Thank you for downloading Maniac. I hope you'll enjoy the game! It's not perfect (but then again, no game ever is), but I've had such an entertaining and interesting time writing it that it's been worth the two years of on-and-off development!
Please read the following notes before playing Maniac: they describe system requirements, notes about the game, and information on paying your shareware fee.
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If you downloaded Maniac...
If you have only downloaded part 1 of Maniac, you should also download part 2, which contains important files that Maniac needs. For Maniac to run, these are the files you need:
Maniac 2.0
Maniac data
Maniac music (folder)
The "Maniac data" file and the "Maniac music" folder must be placed in the same folder as the Maniac application, otherwise you won't get very far!
Shareware fee!
Please.
I've spent a long time working on this game, and I hope you will support my efforts by paying the shareware fee. Paying the fee will ensure you are a legal user of this and any future shareware versions of Maniac, and you will support my efforts in writing software for the Macintosh.
See further below for more information on payment and where to send it to.
System Requirements
Required:
• 68020 Mac or better
• System 7.0 or later
• 640x480 screen (or larger)
• 256 colours/grays (or more)
• 2700k of free memory
Highly recommended:
• 68030 Mac or better
• Sound Manager 3.0
Recommended:
• External speakers (such as stereo system)
Maniac has been tested on an LC475, a Quadra 660AV with 16" display, a PowerMac 7100/66, a Centris 610, and a IIsi. The PowerMac test was done with the Modern Memory Manager (in the Memory Control Panel) switched off. Maniac may work with that setting on, but I haven't checked that yet!
Notes on Maniac
• Maniac has the (so far) unique feature among arcade games in that you can quickly and easily choose the music you'd like to hear during the game. Just drop your favourite MOD files into the "Maniac Music" folder, and Maniac will pick one of the files at random. However, one of the files must be called "Default music".
Apart from folders, do not put anything other than MOD music files in the music folder. Also, make sure you use real MOD files, not MED, .S3M, or other variations: they won't work! If you're using large MOD files, you may want to increase Maniac's memory allocation by 300 or 400k.
• Sound Manager 3 is an extension which requires System 7.1 or later (or a previous version of System 7 with the QuickTime extension). It greatly enhances the sound capabilities in Maniac (and other software using sound), and prevents "jumpy" graphics which may otherwise be experienced on 68020 and low-end 68030 Macs (such as the LC, IIsi and IIvi) when sounds are playing.
The Sound Manager 3 extension is made by Apple, and may be available from your local Apple dealer, or perhaps from your favourite software source (such as ftp.austin.apple.com on the Internet). It's built into the AV Macs and the Power Macs, and it's also part of System Update 2 or 3 from Apple. Don't let Apple charge you for it!
• If you attempt to play a game of Maniac (by pressing "N"), the "Get Ready" message appears and disappears, and then:
- Your Mac crashes, or
- The graphics come out completely wrong
Then your graphics card or monitor may be incompatible with Maniac's fast drawing code, ManiacDraw. Hold down the Command key immediately after opening Maniac until a dialog box appears. In this dialog box you can switch the "drawing mode" to QuickDraw, which should be compatible with your screen. However, Maniac may not play at full speed if using QuickDraw on a 68020 or 68030 Mac.
• In theory, Maniac also supports multiple monitors: it should use the first monitor it finds which meets the size and depth requirements. However, this hasn't been tested. If you're lucky enough to have two or more monitors, and you experience a problem using Maniac, let me know.
• There's no doubt about it: there are bound to be a few bugs to be fixed. There are so many different Macs available in so many different configurations that it's hard to keep up! Please let me know if you find any bugs, and I'll try to fix them for a future release.
• If you have one of those cool new multi-resolution monitors which you can switch "on the fly", I suggest you don't change resolutions when Maniac is open. The same goes for the Radius pivot: resist the temptation to swing it round in the middle of an exciting game. Maniac only checks the screen size once, and that's when it's opened. If you change the size, Maniac might try drawing Pac Man all over another program's memory. "Crossing the streams would be bad."
Paying the shareware fee and contacting the author
Paying the shareware fee gives you the deep satisfaction of having supported one programmer's efforts to provide entertaining Mac software! You'll be entitled to free updates to any future shareware versions of Maniac.
You can pay the shareware fee in any of the following ways:
By cash:
• 10 British pounds,
• $15 U.S. dollars, or
• $20 Canadian dollars
By cheque:
• 10 British pounds,
• $25 U.S. dollars, or
• $35 Canadian dollars
Note the higher U.S. and Canadian fees: this is due to conversion fees charged by the bank. If you do not live in the UK, US, or Canada, please supply UK Pounds, US Dollars, or Canadian dollars. Make cheques payable to "Alex Metcalf".
Send money to the following address: this is also the address for sending suggestions, comments, bug reports, and other stuff:
Alex Metcalf
Best Before Yesterday
Ty Yfory
Llanfair Road
Lampeter
Dyfed, Wales
SA48 8JZ
United Kingdom
Other contact methods
I can also be contacted in any of the following ways:
