Shareware Overload

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ Shareware Overload / ShartewareOverload.cdr / games / mahjng35.zip / MAHJONGG.DOC < prev next >

Wrap

Text File | 1991-06-01 | 64KB | 1,284 lines

┌────────┐ MAH JONGG ┌────────┐ │ ├┤ 3 │ Release 3.5, June 1, 1991 │ 0 0 8 │ │ ├┤ │ │ 0 0 │ │ ├┤ ├┤ │ Nels Anderson │ 0 0 │ │ ├┤ ├┤ │ 92 Bishop Drive │ 0 0 │ └────────┘ Framingham, MA 01701-6515 └────────┘ U.S.A. MAH JONGG is based on an ancient Chinese game whose origins are supposed to date back some 3000 years. This version has similarities to solitaire played with cards and also with dominos since it is played with tiles. When I first discovered the game my initial impression was that the game would quickly become dull but having played it for a while and having given it to friends we've all found that it is quite addictive despite its apparent simplicity. This program is designed for a PCompatible that can run in EGA graphics mode. If you're still running an older video card I'm afraid the game won't work. (Apparently many people do not understand the differences between EGA, CGA, VGA, MDA, etc.; basically, if you get a screen full of letters blinking on and off when you try to run MAH JONGG you don't have EGA and the game will not work on your system.) When I originally wrote MAH JONGG I had never seen a game that used the full EGA capabilities (640x350, 16 colors) and I thought it would be nice if there was one. This version also supports Hercules graphics mode. Since it's monochrome it's not nearly as pretty as EGA but the resolution is similar so it's not bad. The type of video you have is now automatically detected, so you should not have to do anything to get the right mode. If your system won't automatically select the right video mode for some reason, you can force a specific mode using command line parameters as follows: mahjongg -h (forces Hercules graphics mode) mahjongg -e (forces full color EGA graphics mode) mahjongg -l (forces monochrome EGA graphics mode) I hadn't planned on doing any versions other than EGA, but Hercules turned out to be so easy I figured, why not? Several people suggested adding a monochrome EGA mode for laptop systems that have an EGA compatible LCD or similar display. Since I'd already done all the work of making monochrome look right for the Hercules version, this was easy to add too. I don't have versions for other video adapters and I don't have any plans for them since I don't consider any of the lower resolutions adequate. Under the Shareware system you may freely try out this program, but if you continue to use it you are expected to register with the author and pay the $15 (+ $2 S/H) registration fee. In return for your registration you'll receive the latest version of the game, including a setup program that allows you to permanently set the command line options; this utility is not included with the shareware version. There is also a "deluxe" version available which includes a binder, printed manual and quick reference card. The "deluxe" version is $22 (+ $4 shipping/handling). When you register, please let me know what version you have and I'd also be interested in knowing where you got it from. Please, make sure to put your name and address on the letter! It's amazing how many people don't do this. Or, you can use the instant registration form in the file "orderfrm.txt". Just copy the file to your printer. If you live outside the U.S., the best way to register appears to be by using postal money orders. I've received these from quite a few countries. In general, foreign checks are not accepted by U.S. banks (Canadian checks are an exception, but please allow for the difference in U.S. and Canadian dollars). EuroCheques, for example, are not acceptable to the bank. You can also charge your registration to VISA or MasterCard. If you don't understand the term "Shareware" please read the file "sharewre.txt". If you have any suggestions or discover any problems with the program you can reach me via the )(evious BBS (PCBoard) system (300/1200/2400/9600-HST, 8N1) at 508-875-3618 or 617-449-7322. Leave a C)omment to the sysop to reach me. )(evious is the official support BBS for all my software and the latest versions are always available for downloading there. There is also a support conference for people to exchange game tips or ask questions. J)oin conference #31 and check out the latest tips. Also check B)ulletin #1 for the latest versions list. You can registered Mah Jongg while on Xevious using your VISA or MasterCard. Once logged in, use the command "OPEN 15" and just answer the prompts. You can also reach )(evious through RelayNet. If there's a RelayNet board in your area send a routed message to me at node XEVIOUS. The Shareware conference would be the best choice, but if that's not available try TPascal, Games or even Common. I'm also available through CompuServe's email system. Send email to me at 71020,2613. Or join me and many other Shareware authors in the Shareware forum (GO SHAREWARE). Of course you can also write me at the address at the beginning of this file. If you're not a registered user don't expect an answer unless you include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Most of the instructions you'll need for playing the game are built into it; just type H when prompted at the title screen. Or you can read the instructions below. There is quite a bit of strategy involved if you are to do well but I'll leave the strategies up to you to discover. Besides, I'm no expert in playing the game either. ***************************************************************************** * PLAYING THE GAME * ***************************************************************************** OBJECT: The object of the game is to remove as many of the tiles from the playing board as possible within the rules of the game. Tiles are always removed in pairs and can only be removed from the left or the right edges. Any tile that is not on a left or right edge is considered blocked and cannot be removed. Note though that the tiles are arranged in 5 levels and each level has a left and right edge so there are many more unblocked tiles than it would first appear. Note that the tile on the top of the pile blocks all four tiles below it, and tiles on row 5 block both rows 4 and 6. SUITS OF TILES: There are many different suits of tiles and the suit of a tile determines the rule used for matching tiles that can be removed together. MATCHING RULES: Most of the tile suits require an exact match. This means that you must match a tile to another that is exactly the same. For example a Bamboo 1 matches another Bamboo 1 but does not match a Bamboo 3 or a Dot 1. The other matching rule allows any tile in the same suit to match any other tile in that suit. Thus, any of the four seasons (SUM, AUT, WIN, SPR) match each other and any of the four flowers (MUM, PLUM, BAM, ORC) match each other. NUMBER OF TILES: There is only one each of SUM, AUT, WIN, SPR, MUM, PLUM, BAM, and ORC. There are four of each of the other tiles for a total of 144 tiles on the board. A counter keeps track of how many tiles are left in play. If you want to see what tiles you have removed so far, hit F2 (though some might consider this cheating!). ALTERNATE TILE SETS: Mah Jongg can be played with tile sets other than the traditional Chinese tiles that are the default. These alternate sets can be selected using the command line option "-u" or from the setup menu. All tile sets are stored in files with names ending in ".til"; you do not need to include the ".til" when entering the file name. Though these tiles will obviously look different from the standard set the same rules of play still apply; you will just have to determine which tiles correspond to which of the original suits. While playing you can hit the F8 key to see the full current set of tiles. See the section "USING TILEMAKER" for information on making your own tile sets. BOARD LAYOUT: If you're using a mouse to play you don't need to worry about the board coordinates; you just point and click. Many game commands are also there as "keys" that can be clicked on. If you don't have a mouse, read on... The game board is a grid marked by letters and numbers. You select tiles by entering a letter for the column and a number for the row. Order doesn't matter, entering A5 is the same as 5A. The single tile on the topmost level is H5. The numbering of the rows is a bit confusing. Row 5 only exists at the very top level and at the extreme left and right edges. Rows 4 and 6 are actually adjacent to each other. If after you've selected your first tile you change your mind, just hit 'Enter' instead of your second tile selection. After you've selected both tiles you are asked to confirm your selection with a Y or N before the tiles are removed. Hitting the Enter key is the same as hitting Y. As an alternative to using the coordinates you can use a "keyboard mouse". This allows you to use the arrow keys to move a cursor to the tile you want which is then selected by hitting the Enter key. You enable the keyboard mouse the same way you would a real mouse, by using the " -m" command line option or by selecting option 6 in the setup menu. COMMANDS: There are commands you can enter in addition to just selecting tile coordinates. Some are accessed by hitting a single letter followed by hitting the <Enter> key; others are accessed by just hitting one of the function keys: A starts the same board again. H will give you help selecting tiles. If you ask for help at the first tile prompt, you will first be told if there are any moves left, then you may choose to see any or all of them by hitting Y or N when asked. If you ask for help when selecting the 2nd tile it will show you any playable matches for the first tile you selected. N starts a new game; the next consecutive board number is used. Q will quit the game and return to DOS. R reloads a saved game; pick the one you want from a list. S saves your game as MAH#####.SAV, where ##### is the board number. U undo the last move. Can be used as many times as you want until all moves have been undone. (F4 does the same thing). Z restore a move that was undone. This is the reverse of the undo function. You can undo and restore as many moves as you want. (F6 does the same thing). F1 will display a summary of commands and other information. F2 will show the tiles you've removed so far. F3 goes to the set up screen. F4 will undo your last move. F5 shows you your playing statistics. F6 will undo your last undo (e.g., it will remove the tiles again). F7 goes to the tournament set up screen. F8 displays current tile set. F10 shells to DOS. Type 'EXIT' to return to the game. If you are using a mouse, many of these commands are available as push buttons along the left side of the screen. Just slide the cursor over the command you want and click. Hitting the right mouse button is a short-cut way of asking for help. See the section on using the mouse below. In summary, the commands are: Q: Quit N: New game (next board) H: Help A: Again (replay same board) S: Save R: Restore a saved game F1: Commands F2: Tiles played so far F3: Set up F4: Undo last move (U also works) F5: Stats F6: Undo last undo (Z also works) F10: DOS shell F7: Tournament set up F8: Displays current tile set COMMAND LINE OPTIONS: Mah Jongg has a large number of options that can be selected when starting up the game. Most of these can also be set using the setup screen, or if you have the registered version you can use the mahsetup.exe utility to make your selections permanent. By making these options available on the command line you can set up batch files that will run Mah Jongg in different ways; for example, if two different people play on the same computer you could have separate batch files for each person where each one would load a different statistics file. The available options are: -n No title page -m use Mouse (or keyboard mouse) -bx play Board x (0 <= x <= 65535) -tx Time limited game (x=length in minutes, 30 maximum); -t Timed game, timer goes up starting at 0:00 -cx background Color x (0 <= x <= 15) -dx mouse cursor color x (0 <= x <= 