y] or N). If your printer is ON and ON-LINE, press "Y" to obtain a hard copy of the range table. If no printer is available, or you just don't want to use up paper, press "N," which will return you to the computations menu. Now let's play "what if...?" What would happen to the trajectory if, say, the muzzle velocity is increased to 2500 FPS? Let's find out. With the computations menu displayed, press "N" to access the "New or Changed Input Data" menu...(and turn the page). [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 12 ] And here it is; you can access this menu from either the compu- tations menu, or the main menu. +=================================+ | *** New Input Data Menu *** | | ----------------------------- | | <C>artridge/Bullet Identifier | | Muzzle <V>elocity | | allistic Coefficient | | Bullet <W>eight | | <M>etro (dFnt 'Alt "Hg %RH) | | Sight <H>eight | | Yds/Mets <S>wap (Now Yards) | | ----------------------------- | | <ESC> to Computations Menu | +=================================+ In this instance, press "V" to change the muzzle velocity, and enter "2500" when prompted. You'll be returned to this menu; it is possible, but not recommended, to change more than one item of input data at a time. Note that the info line now reflects the new muzzle velocity. Press "ESC" to return to the computations menu. Now step through the process of setting the zero range (150), the maximum range for the range table (200), and the range increment (25). When prompted for graphics, press "Y." The information block now looks like this: +============================================+ | Current Previous | | Max Ht: 1.5" @ 86 mmediate | | Min Ht: -3.5" @ 200 <none> | | MuzVel: 2500 FPS | | BCoeff: .250 | | ZeroRg: 150 Yards | | Metro : Standard | | * = MaxHt | +==<Q>uit <S>ave <G>rid======================+ Now press "I" to display a graphic representation of the mmed- iately-previous trajectory data. Here's the new information block: +============================================+ | Current Previous | | Max Ht: 1.5" @ 86 1.8" @ 86 | | Min Ht: -3.5" @ 200 -4.5" @ 200 | | MuzVel: 2500 FPS 2300 | | BCoeff: .250 .250 | | ZeroRg: 150 Yards 150 Yards | | Metro : Standard Standard | | * = MaxHt * = MaxHt | +==<Q>uit <S>ave <G>rid======================+ [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 13 ] As you can see, the screen display is somewhat different. The differences between trajectories are graphically presented, and the information block reflects those differences. Note that the previous value of the parameter which we changed, the muzzle velocity, is high- lighted in the new information block. All values so changed will be thus highlighted, except for "Metro" which will be displayed as either "Standard" or "Non-standard." Now, let's save the current trajectory data to disk. Press "S". The information block will clear and display the following: CURRENT data will be saved to disk. After the disk write is complete, the following is displayed: Saved in current directory as QBALLSAV.001 ====> press any key <==== QBALL allows saving of up to 9 "QBALLSAV" files, 001 through 009. An example is to be found in Appendix C., page 37. Upon pressing a key, you are returned to the range table display, just as though you had pressed "Q." When next you access the graphics routine, the information block will look like this: +============================================+ | Current Previous | | Max Ht: 1.5" @ 86 mmediate | | Min Ht: -3.5" @ 200 <1> | | MuzVel: 2500 FPS | | BCoeff: .250 | | ZeroRg: 150 Yards | | Metro : Standard | | * = MaxHt | +==<Q>uit <S>ave <G>rid======================+ The "1" in the "previous column" indicates that one trajectory's worth of data may be recalled from a disk file and displayed. Note carefully, however, that recalled data replaces "Immediate" data. If you wish to display the immediately-previous trajectory data, always display the immediate data first. Should the display become cluttered with too many trajectory plots, you may erase all of them except "Current" (and "Immediate", if displayed) by toggling the grid. You retain the ability to call up data from a disk file, if any. Remember that "specialized *.INI file" that QBALL couldn't find? It now exists as "QBALLSAV.INI" in the current directory, along with the saved trajectory data, saved as "QBALLSAV.001." [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 14 ] At this point, either print the range table, or skip the print, and return to the computations menu, and we'll take a more detailed look at the "New or Changed Input Menu." 2.4 Changing Input Data. ------------------- Here's the "New or Changed Input Menu" again. +=================================+ | *** New Input Data Menu *** | | ----------------------------- | | <C>artridge/Bullet Identifier | | Muzzle <V>elocity | | allistic Coefficient | | Bullet <W>eight | | <M>etro (dFnt 'Alt "Hg %RH) | | Sight <H>eight | | Yds/Mets <S>wap (Now Yards) | | ----------------------------- | | <ESC> to Computations Menu | +=================================+ Let's see what each option does. Cartridge or Bullet Identifier. This option allows you to change the designation of the cartridge, bullet, or firearm with which you are working. Press "C" and enter a string of characters. (If you press enter at the prompt, it returns "Typical Firearm.") Muzzle Velocity. This, as has been seen, changes the muzzle velocity to be used. QBALL accepts velocities from 300 FPS to 4500 FPS, inclusive. Ballistic Coefficient. This allows changing the ballistic coeff- icient to be used, perhaps reflecting a different bullet or cartridge. QBALL will accept values greater than zero and less than or equal to unity (one). Bullet weight. Allows changing the bullet weight. Acceptable values are any number greater than zero. Metro. This one's got four parts; you are required to either confirm or change each of temperature, gun altitude, barometric pres- sure, and relative humidity. Pressing "Enter" at each input prompt uses "standard" metro. Acceptable values are as follows: a. Temperature : -50 to +125 Fahrenheit. b. Gun Altitude : -800 to 10000 feet. c. Barometric Pressure : 25 to 35 inches of mercury. d. Relative Humidity : 0 to 100 percent. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 15 ] Sight Height. Allows fine-tuning QBALL to a specific weapon. The supplied sight height of 1.00 inches is a "generic" value, and should be changed to reflect the actual sight height. Acceptable val- ues: -2 to +5 inches. Swap Units. This option toggles QBALL between yards and meters, and will cause QBALL to make all range calculations in the chosen unit of measure. Note well, however, that while computations using meters are accurate, they may produce some rather strange looking displays; specifically, the range increment may not appear as expected. This is unavoidable, as meters and yards to not take kindly to being convert- ed, one to the other. You may return to "yards" by swapping units again. Note that only ranges are affected; heights and deflections will still be displayed or printed in inches, and velocities will continue to be shown in feet per second (FPS). (A rough approximation to convert inches) (to centimeters is to multiply the inches) (dimension by 2 1/2. (A more accurate) (multiplier is 2.5404.) If you're a real) (glutton for punishment, you can divide) (velocities in FPS by 3.28083 to obtain) (velocities in Meters per second. QBALL,) (however, will not perform either of these) (conversions for you. ) 2.5 Other Ballistic Procedures. -------------------------- Five "other ballistic procedures" are described in this section. The first two, point-blank range and wind vector corrections, directly interface with the range table/graphics procedures; slant angle of fire, sectional density, and free recoil may be invoked for the infor- mation they produce. From