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- /*
- * @(#)instructions.txt 1.5 01/06/20 16:18:06
- *
- * Copyright (c) 1996-2001 Sun Microsystems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
- *
- * Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
- * modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
- * are met:
- *
- * - Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
- * notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
- *
- * - Redistribution in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
- * notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in
- * the documentation and/or other materials provided with the
- * distribution.
- *
- * Neither the name of Sun Microsystems, Inc. or the names of
- * contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived
- * from this software without specific prior written permission.
- *
- * This software is provided "AS IS," without a warranty of any
- * kind. ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED CONDITIONS, REPRESENTATIONS AND
- * WARRANTIES, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY,
- * FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT, ARE HEREBY
- * EXCLUDED. SUN AND ITS LICENSORS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES
- * SUFFERED BY LICENSEE AS A RESULT OF USING, MODIFYING OR
- * DISTRIBUTING THE SOFTWARE OR ITS DERIVATIVES. IN NO EVENT WILL SUN
- * OR ITS LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOST REVENUE, PROFIT OR DATA, OR
- * FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INCIDENTAL OR
- * PUNITIVE DAMAGES, HOWEVER CAUSED AND REGARDLESS OF THE THEORY OF
- * LIABILITY, ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE SOFTWARE,
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- *
- * You acknowledge that Software is not designed,licensed or intended
- * for use in the design, construction, operation or maintenance of
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- */
-
- Four By Four
-
- Description:
-
- A three dimensional game of tic-tac-toe on a 4x4x4 cube.
-
- Object:
-
- Be the first to score four in a row.
-
- Instructions:
-
- 1. It's you versus the computer.
-
- 2. There are five skill levels. Press the "Skill Level" button to select your level
- of play. The program defaults to the hardest level. Changing the skill level in
- the middle of a game will force the start of a new game.
-
- 3. The screen on the left is a 3D window. A mouse drag in this window will rotate the
- view to any desired position.
-
- 4. The screen on the right is a 2D window which displays all 18 faces that exist in the
- 4x4x4 array.
-
- 5. Click on any of the small gray spheres (in either the 2D or 3D window) to select a position.
-
- 6. Positions owned by you will be marked in red. Positions owned by the computer will be
- marked in blue.
-
- 7. Click the "Undo Move" button to take back a move.
-
- 8. Clicking on any of words "Face X" in the 2D window will cause that particular face to highlight
- in the 3D window. Clicking the word again will un-highlight the face.
-
- 9. The final score is based on skill level, number of moves, and time. Select the button
- "High Scores" to see a list of the top 20 scores. There is no penalty for using the
- undo button.
-
- 10. Good luck.
-
- General Strategy:
-
- 1. There are a 64 positions from which to choose. In total, there are 72 possible winning
- combinations.
-
- 2. The outer four corners and the inner "core" of eight have the most winning combinations,
- 7 each, and should perhaps be chosen first.
-
- 3. Use the 2D window to keep an eye on all the faces.
-
- 4. The computer plays well at the highest skill level (the default). There are, however,
- faults in it's logic that can be exploited. Thus the human player can win even at the
- highest skill level. In the beginning, however, you may want to start at the lower skill
- levels and work your way up.
-