15) -fn File n is the statistics file -un Use tile set in file n -y no Y/N prompt after selecting tiles -h run in Hercules graphics mode -e run in full color EGA graphics mode -l run in Laptop (monochrome EGA) mode -li run in Laptop mode with inverse video -x disable fireworks in victory screen The command line options are done in a standard way but if you're not familiar with this sort of thing they may be confusing so here are some examples. Command line option examples: If you want to play a game that will be timed for 10 minutes, the command line would be: MAHJONGG -T10 Notice there is no space between the -T and the number of minutes (10). The other commands work the same way. To use a different set of tiles, stored in the file "flags.til", the command line would be: MAHJONGG -UFLAGS.TIL You can combine commands too, so to play board 12345 with a clock that counts up from 0:00 the command line would be: MAHJONGG -T -B12345 Remember, there is also a setup screen that allows you to select any of the options that are available on the command line. Just hit S from the title screen to go to setup. You can also access setup at any time during a game by hitting the F3 key or by clicking the mouse on the button labelled "setup". If you forget the command line options, just start up the game with an invalid option and it will give you the proper usage (i.e., try using "mahjongg -?" which since it is not a valid option with give the valid option list). STATISTICS: It seems that a lot of players are interested in game statistics, so the game now keeps track of some statistics for you automatically. A file is made that keeps track of all the board numbers you've played, which ones you've won, your best and worst scores, etc. It also keeps track of the last board you played so you can play each board in order (Mah Jongg handles this automatically). By default, this file is saved in the current directory under the name "mahstats". You can delete the file to reset your stats. You can view some of your stats from within the game by hitting the F5 key. The separate utility program, "statgen" can be run on your stats file to give a more complete report. Just type "statgen" to run it, give it the path and name of your stats file when requested, and a complete report will be shown on your screen. For more details, see the section on statgen later in these docs. If you have several people playing on the same PC they can each have their own statistics by using the select statistics file command line option, -fn where n is the name of the file. For example, if Fred and Dick both use the same PC, Fred might start the game as: MAHJONGG -FFRED.STT and Dick might start the game as: MAHJONGG -F\DICKSDIR\DICK.STT To disable keeping of statistics, use -f with no file name on your command line. TOURNAMENTS: You can play Mah Jongg as a tournament against other players. In a tournament each person plays a single board under the exact same conditions (same board number and same time limit, if any), allowing their results to be compared and a winner to be determined. You enter the tournament set up screen either by using the T option from the title screen or by hitting F7 at any time during a game. The first player sets up the tournament by selecting the board number (or by just leaving the one that was randomly chosen) and whether or not the game will be timed. After the selections are made the first player enters his name and plays the game. A record is kept of his results and the results of each additional person who plays the tournament. If you go to the tournament screen by accident or just to see the current standings, you can leave the screen without entering the tournament by entering Q. If there is already a tournament started but you want to start a new one, enter 'N'. This will let you set up a new tournament as was described above. Tournament records are kept in a file called "mah.trn" so you can also start a new tournament by deleting this file. USING A MOUSE: If you have a mouse driver installed on your computer it will automatically be detected when the game starts and mouse play will be selected. If for some reason your mouse is not being automatically detected you can still select it from the setup screen or by using the -m option on the command line. You can also use the setup screen to turn off the mouse if you wish. The game was tested using a Mouse Systems PC Mouse and a Genius GM-6 mouse but any Microsoft-compatible mouse will probably work. When using a mouse most commands can be issued using the mouse. You must have your mouse driver installed as a device in your config.sys file for Mah Jongg to be able to use the mouse. The mouse interface is a bit different from what you're probably used to but it seems to be easy enough to use. Tiles are selected by moving a colored outline over them and then clicking once. To de-select the first tile, just click on it a second time. After selecting both tiles a line with the options "Y/N" (yes/no) comes up. If you just click without moving the mouse you'll select yes and the tiles will be removed. Slide the mouse left and right to change your selection. Several people suggested doing away with the Y/N move confirm- ation, so it's now optional. Disable Y/N prompts either with the command line option "-y" or through the setup screen. Many commands available during the game (help, new, undo, file, setup, quit) are available as "keys" along the left side of the screen. Move the outline over the command you want and click once. "Help" and "Quit" require a yes or no confirmation so you won't do them by accident. Slide the mouse left and right to select yes or no and then click. There are two variations on the help function, depending on whether you click the left mouse button or right mouse button on the help "key". If you click the left button, you get the normal help command which first asks if you want to see matching tiles (if there are no more matches it will tell you that instead) and then prompts for a yes or no to see each additional matching pair of tiles. If you ask for