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Assembly 1994 - The 3rd Phase
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wayfin
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WAYTOFIN.NFO
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1994-07-26
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244 lines
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╚═╧═╝║ ║ │ │ └─┘ ║ ║║ └╢╚══║ ║║ └╢╙─┘
BY
REAL TIME
18 July 94
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 1. WHAT'S IN ? │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
This file contains informations on how to run this demo, and other
less important subjects. So if you have any problem to make 'Way To Finland'
perfectly work on your computer (I hope this won't be the case !), refer to
the two next paragraphs to find the solution.
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 2. REQUIREMENTS │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Both programming and tests of 'Way To Finland' have been made on
two very different computers : my poor 386 DX 40 with a (very) slow Trident
T8900C graphic card, and Scarfman's 486 DX2 66 with a local bus ET4000.
As you can see, this demo should look good on most existing computers
(I'm sorry for the 286's owners : their processors would not appreciate
very much the 32 bits instructions we use).
So, to run 'Way To Finland' you need :
- an i386DX or i486 processor.
- a VGA or SVGA (see next paragraph) graphic card (fast one recommended).
- approximately 570 Ko of base memory (use MEM to check this).
- 1 Mo of XMS; this means that you need HIMEM.SYS to be present in your
config, but GET RID OF EMM386 or other EMS managers !!!
- unlike in many demos we CAN'T see because we don't have a GUS (but this
will change in a few weeks), a sound card is not necessary to run 'Way To
Finland' (but of course, to hear the music it is !).
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 3. SETTINGS & OPTIONS │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
3.1 OPTIONS'PAGE
If you start the demo by typing 'waytofin' + ENTER without any
parameter, a screen appears and allows you to change the following options
(by using the arrow-keys and ENTER) :
- SOUND : only SB and SB Pro are supported for the time being; so if you
don't have a compatible sound card choose 'NONE' in the cards'list.
The values of PORT, IRQ and DMA are auto-detected thanks to the BLASTER
variable which must be in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file; if it has been removed or
if you want to try other settings, you can change these values (a card must
be selected first), but we're not responsible for the troubles it could lead
to !
If some parts of the demo seem to be slow or if the music doesn't sound good,
try to remove it; perhaps your computer isn't powerful enough and needs more
processing time.
- GFX : the first screen of the demo exists in two graphic modes : 320x400
(VGA) or 800x600 (SVGA). Obviously, it looks better in SVGA; the VGA version
has been added in case you encounter problems with the other one (and also
because SVGA is forbidden in demo competitions). You just have to put the
SVGA flag to 'OFF' to disable the 800x600 version (ON is the default value).
Although the whole demo has been designed to adapt to the speed of the
computer, it was impossible to obtain a fast mapped graphic part on every
machine. The aim of the 'Level of detail' option (HIGH/LOW) is to allow the
user to choose between two types of tunnels in the 'Tunnel part' : select LOW
if you have a slow graphic card (like mine !) and want the part to be full
or nearly full-screen. But don't worry if you forget this thing : the mapped
tunnel will be displayed on your screen even so, in a window whose size is
calculated to conserve the speed of the animation.
- BEGINNING PART : we're fed up with all those demos where it's impossible
to skip one part when it bores without returning to DOS or even sometimes
re-booting the computer. As a consequence :
- 'Way To Finland' is divided into two parts, and you can start
watching it at the very beginning or in the middle.
- you can press ENTER whenever you want to jump to the next part. I
advise you not to use this possibility the first times you watch the demo;
we spent a lot of time trying to 'link' the parts between each other (it's
one thing that missed in demos in the past, but it's changing and that's
great), and you wouldn't see that by going too fast.Moreover, there's no part
looping too long in this demo, even if it lasts approximately 12 minutes.
3.2 PARAMETERS
You can use parameters on the command line to get the same results as
those above with the options, and others too :
- NOSOUND : no music will be played.
- NOSVGA : first part in 320x400.
- LOW/HIGH : level of detail for the 'tunnel'.
- PART2 : start the demo at part two.
- NOSCREEN : the options'page will not be displayed.
- SOFT : use this very special option if you want (for example) to show
the demo to your girlfriend or sister: this will make a few changes in three
of its parts. I let you find which ones !
example of a 'complex' command line :
WAYTOFIN NOSCREEN NOSVGA LOW SOFT NOSOUND
NB: there is no particular order for the parameters.
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 4. STORY OF THE MAKING │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
I'm sure you've never heard about a french demo-group called 'Real
Time' in the past (or was it an other 'Real Time' ?), and it's quite normal:
we're only known by our families and friends, simply because 'Way To Finland'
is our first demo !
We (that is to say Mythos - Frédéric MY in the 'normal' life - and
Scarfman - Alexis VAGINAY ) planned to make it after Christmas'93, because we
thought it was time to begin together a bigger project than those we could do
each one for his part (and it's so difficult to manage to work every day on
the same thing when you're alone !).
A few weeks later, we decided it would be great to go to the Assembly
in Finland (FC's country) at least once in our life, and meet those people
who spend a lot of time in front of their screens as we do; there aren't many
characters here in our school to understand this terrific attraction !
Of course we need to choose a name for our (small) group; why 'Real
Time' ? Obviously it sounds good, but the first reason is that we're both
studying at the 'School of Mines' in Alès (30 000 inhabitants city in the
south of France) a subject called 'Real Time Systems' (in fact a mixture of
informatics and electronics). And why 'Way To Finland' ? I believe it's clear
enough if you've read the previous lines...
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 5. THE FUTURE │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
At the time I'm typing this information-file (see the date at the very
beginning), we still have to wait two weeks before going to Helsinki through
Germany, Denmark and Sweden (really a very long trip ! But we'll stay a
fortnight in Finland, so... a car will be useful).
We don't know yet if we're going to make another demo after those
holidays in Northern Europe; all I can say is that Scarfman is already
working on a new routine, and so I hope we'll be at the Party for Christmas
to visit Denmark this time !
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────