the computations menu, press "O" to access the "Other Procedures Menu:" +===============================+ | * Other Procedures Menu * | | --------------------------- | | oint-blank Range | | <W>ind Vector Corrections | | Slant <A>ngle of fire | | <S>ectional Density | | <F>ree Recoil of Gun | | --------------------------- | | <ESC> to Computations Menu | +===============================+ [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 16 ] Point-Blank Range. ----------------- The "point-blank range" for any weapon / ammunition combination may be defined as that range for which the trajectory deviates not more than a specified amount from the line of sight, either above it or below it. Press "P" to access the point-blank range determination routine. When prompted, enter maximum deviation = 3 (for 3 inches above and below the line of sight). The screen will look something like this: +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Determination of Point Blank Range ---------------------------------- Maximum Deviation 3 ---------------------------------- Trial Zero Range = 512 Yards +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ After a pause, during which the trial zero range will change several times, the following will be displayed: ---------------------------------- Point Blank Zero Range = 179 Maximum Range = 207 ---------------------------------- ===> press any key <=== When you "press any key" you are returned to the computations menu, where you will observe that the zero range has been set to 179. You may now go ahead and develop a range table for this weapon/ammuntion combination, using that computed zero range. It is recommended that you use a range increment which will give you trajectory heights at even multiples of 50 yards. If you do so, you'll know how high to sight in your weapon at, say, 100 yards so as to be zeroed at 179, thus assuring a maximum deviation of 3 inches from the line of sight out to 207 yards. (The graphics routine, if invoked, will draw a horizontal line on the screen at scale 3 inches above and below the line of sight. These lines will continue to be displayed until you change the zero range.) And what does all this do for you? Well, with this "point-blank" zero, you can hold "dead-on" out to slightly more than 200 yards, and be assured that the bullet will strike no more than 3 inches high or low at any point along its path. Beats estimated holdover, don't you think? [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 17 ] Wind Vector Corrections. ----------------------- One of the columns in the range table gives the wind deflection, in inches, for a 10 MPH "pure" crosswind. To compute the deflection for other windspeeds and directions, press "W", and enter the wind speed (in MPH), and the azimuth from which the wind is blowing, from 0 to 360 degrees. QBALL will compute the vector effects of the wind values entered, and will display them as shown: +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ------------------------------ Wind velocity [ 10 MPH ] 20 Wind direction [ 270d ] 135 ------------------------------ Range wind = 21 feet per second Cross wind = 14 miles per hour Crosswind correction = -1.40 Use correction factor(s) in tables ? ([Y] or N) +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ A "Y" response will cause the deflection values in the range table to be displayed for the computed crosswind; in this case, 14 MPH. QBALL takes crosswinds from left to right as positive; from right to left, as negative. No correction is applied for the range wind, as that effect becomes significant only at very long range, with a low muzzle velocity, and small ballistic coefficient. (Try entering a new muzzle velocity using the range wind correction and see.) Should you wish to return to the default wind values, simply press "enter" when prompted for wind values when starting this routine. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 18 ] Slant Angle of Fire. ------------------- Virtually all firing tables and ballistics computations programs, QBALL among them, assume that the angle of fire in use is relatively close to horizontal. It is known, however, that firing "upslope" or "downslope" will effect the strike of the bullet: it will hit high relative to point of aim in both cases. How high? Press "A," and enter a maximum range of 400, a range increment of 100, and a vertical angle of 25 degrees. The following table will be displayed: +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Hits High for Slant Fire, 25d Above or Below Horizontal ----------------------------- Range True Hits Yards Drop High ----- ----- ----- 0 0.00 0.00 100 3.64 0.34 200 16.23 1.52 300 40.99 3.84 400 82.94 7.77 ----------------------------- ===> press any key <=== +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The table tells you that this weapon / ammunition combination, fired at a vertical angle of 25 degrees above or below the horizontal, will hit high by the specified distance for each listed range. The effect is relatively small for small vertical angles, but can become great enough to be of real concern, especially at relatively long ranges and at large vertical angles. Try several examples and see. (A clear exposition of the geometry of this problem may be found in the LYMAN Manual, listed in the bibligraphy.) Sectional Density. ----------------- The sectional densities of two or more particular bullets may be used to compare their relative penetrating power. Sectional density is defined as the weight of the bullet in pounds divided by the square of its diameter in inches. Press "S," and enter the bullet diameter in either inches or millimeters. QBALL assumes that any value you enter which is greater than "1" is in millimeters, and makes the con- version to inches. The dimension may be taken as the bore diameter of the weapon you are considering. This routine reports the sectional density of the bullet under consideration. This value is included in the Range Table printed header, but there is no specific routine to print just this value. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 19 ] Free Recoil Energy. ------------------ We all know that a firearm "kicks." Simple Newtonian physics, right? But how hard does it kick? One way to compare absolute num- bers, and without getting into the mare's nest of "actual" versus "perceived" recoil, is to compare the recoil velocity and energy im- parted to the weapon upon firing. Press "F," and enter the powder weight in grains. The example uses 38 grains powder weight, which seems to be a fair "average" powder weight from several random exam- ples taken from the SPEER Reloading Manual. You must also enter the weapon's weight, in either pounds and ounces or in pounds and decimal fractions of a pound. For an 8 1/2 pound rifle, for example, enter either "8.5" or "8<space>8". The result is displayed: ------------------------------ Gun Recoil Velocity: 7.83 FPS Free Recoil Energy : 8.11 Ft# ===> press any key <=== Unfortunately, these figures are relatively meaningless without some basis for comparison. Here are three for starters, all data computed using QBALL: --------- G U N -------- Velocity Energy FPS Ft-Lbs -------- ------ 1. Ruger M77R (6.75 pounds) .22-250 Remington 7.86 6.49 Muz Vel = 3680 Bul Wt = 55 Pow Wt = 36 2. Marlin 336CS (7 pounds) .30-30 Winchester 10.67 12.39 Muz Vel = 2390 Bul Wt = 150 Pow Wt = 35 3. M1 Garand (9.5 pounds) .30-'06 Springfield 10.88 17.47 Muz Vel = 2700 Bul Wt = 180 Pow Wt = 50.5 The ammunition specified is a "best estimate" using published Winchester data for velocities and bullet weights, and powder weights from the HORNADY HANDBOOK. The weapon weights were taken from the 1991 edition of GUN DIGEST. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 20 ] Chapter 3 --------- Inferring ballistic coefficients """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" From time to time, it may be desired to determine the ballistic coefficient of a particular bullet, and the available tables do not include that data. Select "Infer allistic Coefficient" at the main menu. (You will be encouraged to read this section of the manual, if you haven't done so already.) Press "Y" to continue with the routine. QBALL will ask for several pieces of information: basically, two ranges, and two velocities. This diagram will help you visualize the setup. |---[r1]----| ( >>>>>>> = bullet path ) |-----------[r2]----------| Gun >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> v@1 v@2 r1 = range, muzzle to first range r2 = range, muzzle to second range v@1 = velocity at first range v@2 = velocity at second range It is possible for r1 to equal zero; in that case, of course, v@1 would equal the muzzle velocity. (This is the only time that QBALL will allow you to enter a range of zero; "zero" is the default value for r1.) The routine for inferring a ballistic coefficient allows use of non-standard metro, should you have developed your own velocity data from live firing. You may change the metro conditions to be used before beginning to enter velocity data. The ballistic coefficient reported, however, is adjusted to standard metro conditions in all cases. You may enter as many as ten (10) individual range/velocity pairs. The average v@1, v@2, and ballistic coefficient are reported. If r1 is greater than zero, i.e., you are not working with a muzzle velocity, QBALL reports an inferred muzzle velocity. Let's work through the process. Refer to the table on page 9, and either copy the range and velocity figures, or run the range table routines and produce hard copy. We'll do this twice: once, with r1 set to 0, and once more with r1 set to 25; r2 will be set at 100 in both cases. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 21 ] 3.1 First Run: r1 = 0 ----------------- When prompted for the "first range," press "enter;" for "second range," enter "100." The following screen will be displayed. Enter the appropriate velocity values as shown. QBALL will quickly return the value of the ballistic coefficient, and ask if you wish to calcu- late another round. Responding "Y" clears the velocity inputs, and you'll be prompted for another velocity pair. In this case, press "N." (In all probability, you're working from published tables, and using the same numbers twice would be meaningless.) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ *** Inferring a Ballistic Coefficient *** ----------------------------------------- Metro: as displayed Relative Air Density = 1.000 Relative Sonic Velocity = 1.000 ----------------------------------------- For Round Number 1 First Velocity (Ft/Sec) 2300 Second Velocity (Ft/Sec) 1982 For Standard Atmosphere, C1 = .250 Calculate another Round? ([Y] or N) [ Lower & Upper Ranges (yards) [0] & 100 ] +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The center of the screen will clear, and the following informa- tion is displayed: ----------------------------------------- Average C1 for 1 round = .250 Between Mean Velocities 2300 and 1982 Calculated Muzzle Velocity = 2300 ----------------------------------------- QBALL will ask if you wish to print the table. For now, press "N" to return to the main menu. Note that the information line now shows the muzzle velocity and the computed ballistic coefficient. If you so desired, you could now go on to compute ballistic or gun data, but let's try the infer ballistic coefficient routine again, with r1 set to something other than zero. (You should be at the main menu; press "B.") [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 22 ] 3.2 Second Run: r1 = 25 ------------------- Enter "first range" = 25 and "second range" = 100. When prompted for the velocities, enter 2218 and 1982. You should end up with the following display: ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ For Round Number 1 First Velocity (Ft/Sec) 2218 Second Velocity (Ft/Sec) 1982 For Standard Atmosphere, C1 = .250 Calculate another Round? ([Y] or N) [ Lower & Upper Ranges (yards) 25 & 100 ] ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Again, press "N;" you don't want to calculate another round. The center of the screen will clear, and, after a short time for computa- tions, the following information is displayed: ----------------------------------------- Average C1 for 1 round = .250 Between Mean Velocities 2218 and 1982 Calculated Muzzle Velocity = 2300 ----------------------------------------- Press "N" to skip printing the table, and return to the main menu. Again note that the information line shows the calculated muzzle velocity and the inferred ballistic coefficient. You may now go on to calculate ballistic data using the values obtained using this routine; QBALL will continue to use this data until changed. This may have seemed like an exercise in futility: we did, after all, know what the ballistic coefficient was in the first place. Suppose, however, you have a ballistics table from, say, Winchester- Western, which includes only velocity data? Inferring a ballistic coefficient based on the published velocity figures will allow you to make your own "custom" firing table for a particular factory round. (Most ammunition manufacturers are noticeably reticent when it comes to some ballistics data.) Additionally, should you be reloading your own ammunition, and have access to two chronographs, you could make a custom firing table for your own custom ammunition. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 23 ] Chapter 4 --------- Printing Tables """"""""""""""" 4.1 Printer warnings. ---------------- QBALL is NOT set up to detect printer faults of any kind! ENSURE that your printer is on and on-line, paper installed, and that the proper printer setup has been accomplished BEFORE you try to print ANY QBALL output! 4.2 Screen dumps. ------------ It is possible to print a screen's worth of information using the Shift-PrtScr key combination available in DOS. This is NOT recom- mended, however, as you may very well lose information which has al- ready scrolled past on the screen. 4.3 Printer setup. ------------- You need not set up your printer to skip perforations in fanfold paper; QBALL keeps track of the number of lines printed and issues a formfeed when appropriate. Continuation tables are sequentially num- bered, and each page will have the appropriate column headers printed on it. There is no need to set your printer to indent from the left margin, either. It is best, in fact, to use a printer setup of "left margin = 0," as QBALL is set up to indent each table it prints an appropriate number of spaces. You may also toggle the print prompt "off," in which case, you will not be asked if you wish hard copy. This feature is useful if you are sure you won't want printouts, or if you have no printer. QBALL defaults to printer "on," and displays the print prompt. 4.4 Print functions. --------------- You may obtain hard copy of any table which is followed by the prompt: Print this table? (Y or N). Press "Y" to print the table. The prompt will be replaced with the statement "Printing table" in highlighted text. If you have a printer with a sizable buffer, QBALL will return you to the previous menu quite quickly. If not, QBALL will finish printing out the table, then return you to the previous menu. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 24 ] 4.5 Typical Printed Output. ---------------------- QBALL will print a "standard header" and a table title at the top of each table the first time you respond "Y" to the printer prompt. If the input data remains unchanged, QBALL will not print the standard header, but will print the table title. If one or more items of input data are changed, QBALL again prints the standard header, which looks like this: ====================================================== >>> Ballistic Computations for the Typical Firearm <<< ------------------------------------------------------ Muzzle Velocity = 2300 FPS Ballistic Coefficient = .250 Bullet Weight = 125 Gr Sectional Density = n/a Temperature = 59 deg F Altitude = 0 Feet Barometric Pressure = 29.53" Relative Humidity = 78% ------------------------------------------------------ For printed data tables, QBALL recomputes each line of data which appears or has appeared on the screen, so information which has scrolled off the screen may be printed. (This might occur, for exam- ple, if you've used a large range, and a small range increment.) In most data table cases, the format of the printed output is virtually identical to the screen display. And here's the printed output for the "Infer Ballistic Coeffi- cient" routine, using some of the same data we used in chapter 3: ============================================================ >>> Inferring Ballistic Coefficient for: Typical Firearm <<< ------------------------------------------------------------ Given the following meteorological conditions: Temperature..........: 59 deg F Barometric Pressure....: 29.53"Hg Relative Humidity....: 78 % Gun Altitude...........: 0 Feet Relative Air Density.: 1.000 Relative Sonic Velocity: 1.000 and the number of rounds shown, the ballistic coefficient (C1) was computed using the veloci- ties indicated. ---------------------------------------------- Round V1 V2 C1 ----- ---- ---- ---- 1 2300 1982 .250 ---------------------------------------------- Average C1 for 1 round = .250 Between Mean Velocities 2300 and 1982 Calculated Muzzle Velocity = 2300 ============================================== [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 25 ] Chapter 5 --------- Configuring display and default starting values """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 5.1 The Configuration Menu. ---------------------- You may wish to change some or all of QBALL's start-up data. Press "D" at the main menu, to display this "Configuration Menu:" +=================================+ | *** Configuration Menu *** | | ----------------------------- | | Toggle Active <S>witches | | Change Display <C>olors | | Use <T>his Session Only... | | ...or <W>rite QBALL.CFG File | | ----------------------------- | | <ESC> to M A I N M E N U | +=================================+ 5.2 Switch Toggles (Set Defaults). ----------------------------- Press "S" to display this "Set Defaults Menu." Pressing the appropriate key toggles that particular item; the current setting is reflected immediately, and QBALL will act accordingly until it is again changed. +===============================+ | *** Set Defaults Menu *** | | --------------------------- | | Yds/Mets <S>wap (Now Yards) | | Graphics <G>rid (Now ON) | | rinter on/off (Now ON) | | <N>oises on/off (Now ON) | | --------------------------- | | <ESC> to Configuration Menu | +===============================+ You may also toggle the unit of range measure between yards and meters from the "New/changed Input Data" menu, which is accessed from the main menu and the computations menu. If you toggle the printer off, all "Print This Table" prompts are suppressed, and "====> Press any key <====" is displayed instead. If noises are toggled off, they are replaced with a short-dura- tion "flash" in the lower right corner of your screen. Press "ESC" to return to the Configuration Menu. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 26 ] 5.3 Configuring display colors. -------------------------- Press "C". A special color configuration screen will appear. Pressing the appropriate keys will "step" through the available colors for background ("B"), main body text ("foreground," "F"), Highlighted text ("highlight," "H"), and for the Title/Info line ("low intensity," "L"). When you've found a combination that you like, press "ESC" to use the display colors you have chosen, and return to the configura- tion menu. Note that the currently chosen and the default color values are displayed at the bottom of the color configuration screen. If you get in a muddle, and want to start over again, press "D" to return to the default color settings. 5.4 Using the values you've set. --------------------------- Having set the display colors and toggles as you like them, and <ESC>-ing to the main configuration menu, you may: Use <T>his session only... ...or <W>rite QBALL.CFG File If you're sure of the values you've entered, press "W" to write a new QBALL.CFG file to the current directory. (And remember, if you change your mind, there's nothing to stop you from running Configur- ation again.) If you'd like to use the values for this session only, perhaps to see how they work out, press "T". ("ESC" has the same effect as "T" in this case.) If you decide later to save your "temporary" setup, choose "D" from the main menu, then choose "W" immediately from the configuration menu. QBALL doesn't care if there's a delay between choosing configuration values and writing an *.CFG file; it will quite cheerfully write a *.CFG file using whatever values are in effect at the time the "W" option is chosen. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 27 ] 5.5 Some other considerations. ------------------------- The QBALL.CFG file includes a good bit more information than just the display colors and toggle status. QBALL.CFG also controls the starting values for the following: a. Cartridge/bullet Identifier b. Meteorological conditions c. Sight height. Upon invocation of the "Write QBALL.CFG File," the new .CFG file will also include the values of these items which are currently in effect. This allows you to "tailor" your copy of QBALL to match your own con- ditions: your weapon, and the actual (or anticipated) metro which is encountered at your own firing range. Specific times you might very well want to use metro values other than standard are, for example, if your range is not at sea level, or if you're shooting during the summer, when the temperature might very well exceed 59 deg.F. You can configure QBALL to start with the alti- tude of your range, or an expected temperature, without the hassle of changing the values after start-up. In similar fashion, you may configure QBALL to start with the name of your own weapon, say, "Ruger M77 .270" and the actual measured height of that weapon's sight, say, 1.25 inches. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 28 ] --------- N O T E S --------- [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 29 ] Appendix A ---------- Glossary """""""" ABSOLUTE ZERO - Properly, that temperature at which all molecular mo- tion ceases. For practical purposes, -459.67 degrees Fahrenheit, or 0 degrees Rankine. AIR DENSITY - The mass (weight) of a unit volume of air. AIR RESISTANCE - The retardation of a bullet's forward flight due to the atmosphere. ALTITUDE - The vertical distance above or below sea level. Altitudes above sea level are taken as positive; those below, as negative. BALLISTICS - The study of moving projectiles. Commonly, what is meant is "exterior" ballistics: that portion of the bullet's flight between the muzzle and the target. BALLISTIC COEFFICIENT - The ratio of the sectional density of a pro- jectile to its coefficient of form. A measure of how well a bullet re- tains its velocity. Commonly supplied by reloading manufacturers, or it may be derived from their ballistic tables. In QBALL, the ballis- tic coefficient is always taken at standard metro. The program cor- rects for nonstandard conditions, but does not display the corrected ballistic coefficient(s). See STANDARD METRO BALLISTIC EFFICIENCY - The relative ability of a bullet in flight to overcome air resistance. BORE - The inside of a firearm's barrel. In rifled firearms, the bore diameter is the