help after you've already selected the first tile a search for matching free tiles takes place. If a match is found, it is highlighted and all you need to do is confirm to remove the pair of tiles. If no match is found it puts you back to select the first tile again. If you right-click while the help "key" is outlined, you'll be shown the tiles that you've removed so far. This is the same function available by hitting the F2 key. There is also a short-cut for mouse users to invoke help. Just hit the right mouse button while not pointing to one of the function "keys" to get help in selecting either tile. "New" lets you end the current game and either replay the same board or go on to the next board. You will be prompted to select either "next" or "again" to either go on to the next consecutive board or to play the same board again. "Undo" replaces the last two tiles you removed. You can undo as many times as you want until all 144 tiles are back on the board. Undo does not ask for any confirmation. Undo actually allows you to replay your entire game both forward and backward. Clicking the left mouse button restores tiles that were removed and clicking the right mouse button takes the tiles back off again. "File" lets you either save the game at its current point or load a previously saved game. You are prompted to choose between "load" and "save". If you pick save you will then be asked to confirm if you really want to do it. If you pick load a list of saved games will be displayed. Use the arrow keys to select the game you want, then hit the Enter key to load it. Hitting the ESC key will abort the load. "Setup" brings you to the set up screen, the same as hitting "S" from the title screen. You can then change colors, set timed games, disable the mouse, select a specific board, etc. Changing colors, enabling the mouse or changing tile sets will not effect the game in progress; when you exit set up you will be back at the same point in the game that you were at when you entered set up. Any error messages that appear during the game (i.e. "Invalid Selection") normally stay visible for a few seconds before allowing play to continue. To immediately remove a message and resume play just click the mouse or hit a key. USING STATGEN: Since v3.2, Mah Jongg has come with a utility called statgen.exe. This program allows you to analyze and modify the statistics file that is kept each time you play the game. To run the statistics generator, just type "statgen" on a line by itself. You'll be prompted for the filename of your statistics file and you'll be asked if you want to edit (enter a letter E) or just display (enter a D) your current statistics. If you select display, you'll be shown your total games played, average score, number won and worst score. Then a list of all board numbers won and another list of additional boards played will be shown. If you select edit you can change the list of boards played and won to include boards you played before v3.2. Just select edit and you'll first be prompted for the boards you've won. Enter one board number per line and finally enter a -1 when you're done. Then you'll enter the list of additional boards played but not won in the same way. Again you enter a -1 when done. After you're done editing statgen will show you your current stats so you can confirm that you've entered everything correctly. You can also enter statgen's parameters from the command line. The first parameter is the statistics file name and the second is either -e (to edit) or -d (to display). If you only enter one parameter display is assumed. For example, to edit the statistics file "stats.me" the command line would be statgen stats.me -e There is also a "batch mode" available for those of you who have kept your records in a database. You'll need to transfer your games played and games won list into a straight ASCII text file with one board number per line and a -1 after the end of the won board list and another -1 at the end of the file. For example, if you've played boards 100, 101 and 102 and played and won boards 200 and 201 your file would look like this: 200 201 -1 100 101 102 -1 Save this file under whatever name you choose. For this example we'll say it was saved with the filename "temp". Then, to read these board numbers into your statistics, run statgen as follows: statgen mahstats -b < temp This assumes that statgen is in your current directory, your stats file is called mahstats and it also is in the current directory and your list of boards is in the file temp. After temp has been read in, your new stats will be displayed to verify that everything worked. Suggestion: before running in batch mode, make a backup copy of your stats file in case something goes wrong. USING TILEMAKER: The Tile Maker utility allows you to make your own sets of tiles or modify sets made by others including the standard Chinese mahjongg tiles. The utility is similar to many paint programs with which you might be familiar, though because of its specialized nature it includes less functions. Tile Maker can be controlled with your mouse or keyboard, but unlike Mah Jongg itself it only supports EGA (no Hercules). How tiles are stored on disk: First, some basics about working with tile sets. A Mah Jongg tile set includes 42 different tiles. Eight of them are in the "wild card" suits (normally the flowers and seasons suits) where any tile in the suit matches any other. The other 34 tiles use the standard matching rule where there are four of each tile on the board and the tiles must be matched exactly to be removed. You'll want to keep the game rules in mind when designing your tiles. All 42 tiles are stored in a single disk file. You'll need to know how the tiles are numbered so that you store your new tiles in the proper place. For reference, the standard tile set is numbered as follows: Tiles 1 - 9: suit of dots Tile 10: white dragon Tiles 11 - 19: suit of bamboo Tile 20: green dragon Tiles 21 - 29: suit of characters Tile 30: red dragon Tiles 31 - 34: suit of winds Tiles 35 - 38: suit of seasons Tiles 39 - 42: suit of