Home Entertainment Cube 5…& Puzzle Shareware Games/AZ_096.ISO/mahjong/mahjongg.doc

Text File | 1988-12-26 | 21KB | 469 lines

    ┌────────┐                    MAH JONGG                     ┌────────┐
    │   ├┤ 3 │         Release 3.0,  December 26, 1988          │ 0  0 8 │
    │   ├┤   │                                                  │ 0  0   │
    │ ├┤  ├┤ │                  Nels Anderson                   │ 0  0   │
    │ ├┤  ├┤ │                 92 Bishop Drive                  │ 0  0   │
    └────────┘              Framingham, MA  01701               └────────┘



MAH JONGG is 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 dominoes 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 flashing letters
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.  If you wish to run Hercules, you *must* specify this on the command,
i.e., the command line must be:

                             mahjongg -h

otherwise the game will try to run in EGA.  I hadn't planned on doing any
versions other than EGA, but Hercules turned out to be so easy I figured,
why not?  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.

Since I do not program games for a living but still put quite a bit of effort
into MAH JONGG I am releasing the program as Shareware.  If you enjoy the
game, as I think you will, a $10 donation to reward my efforts would be
appreciated.  Please let me know what version you have and I'd also be
interested in knowing where you got it from.  Make sure you put your name
and address on your letter.  Or, use the instant registration form in the
file "orderfrm.txt".  Just copy the file to your printer.  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 system (300 baud, 8N1) at 508-875-3618
or 617-449-7322.  Use the command FDBACK to reach me or send email to
"THE FENIX".

If you're connected to one of the minicomputer nets (InterNet, uucp...)
you can try reaching me at one of these addresses:

                ima!primerd!en-m32.prime.com!nja
                uunet!en-m32.prime.com!nja
                csnet-relay!en-m32.prime.com!nja
                [e-mail]
                [e-mail]

Of course you can also write me at the address at the beginning of this
file.  If you're not a registered used 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 determining matching pairs 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!).

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.  The 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.

COMMANDS:

   There are commands you can enter in addition to just selecting tile
   coordinates. You can quit the game at any time by entering Q. You can
   get help by entering H when asked for the tile selection. If you ask
   for help when selecting the 1st tile it will first tell you whether
   there are any valid moves and 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 available matches for the first tile
   selected. You can save your game by entering S and restore an old game
   by entering R. You can start a new game by entering N or play the same
   board again by entering A.

   Hitting F1 will display a summary of commands and other game information.
   Hitting F2 will show the tiles you've removed so far.
   Hitting F3 goes to the set up screen.
   Hitting F4 will undo your last move.
   Hitting F6 will undo your last undo (i.e., it will remove the tiles again)
   Hitting F5 shows you your playing statistics

   If you have a mouse, 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.

   In summary, the commands are:

                  Q:  Quit       N:  New game (new board)
                  H:  Help       A:  Again (replay same board)
                  S:  Save       R:  Restore
                  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)

COMMAND LINE OPTIONS:

   There are several options you can give when starting the game. You can
   skip the title screen by using -n (No title). You can play a specific
   board by entering -bx where x is any number between 0 and 65535. For
   example, you can replay the previous game by noting the board number in
   the lower left hand corner before quitting and using that. Or you can
   play against another person by both choosing the same board number and
   seeing who can remove the most tiles. You can play timed games by
   entering -tx where x is the number of minutes you want the game to be.
   This is primarily for competitive games. You can still continue to play
   the game after the time runs out. The amount of time left to play is
   shown in the upper right corner of the screen just above the number of
   tiles left. Using -cx allows you to set the background color and -dx the
   mouse cursor color, where x is a number between 0 and 15. Using -m selects
   mouse control instead of keyboard. Using -fn selects a file named n as the
   file in which your statistics will be kept instead of the default file
   "\mahstats"; n can be complete with disk and path names. Using -f with no
   file name disables keeping of statistics. Finally, using -h forces the
   game to run in Hercules graphics mode instead of the default EGA mode.

   The command line options are done in a standard way but if you're not
   familiar with this sort of thing they may be somewhat 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 play board number 12345 the
   command line would be:

                               MAHJONGG -B12345

   You can combine commands too, so to play board 12345 as a 10 minute timed
   game the command line would be:

                            MAHJONGG -T10 -B12345

   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.

   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 -help" which since it is not a valid option with give the valid
   option list).

   In summary, the command line options are:

          -n   No_title page
          -m   use Mouse
          -bx  play Board x (0 <= x <= 65535)
          -tx  Timed game (x=length in minutes)
          -cx  background Color x (0 <= x <= 15)
          -dx  mouse cursor color x (0 <= x <= 15)
          -fn  File n is the statistics file
          -h   run in Hercules instead of EGA mode


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.  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

   Hit F5 at any time while playing to see your current statistics.  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. You first
   select T for tournament from the title screen. 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
   player who plays the tournament.

   If you go to the tournament screen by accident or just to see the current
   standings, you can return to the title 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:

   To use a mouse, you must either select it from the setup screen or use
   the -m option on the command line.  The game was tested using a Mouse
   Systems PC 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 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.

   The 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.  The help command 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.  There is a short-cut for
   mouse users to invoke help.  Just hit the right mouse button to get help in
   selecting either tile.  Normally it doesn't matter which mouse button you
   use.

   "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" and finally to confirm that you really want to do it.

   "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, enable the
   mouse, select a specific board, etc.  Changing colors or enabling the
   mouse 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.

NEW FEATURES:

   Many new features have been added since the original release of the game.
   These include:

     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 workaround 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 definately 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!


INCOMPATIBILITIES:

   Early versions of MAHJONGG had problems running on an ATI EGA Wonder card.
   The problem is with the BIOS ROM on the card, not with the game.  ATI
   should by now have an upgrade ROM available to fix their bug so you may
   want to contact them about it.  MAHJONGG Release 2.1.1 and later should
   work properly on the ATI card even without the BIOS upgrade.

   I've also heard that an NEC built EGA card (not sure of model) does not
   display the mouse cursor.  I think I've done something in Rev. 2.1.1 that
   will prevent the problem but I don't have the proper system to test it on.