original dimension of the barrel before the rifling grooves are cut or swaged in it. Bore diameter may also be taken as the transverse dimension between the lands of the rifling. See LANDS BRASS - Alloy of copper and zinc commonly used in the fabrication of cartridge cases. Also, one or more cartridge cases containing neither powder, nor primer, nor bullet. BULLET - The actual projectile in small arms ammunition. Commonly corrupted to mean the entire cartridge. BULLET WEIGHT - Weight of the actual projectile, usually stated in grains. See GRAIN [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 30 ] CALIBER (or CALIBRE) - Technically, the diameter of the barrel mea- sured across the lands. In practice, the diameter of the bullet. A measure of length equal to bore diameter; thus, a "fifty caliber" barrel would be 50 bore diameters long. CARTRIDGE - Fixed ammunition, including case, powder, primer, and bullet, for small arms. See ROUND. CHAMBER - The breech, or rearmost portion of the barrel, which con- tains and supports the cartridge prior to, during, and immediately following firing. COEFFICIENT OF FORM - A number relating the ballistic efficiency of a given bullet shape to the shape of the projectile used to calculate the ballistic table. C1 - Formula symbol for ballistic coefficient. CROSS WIND ANGLE - The angle between the wind and line of departure. Typically tabulated as ninety degrees, or "pure" crosswind with no range vector. QBALL takes left-to-right wind as positive. DRIFT - Technically, the distance a bullet will travel horizontally due to its spin. This effect is usually quite small, amounting to about 7 inches at 1000 yards for the military M2 Ball (.30-'06) car- tridge. Often confused with wind deflection. See WIND DEFLECTION. DEFLECTION - See wind deflection. DOWNRANGE - Refers to the position of objects in space relative to the direction of fire; point of aim and point of impact, for example, are by definition downrange. DROP - The distance a bullet will fall due to the influence of grav- ity. Measured from the line of departure, not the line of sight. ELEVATION - Vertical sight adjustment. Also, the (usually small) angle between the axis of a firearm's bore and the horizontal. ENERGY - Here, the kinetic energy of a moving bullet, usually given in ft-lbs. Equal to one half the mass of the bullet in pounds multi- plied by the square of the velocity in feet per second. F.P.S. - Feet per second. A unit of velocity. Also abbreviated as FPS and Ft/Sec. FT.-LBS. (Also FtLbs, Ft#) - Foot pounds. A unit of energy equal to the effort required to lift one pound, one foot. FORM FACTOR - A multiplier which relates a bullet's shape to that of the standard projectile used to prepare a particular ballistic table. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 31 ] GRAIN - A unit of weight equal to 1/7000 of a pound. 437.5 grains equal one ounce. May also refer to an individual particle, or ker- nel, of powder. In cartridge specifications, always refers to the weight, never to individual particles. GROOVES - Spiral impressions cut or swaged lengthwise through a bore to impart spin to projectiles. See LANDS. GROUP - The pattern made, at the target, by a number of shots fired at a single point of aim and (usually) a common sight setting. Usually measured from center-to-center of the two most widely spaced holes. GUN - In popular usage, refers to firearms, generally. HANDGUN - A firearm designed to be held and fired with one hand. HOLD OFF - The distance a shooter must shift his point of aim to the left or right to compensate for wind deflection. HOLD OVER - The distance a shooter must raise his point of aim to be on target when his firearm is zeroed at a lesser range. HORIZONTAL FIRE - That type of fire occurring when the barrel of the firearm is not elevated significantly above the horizontal. Generally may be taken as 1 degree of arc or less. INGALLS' TABLES - A set of ballistic tables first calculated by Col. J. M. Ingalls in 1918. Probably the most widely used tables for small arms ballistics calculations. IRON SIGHTS - Colloquial term for metallic sights. LANDS - Those portions of a rifled bore not cut away by rifling grooves. See GROOVES LEAD - (leed) How far ahead of a moving target a shooter must aim to be assured of hitting it. LEAD - (led) Soft, dense, silvery-gray metal with relatively low melt- ing point which forms the basis for many bullets. LINE OF DEPARTURE - An imaginary line formed by extending the axis of a firearm's bore in a downrange direction. LINE OF SIGHT - An imaginary line from the center of the sights to the point of aim. The bullet typically crosses this line only twice; once, a few yards from the muzzle, and again at the targeted distance. MASS - Properly, the weight of an object divided by the acceleration due to gravity. Commonly taken to mean "weight." [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 32 ] MAXIMUM HEIGHT - The highest vertical distance above a line from the muzzle to the bullet's current position. Sometimes confused with midrange trajectory since it typically occurs about halfway between the muzzle and the target. Maximum height is usually somewhat higher and occurs somewhat further downrange than the midrange trajectory. METALLIC SIGHTS - Sights on a firearm which contain no optical ele- ments. MET - An abbreviation for "meter"; also, a super-abbreviation of "Meteorological Conditions." See METER, METRO, STANDARD MET METER (also METRE) - A unit of length measure equal to 39.37 inches, 3.28083 feet, or 1.09361 yards. METRIC - Having reference to length measurements based upon the meter, its subdivisions, or its multiples. METRO - Short for Meteorological Conditions; the air temperature, bar- ometric pressure, gun altitude, and relative humidity existing at the place and time of firing. See STANDARD MET. MIDRANGE TRAJECTORY - The height of the trajectory at a point halfway between the firearm's muzzle and the point of aim. M.O.A. - Minute of Arc. Equal to 1/60 of an angular degree. At 100 yards, 1 M.O.A. is approximately 1.047 inches. MUZZLE - The foremost point of a firearm's barrel; that part of a firearm closest to the target. MUZZLE ENERGY - Foot-pounds of energy developed by a moving projectile at the firearm's muzzle. MUZZLE VELOCITY - The speed of a projectile at the firearm's muzzle, generally expressed in FPS. N.R.A - National Rifle Association. If you shoot, you SHOULD belong to this organization. OGIVE - The curve of a bullet's forward portion. Also, the radius of this curve, usually expressed in calibers. POINT-BLANK RANGE - That range for which the bullet's path varies from the line of sight by no more than a specified amount for the entire trajectory from the muzzle to that range. POINT OF AIM - That downrange point with which a firearm's sights are aligned. POINT OF IMPACT - That point which a bullet actually strikes. In most cases, considered in relation to point of aim. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 33 ] POWDER - The propellant material used in firearms. Usually not in powder form, but as small rods, spheres, or flakes. PRIMER - Impact-sensitive component of a cartridge which ignites the powder charge upon being struck by the firing pin or the striker of a firearm. PROJECTILE - A bullet, shell, golfball or other object shot, hit, thrown, or hurled in space; a projectile receives a single impetus, and continues in motion by its own inertia. A bullet is not properly a projectile until it is in motion. RELATIVE AIR DENSITY - The density of air at the measured metro divid- ed by the density of air at standard metro, expressed as a dimension- less decimal fraction, e.g., 1.000. RELATIVE SONIC VELOCITY - The velocity of sound at the measured metro divided by the velocity of sound at standard metro, expressed as a di- mensionless decimal fraction, e.g., 1.000. REMAINING ENERGY - A projectile's energy in foot-pounds at a given range. REMAINING VELOCITY - A projectile's velocity in FPS at a given range. ROUND - One complete cartridge. Also used to refer to the sequential number of a shot in a number of shots, as "Round #3." SCOPE - optical, as opposed to metallic, sights. Generally compounded as in "scope sight", "scope equipped", "scoped." SIGHT HEIGHT - The measured vertical distance between the horizontal centerline of the sights and the axis of the bore. SIGHTING IN - The process of firing to determine point of impact at a given range and adjusting the sights so that the point of impact has the desired relationship to the point of aim. See also ZERO. SIGHT RADIUS - The distance between the rear and the front sight, on those weapons equipped with metallic sights. SONIC VELOCITY - The speed of sound through air. STANDARD MET - Atmospheric conditions as follows: Temperature is 59 degrees Fahrenheit, barometric pressure is 29.53 inches mercury, gun altitude is zero (sea level), and relative humidity is 78 percent. Firing tables are usually corrected to standard met conditions. STP - Standard Temperature and Pressure. See STANDARD MET. STRING - A number of rounds fired at a common point of aim, often for the purposes of sighting in or zeroing a firearm. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 34 ] TARGETED RANGE - That distance furthest from the muzzle where the path of the bullet crosses the line of sight. (The "sighting in" distance.) TIME OF FLIGHT - The time necessary for a bullet to travel from the muzzle of a firearm to a given range. TRAJECTORY - The path of a moving projectile. Often expressed as the number of inches above or below the line of sight. WINDAGE - Horizontal, lateral sight adjustment. Also, the sight adjustment required to compensate for crosswind effects at a given range. WIND DEFLECTION - The amount of a projectile's horizontal lateral motion attributable to the action of the wind. Often mistakenly called drift. See DRIFT, WINDAGE YAW - Normally, a situation in which a bullet rotates on its axis at a small angle to the line of flight. ZERO - The sight setting at which point of impact and point of aim coincide at a given range. Also, the process of determining that sight setting. See also SIGHTING IN. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 35 ] Appendix B ---------- Example of Ballistic Coefficient from Tabular Data """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" The following table summarizes the determination of a ballistic coefficient using tabular values. The table is the one published in the 1990 GUN DIGEST, page 229. +-----------------------------------------------------+ | From Gun Digest Table for 30-06 Spfd, 180 gr bullet:| | | | Range in Yards | | ------------------------------------ | | Muz 100 200 300 400 | | ------------------------------------ | | Velocity 2700 2469 2250 2042 1846 | | Energy 2913 2436 2023 1666 1362 | | Trajectory -1.5 2.5 0.0 -9.3 -27.0 | +-----------------------------------------------------+ Table B1. Data Taken From Published Table. Using the routines to infer a ballistic coefficient, plugging in 100 and 200 yards for the required ranges, and using the associated velocities, QBALL reports that C1 (the ballistic coefficient) is equal to 0.384. Returning to the main menu, selecting the ballistic computations option, and entering the appropriate values for muzzle velocity and bullet weight and sero range, QBALL produces the data shown in Table B2. +-----------------------------------------------------+ | QBALL Data Table for 30-06 Spfd, 180 gr bullet: | | | | Range in Yards | | ------------------------------------ | | Muz 100 200 300 400 | | ------------------------------------ | | Velocity 2700 2470 2251 2043 1846 | | Energy 2913 2437 2024 1668 1362 | | Trajectory -1.5 2.1 0.0 -9.0 -26.2 | +-----------------------------------------------------+ Table B2. Data Calculated Using QBALL. The maximum variations are: Velocity, 1 FPS; Energy, 2 FtLbs; and Trajectory 0.8 inches. QBALL, therefore, can produce results in sub- stantial agreement with published data. It may be found that QBALL's computation of ballistic coefficient from tabular data may not exactly agree with the value known to be correct. A series of successive approximations can compensate for QBALL's built-in roundoff characteristics, and the small errors re- sulting from them. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 36 ] Suppose you have determined a ballistic coefficient from pub- lished data, say, the Ballistics Section of "Gun Digest." Having the ballistic coefficient, use that figure to calculate a table showing the same data as the published table. If, for example, the resulting velocities are too high, then reduce the ballistic coefficient that you're using to, say, 90% of the value QBALL has reported. Recompute the table. If the resulting velocities are now low relative to the published data, increase the second ballistic coefficient to 95% of the value originally used. In similar fashion, continue to refine the value of ballistic coefficient until the QBALL results agree as closely as possible with the published data. In general, however, the process of successively refining a ball- istic coefficient will prove unnecessary. The very small variations introduced by differences between successive bullets in a string, variations in muzzle velocity, and, possibly, rapidly changing metro render the process of successive refinement superfluous. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 37 ] Appendix C ---------- Typical QBALLSAV.00n File """"""""""""""""""""""""" The following table represents, in part and in somewhat compress- ed form, the QBALLSAV file produced using the data entered in Chapter 2. The first column is the range; the second, the trajectory height relative to the sight line. Note that the range increment is 1/100 of the maximum range. This is true of all QBALLSAV.00n files. ---------- 0.0 -1.00 2.0 -0.89 4.0 -0.78 //////////////////////////////////////////////// ... major portion of data omitted //////////////////////////////////////////////// 196.0 -3.17 198.0 -3.36 200.0 -3.55 2500 .25 150 1.49034 -3.548949 86 200 166.53 09-24-1991 / 12:07:18 / Typical Firearm Misc Info: Wt Tmp Alt BPr Hum SHt 125 59 0 29.53 78 1 --------------[ end QBALLSAV.001 ]------ ---------- ===================================== Key to values listed at end of table: ------------------------------------- First line: [Muzzle velocity] [Ballistic Coefficient] [Zero Range] [Max Height] [Min Height] [Range at Max Height] Second line: [Max Range] [Metro constant] [Date/Time/Identifier] Third and fourth lines: [Bullet weight] [Temperature] [Gun altitude] [Barometric Pressure] [Relative humidity] [Sight height] Fifth line: End of file indicator with Filename and number ===================================== The metro constant in line 2 keeps track of whether this trajec- tory data was computed using standard or non-standard met. It is the sum of the four metro values: temperature, altitude, barometric pres- sure, and relative humidity. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 38 ] H O U S E K E E P I N G - - - - - - - - - - - - It is STRONGLY recommended that you either erase or rename all QBALLSAV files after each session. QBALL has no way of knowing whether saved trajectory data is from the session in progress or a previous session. There are two ways of going about this. First, at the DOS prompt, enter: DEL QBALLSAV.* This is the simplest way, and avoids confusing QBALL in a later ses- sion. (Yes, QBALL gets confused easily.) Second, and if you want to keep the trajectory data for later examination, at the DOS prompt, enter this: DEL QBALLSAV.INI and REN QBALLSAV.* QBALLOLD.