flowers You have two sets of tiles that you can start with. The file "mahjongg.til" is the standard tile set. The file "flags.til" is a tile set made out of world flags. Note how the flags are organized into suits: countries in the Americas are tiles 1-9, countries in Europe are tiles 11-19, countries in Asia are tiles 21-29, African countries replace the dragons and winds, and special flags and compass points are used for the wild card suits so they look distinctly different from the normal suits. Getting Started: Start up tilemakr.exe by typing "tilemakr" on the command line; there are no command line options. Note the drawing area on the left and the command area on the right. If you're using a mouse you can just point to a command and click; if you're using the keyboard use the letter next to the command. Most of the commands are self-explanatory. Reading a tile file will first show you all tiles in the file and then allow you to select by number the tile you want. When saving a file you'll need to remember the numbered position in the file that you want to save it to. The number of the last tile read in is displayed in the lower right corner of the screen. After you've loaded a file once you can use the "re-read" command to get a new tile without waiting for disk access. You can also review the complete set of current tiles using the "view last images" command. The full tile set is always kept in memory to let you access it. This screen is updated by the save command so the current tile set as stored on disk is always accurately displayed. Drawing: Normal drawing can be done with the keyboard or mouse. Using the mouse, select the desired color by pointing at the color chart and clicking. Then to draw just point at the drawing area and click on each spot where you want to draw. Because it's common to switch back and forth between two colors, Tile Maker remembers the last color you've selected as well as the current one. Use the right mouse button at any time to toggle back and forth between the current and previous drawing color. If you're drawing with a mouse there are a few basic drawing shapes available in addition to the simple dot. Under the drawing area is a set of push buttons where you can select dots, line, circle, rectangle, filled circle or box. Click on the desired button and you'll see it push in to confirm proper selection. When using the line or rectangles, move the mouse cursor to one end (corner) and hold down the mouse button. Then move to the other end (corner) and release the button. When using the circles you start in the center and pull away until the circle is the desired size. You can pull in any direction since the circle is symmetrical. The seventh (rightmost) drawing tool is a special one. It allows you to outline an area and then change all pixels within that area that are a specific color into a different color. Select this tool and then outline a rectangle just as you would with the rectangle drawing tool. When the area you want is outlined, release the mouse button. You'll be prompted to select the color you want to change; point anywhere you want on the screen and click when pointing to the desired color. Then you'll be prompted for the color you want to change to; again you can point anywhere on the screen and click. Now the selected color will change. When within the drawing area, the mouse cursor snaps to the center of each pixel when moving around or drawing dots, lines or rectangles. If you prefer that the cursor move smoothly you can turn off the snap function by clicking on the "snap Cursor on/off" command on the right hand of the screen. For most drawing you'll probably find the snap cursor useful as you'll be able to more clearly tell what pixel is being pointed to. Drawing with the keyboard requires typing the letter or number of the desired color, then moving the cursor around with the arrow keys and finally hitting space when you want to draw a dot. Enhanced Undo Function: Because quite often you will do something that you wish you hadn't, Tile Maker has an undo function. Tile Maker actually saves up to three previous versions of the tile you're working on, and these appear directly below the current normal sized tile in the box on the left side of the screen. If you select the undo function by clicking on "Undo" or hitting the U key you'll get the backup tile shown immediately below the tile in the box. If you're working with a mouse you can select any of the three backup tiles directly simply by clicking on the one you want. Additional Drawing Functions: The "fill" command works a bit differently from paint programs, because it only fills up from the starting point. This is handy at times because you don't have to close off the bottom of the area you're going to fill. If you have a very irregularly shaped area you may have to use fill more than once to fill it all. Note that fill works from the position of the keyboard cursor, not from where the mouse points. The "flip", "rotate" and "shift" functions all work with only the face of the tile. They also force a one pixel border around the edge of the tile surface, so you'll want to be careful not to shift things past this border (unless that's what you want to do!). When you're done with your tile set, use the "N" (add Name) function. The name you enter will be displayed at the bottom of the screen when playing Mah Jongg. The best thing to do is get the Tile Maker running and experiment. You'll find designing good tiles is quite a challenge, but it will allow you to have your own personalized version of the game when you're done. Importing From PCX Pictures: Tile Maker has a limited ability to load tile faces from PCX drawings, such as you might create with a full- featured paint program or with a scanner. The PCX pictures must be in 640x350 pixel size and use the a 16 color EGA palette. To import a PCX picture, click on "import PCX picture" or hit the P key. The normal file selection box will pop and and you should select the PCX file you want. The picture will load and a square cursor will appear. Use the cursor to surround the portion of the picture you want (the square is exactly the size of a Mah Jongg tile face) and click. You'll be switched back to the editing screen with the PCX image now on the tile face. Saving Your Tiles: Saving a tile seems to be a bit tricky for some people, so let's go over it thoroughly. When the first tile in your new tile set is complete, use the "Save tile" function (hit the S key or click on "Save tile"). A file selection box will pop up, but since you're creating a new tile set you should type in a file name rather than selecting an existing one. You can leave off the ".til" portion of the name if you wish, so using one of the included files as an example, FLAGS.TIL or FLAGS would both be valid and refer to the same file. Hit the enter key or click on the OK box when ready. Now, you'll be prompted for a tile number within the set (see the section above on how the tiles are numbered). Since this is your first tile, you'll probably want to enter 1 but any number between 1 and 42 is valid. Once you've selected a tile number and hit the enter key, your first tile is saved! On subsequent tiles, the procedure is essentially the same. When the tile is done, select the "Save tile" function again and the file selection box will pop up again. Since your tile set has already been started, just click on it to select it this time. When prompted for a tile number, enter a number you haven't already used, otherwise you'll wipe out one of your other tiles. Just keep going until you have all 42 tiles created. Don't forget at some point during your tile set creation to use the "add Name to file" function" (click on it, or use the "N" key) to add your name or a description to the tile set. The message you enter will be displayed at the bottom of the screen when playing Mah Jongg if your tile set is loaded. Share Your Creations! If you develop any tile sets you'd like to share please upload them to the support BBS (Xevious: 508-875-3618) or mail them to the author on a diskette. I'd suggest that you include a text file describing your tile set and of course you should include your name in it. I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with! TECHNICAL NOTES Many people write asking about how certain aspects of Mah Jongg work. This section is intended to cover the most asked questions. "How are the different boards created?" There are 65,536 different board layouts available. The arrangements are random or at least as random as possible. The game starts with a scrambled pile containing all 144 tiles (an array for you programmer types). Then, it goes through and takes the tiles one at a time at random from the pile and places them on the board. "OK, if the boards are random how is it that board #1 is always the same?" Computer random number generators don't generate truly random numbers. They actually generate a specific series of numbers that are essentially distributed randomly. For most purposes the distinction doesn't make a difference. Random number generators are generally started up by giving them a "seed". The seed itself needs to be somewhat random since the same seed will always generate the same series of numbers. Mah Jongg takes advantage of this feature. The board number is actually the random number generator seed and so each seed always generates the same series of numbers and thus the same board layout. The Turbo C language allows seeds to be values from 0 to 65535 which is why Mah Jongg has 65536 possible boards. "Can all boards be won?" Definitely not. But then that's true of just about any type of solitaire game. After playing enough boards you're certain to run into situations where three of the same tile are stacked on top of each other or similar things that result in a board that cannot be beaten. It appears, though, that a large percentage of boards can be beaten. A number of people have put great effort into solving series of consecutive boards, playing the same board over and over until beaten. Their results indicate that at least 50-75% of all boards can be won. "Can I get a CGA version?" CGA? Blech. Would you really want to play Mah Jongg on a screen with only 1/4th the pixels and only four ugly colors? It just wouldn't be the same... Actually, several people have attempted to do it. The results are about what you'd expect though. "OK, how about a VGA version?" Sure, this could be done but would it really be worth it? The appearance of the board would not be significantly different from the EGA version, since VGA is still limited to 16 colors. The vertical resolution does improve from 350 to 480 pixels but that would be about the only difference, and from what I've seen comparing other programs it wouldn't be all that noticeable. Now SuperVGA is a different story. The problem here is that SuperVGA is not a standard (IBM invented VGA but does not support SuperVGA). But what mode to support? 640x480? 800x600 (wouldn't THAT be nice)? Having 256 colors would make some really beautiful tile sets possible, but until a real standard is available it's just too difficult to try to support all the different video boards. "What language is Mah Jongg written in?" Mah Jongg is written in Turbo C. I originally used v1.0 but am now using v2.0. Since Turbo C v1.0 did not have the graphics library that later versions include, Mah Jongg is done entirely with my own graphics routines. Tile Maker is written in Turbo Pascal v5.5 "Can I get the source code?" Sorry, the source code is not available. REVISION HISTORY: NEW IN 3.5: Mouse users can now access the "see tiles played" function (which is still available by hitting the F2 key) by right clicking on the help "key" on the left side of the screen Time function (available in setup screen or from command line option " -t") displays a timer that counts up from 0:00; old count down timer option is still available as before; stats kept of fastest won game if either timer function is used Stats keeps track of last board played so that each time you start up the game you'll automatically get the next consecutive board number Bug fix in