* This preserves the data and gets rid of QBALLSAV.INI, but the current directory or the current disk may end up jammed with old data. One further hint: EACH QBALLSAV.00n file uses 5800 bytes of disk space, and the .INI file uses 3 bytes. That's a LOT of disk sectors; make sure you've got sufficient space in the current directory/on the current disk for better than 60K worth of files! QBALL will "hang" if there's an error writing to disk. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 39 ] Appendix D ---------- Selected bibliography """"""""""""""""""""" Davis, William C., Jr. "Ballistics on the Home Computer," American Rifleman, CXXXI, 6 (June, 1983), p. 36. Davis, William C., Jr. "Ballistics on A Pocket Calculator," American Rifleman, CXXXV, 6 (June, 1987), p. 42. Davis, William C., Jr. "Calculate Ballistic Coefficients," American Rifleman, CXXXVII, 3 (March, 1989), p. 44. Davis, William C., Jr. "What Is The Ballistic Coefficient?," American Rifleman, CXXXVII, 3 (March, 1989), p. 12. HODGDON BASIC DATA MANUAL, Shawnee Mission: Hodgdon Power Company, Incorporated, 1987 Ramage, C. Kenneth (ed.). LYMAN RELOADING HANDBOOK. 46th ed. Middlefield: Lyman Products Corporation, 1982. Reiber, Ron L., and Heers, Edward A. (eds.). HORNADY HANDBOOK OF CARTRIDGE RELOADING, RIFLE-PISTOL. 3d ed. Grand Island: Hornady Manufacturing Company, 1980. SPEER RELOADING MANUAL #11, Lewiston: Omark Industries, Incorp- orated, 1987 Warner, Ken (ed.). GUN DIGEST, 1990. Northbrook: DBI Books, 1989. Warner, Ken (ed.). GUN DIGEST, 1991. Northbrook: DBI Books, 1989. WINCHESTER PRODUCT INFORMATION AND BALLISTICS GUIDE, East Alton: Winchester/Olin Corporation, 1989 [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 40 ] Appendix E ---------- Error analysis """""""""""""" How accurate are the results obtained with QBALL? Results from several QBALL runs were compared with comparable data from two sets of published tables: the Speer Reloading Manual #11 and the Hornady Handbook of Cartridge Reloading, 3d edition. Two ques- tions were to be answered: first, how well do velocity figures compare between the three sources?; second, are the trajectories found by the different sources comparable? Some difficulty was experienced in the choice of ballistic coeff- icients and velocities due to the differences between the two pub- lished sources. Speer, for example, rounds all ballistic coefficients to two decimal places, while Hornady carries three. In addition, when comparable values of ballistic coefficients could be found, the Horn- ady tables quite often did not have the spread of velocities available in the Speer manual. The following table summarizes as-comparable-as-possible data from all three sources. While severely limited, the data shows that the results obtained from QBALL are in substantial agreement with the two published sources. +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Remaining Velocity, Conditions as Shown | | ======================================= | | [ Range = 200 yards, Standard Met ] | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | MuzVel = 2100 MuzVel = 2500 MuzVel = 3300 | | C1 = .12 C1 = .26 C1 = .50 | | --------------- --------------- --------------- | | | | QBALL 1112 1879 2899 | | SPEER 1102 1872 2895 | | HORNADY 1126 1875 2892 | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ (Key: MuzVel = Muzzle Velocity C1 = Ballistic Coefficient) Table D1. Remaining Velocities With Given Inputs. Note should be made that the Hornady ballistic coefficients were actually .122, .259, and .496 for the three sets of data shown. This accounts for the apparent "high-on-low" spread of values seen here. QBALL was run with the bal- listic coefficients as shown. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 41 ] An examination of the data in Table D1 indicates that computa- tion of remaining velocities using QBALL will be, on average, 0.47% high relative to the Speer data, and 0.42% low relative to the Hornady data. The Hornady data, however, must be considered suspect, as the actual ballistic coefficients available in the Hornady table do not exactly match those specified. Even so, it would appear that QBALL's velocity results are certainly within one or two percent of published data. In practical terms, there is probably one or two percent vari- ation in velocity between successive rounds in a string, if not more. QBALL, it would appear, can produce velocity figures which are accu- rate enough for practical purposes. Trajectory comparisons are presented in the following table. +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Trajectory Comparisons - Conditions as Shown | | ============================================== | | [ All at Standard Met ] | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Range = 250 yards, zeroed at 50 yards; C1 =.12, MuzVel = 2100 | | | | Inches above/below line of sight at...(yards) | | --------------------------------------------- | | Muzzle 50 100 150 200 250 | | ------ --- ---- ---- ---- ---- | | QBALL -1.5 0.0 -1.3 -6.4 -16.9 -34.3 | | SPEER -1.5 0.0 -1.3 -6.4 -17.0 -34.7 | | HORNADY -1.5 0.0 -1.2 -6.3 -16.7 -33.2 | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Range = 400 yards, zeroed at 200 yards; C1 =.26, MuzVel = 2500 | | | | Inches above/below line of sight at...(yards) | | --------------------------------------------- | | Muzzle 100 200 300 400 | | ------ ---- ---- ---- ---- | | QBALL -1.5 2.9 0.0 -13.0 -39.5 | | SPEER -1.5 3.0 0.0 -13.0 -39.6 | | HORNADY -1.5 3.0 0.0 -13.1 -39.7 | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Range = 400 yards, zeroed at 200 yards; C1 =.50, MuzVel = 3300 | | | | Inches above/below line of sight at...(yards) | | --------------------------------------------- | | Muzzle 100 200 300 400 | | ------ ---- ---- ---- ---- | | QBALL -1.5 1.1 0.0 -5.2 -15.2 | | SPEER -1.5 1.1 0.0 -5.2 -15.2 | | HORNADY -1.5 1.1 0.0 -5.3 -15.7 | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ (Key: MuzVel = Muzzle Velocity C1 = Ballistic Coefficient) Table D2. Trajectory Comparisons Under Specified Conditions. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 42 ] A close examination of the data in Table D2 shows that there is very close agreement between the QBALL results and the published data. The greatest variation is at the greatest ranges; this is to be ex- pected. Since the ballistic coefficients used in obtaining data from the Hornady tables are not exactly those chosen as typical, being "high-on-low" respectively, it is also expected that the resulting bullet strikes will be too small, "on", and too large. There is, how- ever, substantial agreement between the QBALL results and the data from both published tables. The actual bullet strike differences be- tween QBALL's results and the published tabular data is two or three tenths of an inch. This indicates that QBALL is capable of excellent practical accuracy. (One and one half inches at 400 yards) (is equal to three-eighths minutes-of-) (arc -- that's 22 1/2 SECONDS of arc!!) (If your rifle will group as tight as) (this -- let alone tighter -- you have) (an exceptional rifle, indeed! ) [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 43 ] Appendix F ---------- Error messages and starting default values """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Error Messages -------------- Following are all the QBALL error messages, with a description of the circumstances under which they will be encountered. +-----------------------------------------------------+ | No CFG file! Using built-in configuration values...