tournament time limits A small number of people seem to have problems with the fireworks display after winning a board; a command line option " -x" now allows the fireworks to be disabled Tile Maker now displays a blank tile face when doing a clear Tile Maker now allows loading from PCX pictures Tile Maker has new color change tool Tile Maker now updates tile set viewed by "re-read" and "view last" functions when a tile is saved to disk Tile Maker undo function enhanced NEW IN 3.4: Stats file "mahstats" now defaults to current directory Tile files can be selected from a list instead of by name in setup screen Hitting F8 displays the currently loaded tile set Saved games are now selected from a list, as games are now saved with the filename MAH#####.SAV where ##### is the board number Keyboard 'mouse' allows keyboard users to play using arrow keys instead of entering coordinates NEW IN 3.3: Alternate tile sets can be used Y/N prompts can be disabled New "victory" screen Hercules mode bug fix NEW IN 3.2: "Boss Mode" has been replaced by a true shell to DOS Records kept of boards played and won: If the current board has been played before, an asterisk will appear next to the board number; if the board has been won, the word "WON" will appear next to the board number Separate statistics generator program displays your stats plus list of boards played and won Improved accuracy of average score statistic Automatically enables mouse play if mouse driver detected Exit screen written directly to memory instead of using ANSI NEW IN 3.1: Stats no longer overflow Stats now correctly update when you win a game Tournament set up screen now available during game Automatically detects EGA and Hercules cards Monochrome EGA selectable for LCD laptop computers Command line parameters can be made permanent using setup program (available to registered users only) NEW IN 3.0: Runs in Hercules graphics mode Game statistics kept for current game and for all games played Undo command (both forward and backward) Set up screen available during game Tile corners now display properly NEW SINCE 2.6: Fixed bug in tournament mode (stats weren't being saved) A list of all pairs of tiles played so far is available by hitting the F2 key NEW SINCE 2.5: Mouse cursor color is now selectable from command line or setup screen When playing a tournament game your score was not always saved if you completed the board; this is now fixed NEW SINCE 2.3: Help screen -- hit F1 to get a list of commands, options, and some basic playing tips "Boss Mode" -- hit F10 to hide the game and display a harmless looking disk directory New tournaments can be started from within the tournament setup screen After winning a game, answering "Y" to play again gives you a different board instead of the same one over again Requesting to quit when selecting the second tile now asks for a confirmation NEW SINCE 2.2: Columns entered as letters instead of numbers; rows and columns can be entered in any order as a result Several tiles redrawn NEW SINCE 2.1: ATI EGAWonder card problem work around added Mouse cursor display sped up (possible fix to NEC EGA card problem of not showing mouse cursor) NEW SINCE 2.0: Help on 2nd tile selection (find match to 1st tile if any) Help available with right mouse button as a short-cut Error messages can be cancelled by clicking the mouse Confirmation required for mouse action "keys" to prevent accidents NEW SINCE 1.0: Mouse support Setup screen, allows access to all game options more easily than through command line options Tournament play Selectable background color New commands during play A (play same board Again) N (play New board) More command line options -cx (background Color) -r (Restart saved game) -m (use Mouse) More authentic tile appearance Faster tile displaying WINNING Not all boards are win-able but during testing a number of boards that are beatable were found. In addition, many people who have written to register their copy of Mah Jongg have included lists of boards they have completed. If you want to play a board that definitely can be won, try one of the following: 55598, 49070, 64856, 15784, 29514, 54176, 40060, 8, 44213, 21, 43, 148, 290, 302, 329, 364, 370, 386, 410, 421, 459, 560, 627, 634, 656, 695, 735, 743, 795, 819, 827, 839, 858, 876, 888, 890, 905, 936, 952, 985, 1034, 1037, 1066, 1101, 1104, 1138, 1145, 1149, 1154, 1207, 1241, 1244, 1296, 1313, 1346, 1365, 1390, 1392, 1428, 1430, 1490, 1543, 55309, 43924, 47924, 38313, 23986, 45355, 55082, 6843, 52079, 50333, 24654, 64557, 14, 54438, 2, 52916, 32141, 62500, 50408, 5119, 8694, 12224, 27869, 47615, 49522, 56447, 4113, 6108, 36785, 38382, 54586, 36607, 63202, 4540, 21015, 1132, 37696, 20009, 19619, 42246, 56809, 5336, 61319, 15037, 33357, 52158, 63866, 41619, 48165, 13692, 17604, 40284, 47779, 57572, 13932, 4236, 4243, 24942, 15318, 59498, 50542, 41121, 4344, 38110, 26208, 307, 32812, 16496, 16213, 47788, 65123, 36792, 16965, 3989, 63331, 40111, 54491, 43421, 10796, 56185, 40640, 433, 9619, 8922, 800, 20926, 1, 23, 56, 7971, 21399, 32381, 33212, 36836, 48094, 53751, 58094. Enjoy! ***************************************************************************** * INCLUDED FILES * ***************************************************************************** The following files are included in Mah Jongg: MAHJONGG.EXE Mah Jongg program MAHJONGG.DOC This file MAHJONGG.TXT A brief description of Mah Jongg ORDERFRM.TXT Ready to print registration form SHAREWRE.TXT Information on Shareware VENDOR.TXT Information for shareware vendors/BBS sysops STATGEN.EXE Statistics generator program TILEMAKR.EXE Tile set editing utility MAHJONGG.TIL Standard tile set FLAGS.TIL Flags of the world tile set FLAGS.TXT Text file describing FLAGS.TIL You are free to pass this program along to friends, give it to user groups, upload to BBSes, etc. with the understanding that anyone who continues to use the game is required to register it. All these files MUST be included when distributing this program. If you archive the program for distribution through BBS's, please use the name MAHJNG35.ZIP (or .LZH, .PAK, etc. as appropriate). ***************************************************************************** * REGISTRATION * ***************************************************************************** Please remember that Mah Jongg is not free software. As with all Shareware you are expected to purchase it after you've given it a reasonable trial. The registration price for Mah Jongg is $15, for which you'll receive by return mail a copy of the latest version, a setup utility that lets you make your command line options permanent, several alternate tile sets and possibly another Shareware game to try out. Collections of tile sets created by various Mah Jongg players are also available for $5 each. Each disk includes ten or more tile sets. A deluxe version of Mah Jongg is also available. This includes a storage case, printed manual, quick reference card, plus the registered version of the game. This version is available for $22. Note that the actual software is the same in both versions. Please include $2 for shipping/handling along with the payment for whatever item(s) you order; if ordering deluxe versions please include $4. Outside North America please include $4 for shipping/ handling on all orders. ***************************************************************************** * DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY * ***************************************************************************** This software is sold "as is", without any warranty as to performance or any other warranties whether expressed or implied. Because of the many hardware and software environments into which this program may be used, no warranty of fitness for a particular purpose is offered. The user must assume the entire risk of using the program. Any liability of the seller will be limited exclusively to product replacement or the refund of the registration fee. ***************************************************************************** * ASSOCIATION OF SHAREWARE PROFESSIONALS * ***************************************************************************** This software is produced by Nels Anderson who is a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442, USA or send a CompuServe message via easyplex to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536. _______ ____|__ | (R) --| | |------------------- | ____|__ | Association of | | |_| Shareware |__| o | Professionals -----| | |--------------------- |___|___| MEMBER ***************************************************************************** * FINDING MAH JONGG * ***************************************************************************** The best place to find Mah Jongg updates, tile sets, etc. is on Xevious, the official support board. In addition, I will upload updates as available to the following BBS's: Channel One (Cambridge, MA): 617-354-8873 Sound Advice (Gladstone, MO): 816-436-4516 Xevious (Framingham, MA): 508-875-3618 ***************************************************************************** * AVAILABLE SOFTWARE * ***************************************************************************** Other software which I've either written or contributed to: EGATREK: Space strategy battle game, using full EGA graphics, based on the classic minicomputer game. Winner of Public Brand Software's 1988 software contest. Chosen as top star trek type game by "Shareware Magazine", July/August 1990. MAHJONGG: Solitaire game played with Chinese tiles. Supports EGA and Hercules graphics; mouse optional. See reviews in December 1988 "PCWorld" and April 1989 "Compute!". SHOOT: "Shooting Gallery" tests your aim and reflexes in a number of different rounds of shooting. Uses MCGA/VGA graphics mode for 256 colors and and also requires a mouse. SUPERFLY: An action game in which your house has been invaded by a variety of bugs which you must swat while searching for the "Super Fly". Includes 20 different rounds, 3 skill levels. Supports hi-res EGA and VGA. CIPHER: A crypto-quotes type word game that runs in full color VGA or EGA graphics mode. Can be played with a mouse or keyboard. Also supports text modes. MOUSTOOL: A collection of utilities for Turbo Pascal programmers wishing to incorporate mouse input in their programs. Sample programs included for both EGA and CGA graphics. Used extensively within CIPHER. SOUNDPAS: A collection of utilities for Turbo Pascal programmers to add music and sound effects to their programs. Includes units for interrupt and real time sounds. BASSTOUR: (Written by Dick Olsen). Game that simulates a fishing tournament, including rod and lure selection. Runs in EGA/CGA/MCGA/Hercules graphics modes. Uses many of the utilities from MOUSTOOL. BASSMAP: Companion program for BassTour which allows lakes to be created or modified. EGA and CGA versions included. CALLDOOR: A PCBoard 14.x door that lets users view the system caller log. Logs for any node can be viewed in reverse order (i.e., most recent caller back) or the logs can be searched for any string. WAITDV: A sysop's utility that allows synchronizing of nightly house keeping events on a multinode system. WAITDV was written especially for systems running under DESQview: it's DV-aware so the active task runs much faster than it would if a non-aware wait utility was used. TOPPERS: A PCBoard 14.x sysop utility that generates a formatted list of the board's top users (by number of calls, downloads and uploads). The output file has three columns, one for each category. Graphics and non-graphics output is available. TOPTALK: A PCBoard 14.x sysop utility that tracks user activity in conferences based on number of messages posted. Included is a complete record of all user activity plus a bulletin file of the top ten most active message posters. GROUPERS: A PCBoard 14.x game door. Players gamble on the outcome of the next card drawn from the deck. The game is set up to run as a monthly contest and keeps track of current scores, generates a current scores bulletin and an end of month final scores bulletin. - - - - - Mah Jongg is copyright (c) 1987-1991 by Nels Anderson. All rights reserved.