| +-----------------------------------------------------+ QBALL.CFG not found. Either it doesn't exist, or QBALL.EXE and QBALL.CFG are not in the same directory/on the same disk. +--------------------------------------------+ | Use table, or input higher muzzle velocity | +--------------------------------------------+ QBALL is unable to complete a computation because the remaining velocity is less than 300 FPS. +--------------------------------+ | Enter Range greater than zero | +--------------------------------+ Pressing [enter] when range is prompted for; alternatively, you're really trying to enter "zero" -- no can do. +-------------------------------------+ | Enter 0 < Range Increment <= Range | +-------------------------------------+ Pressing [enter] when range increment is prompted for; alter- natively, you're trying to enter a range increment of zero, or to enter a range increment which is greater than the maxi- mum range you've entered. +------------------------------------+ | Enter 300 <= Velocity <= 4500 FPS | +------------------------------------+ Pressing [enter] when velocity is prompted for; alternatively trying to enter a velocity less than 300 or greater than 4500 FPS. +----------------------------------------------+ | Enter 0.000 < Ballistic Coefficient < 1.000 | +----------------------------------------------+ Pressing [enter] when ballistic coefficient is prompted for; alternatively, trying to enter value outside acceptable range. Ballistic coefficients are, by definition, greater than zero and less than unity. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 44 ] Error Messages (continued) -------------- +-----------------------------------+ | Enter -50 <= Temperature <= +125 | +-----------------------------------+ Attempting to enter a temperature value which is out of range. (In metro data entry, [enter] uses the STANDARD met value: 59°F.) (If you really need this program to operate with Arctic/Saharan temperatures, let me know! I'll custom- ize one for you.) +--------------------------------------+ | Enter 0 <= Relative Humidity <= 100 | +--------------------------------------+ Attempting to enter a relative humidity value which is out of range. (In metro data entry, [enter] uses the STANDARD met value: 78%.) +--------------------------------------+ | Enter 25 < Barometric Pressure < 35 | +--------------------------------------+ Attempting to enter a barometric pressure value which is out of range. (In metro data entry, [enter] uses the STANDARD met value: 29.53" Hg.) +------------------------------------+ | Enter -800 < Gun Altitude < 10000 | +------------------------------------+ Attempting to enter a gun altitude value which is out of range. (In metro data entry, [enter] uses the STANDARD met value: 0 feet - sea level.) +--------------------------+ | Enter Bullet Weight > 0 | +--------------------------+ Pressing [enter] when bullet weight is prompted for; alter- natively, you're attempting to enter a zero bullet weight. +-------------------------------------+ | Enter -2.0 <= Sight Height <= +5.0 | +-------------------------------------+ Pressing [enter] when sight height is prompted for; alter- natively, attempting to enter a value which is out of range. +------------------------------------------+ | Enter Second Velocity < First Velocity | +------------------------------------------+ In inferring ballistic coefficients, attempting to enter a downrange velocity which is larger than the velocity closer to the muzzle. (Rocket-assisted bullet, maybe?) [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 45 ] Error Messages (continued) -------------- +-----------------------------------+ | Enter Second Range > First Range | +-----------------------------------+ In inferring ballistic coefficients, attempting to enter a second range which is smaller than the first range you have entered. +---------------------------------------+ | Inferred C1 exceeds 1.00 - check data | +---------------------------------------+ Input data is probably incorrect; ballistic coefficients cannot, by definition, exceed unity. Default Starting Values ----------------------- QBALL uses a separate initialization file, QBALL.CFG, to set its display colors and several of the values with which it starts. As supplied, QBALL.CFG is as follows: "Typical Firearm",15,10,7,1,"Yards ","Meters",1, -1,59,0,29.53,78,1,-1,-1 Taking these in order, the individual entries result in the following: "Typical Firearm" ... Cartridge/bullet identifier 15 ... Foreground (text) color ( = HI white) 10 ... Highlighted text color ( = HI green) 7 ... Title/Info line color ( = white ) 1 ... Background color ( = blue ) "Yards " ... Unit of range measure (trailing space necessary) "Meters" ... Alternate unit of range measure 1 ... Sight height in inches -1 ... Noises on or off ( = on ) 59 ... Air temperature, degrees Fahrenheit 0 ... Gun altitude in feet 29.53 ... Barometric pressure in inches of mercury 78 ... Relative humidity, in percent 1! ... Relative air density at given metro -1 ... Graphics grid on or off ( = on ) -1 ... Print prompt on or off ( = on ) (The metro values are for the STANDARD atmosphere) These values are also used for QBALL's internal defaults. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 46 ] If, for some reason, QBALL.EXE cannot find QBALL.CFG (either QBALL.CFG doesn't exist, or it's not in the current directory) QBALL will start with its default values, which are made available inter- nally through an error-trapping routine. Should you be VERY brave, you can modify QBALL.CFG with any text editor which will produce plain vanilla ASCII files. THIS IS NOT RECOMMENDED; better by far to use the QBALL configuration routines. (There are those who would say that) (using a text editor to modify a .CFG) (file isn't brave; it's foolhardy!) [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 47 ] Appendix H ---------- Suggested Enhancements """""""""""""""""""""" Version of QBALL you are using? (appears in the box on screen one)______________ What should QBALL do that it doesn't do now? _____________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ What does QBALL do now, but could do better? _____________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ Other comments, requests, gripes? ________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ If you are the first to suggest an improvement which is subse- quently implemented, you'll receive a free copy of the first release incorporating your suggestion. It will take awhile, so please be patient. Your name ___________________________________________ Street ___________________________________________ City/State/Zip ______________________________________ Send this form to: Benjamin W. Hartley Forest Park Estates #103 Jaffrey, NH 03452. [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 48 ] Page 48 is intentionally blank [ QBALL -- Exterior Ballistics -- 49 ] Appendix G ---------- Registration Form """"""""""""""""" User Questionnaire (optional) ----------------------------- Version and Registration number of QBALL you are using? (appears in the box on screen one) V:________Reg#:__________ Where did you initially find QBALL? (Bulletin Board, CompuServe, etc.)__________________________ Do you use other ballistics programs?_____ Which one(s)?________ _________________________________________________________________ Order Form ---------- (Author-supplied media is 5 1/4" 360k floppy formatted to be) (read by a standard 360k floppy drive. Since not everyone) (has the same de-archive utilities, registered copies are) (distributed in non-compressed form. ) Please send the following (check appropriate box): +--+ | | Register QBALL (most recent release) with | | all files, source code, and manual @$60.00: $____.___ +--+ +--+ | | Register QBALL (most recent release) with | | all files and manual @25.00: $____.___ +--+ TOTAL ENCLOSED: $____.___ Your name ___________________________________________ Street ___________________________________________ City/State/Zip ______________________________________ Please make checks payable in US funds drawn upon a US bank, or use USPS money orders payable to Benjamin W. Hartley, and mail to: Benjamin W. Hartley Forest Park Estates #103 Jaffrey, NH 03452