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~ WELCOME TO GENIELAMP APPLE II! ~
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
~ SOFTVIEW A2: Lordlings of Yore ~
~ PD_QUICKVIEW: Wolfenstein 3-D (beta) Demo ~
~ FILE BANDWAGON: Top 10 Files for October ~
~ HOT NEWS, HOT FILES, HOT MESSAGES ~
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////////////////////////////////////
GenieLamp Apple II ~ A T/TalkNET Publication ~ Vol.5, Issue 57
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Publisher................................................John F. Peters
Editor...................................................Douglas Cuff
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////////////////////////////////////
~ GenieLamp IBM ~ GenieLamp ST ~ GenieLamp PowerPC ~
~ GenieLamp A2Pro ~ GenieLamp Macintosh ~ GenieLamp TX2 ~
~ GenieLamp Windows ~ GenieLamp A2 ~ LiveWire (ASCII) ~
~ Member Of The Digital Publishing Association ~
Genie Mail: GENIELAMP Internet: genielamp@genie.com
////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
>>> WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE APPLE II ROUNDTABLE? <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
~ December 1, 1996 ~
FROM MY DESKTOP ......... [FRM] FROM MY MAILBOX ......... [MAI]
Notes From The Editor. Letters To The Editor.
HEY MISTER POSTMAN ...... [HEY] HUMOR ONLINE ............ [HUM]
Is That A Letter For Me? Famous Last Words.
SOFTVIEW A2 ............. [SOF] FILE BANDWAGON .......... [BAN]
Lordlings of Yore. Top 10 Files for October.
PD_QUICKVIEW ............ [PDQ] LOG OFF ................. [LOG]
Wolfenstein 3-D (beta) demo. GenieLamp Information
[IDX]""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
READING GENIELAMP GenieLamp has incorporated a unique indexing system
""""""""""""""""" to help make reading the magazine easier. To utilize
this system, load GenieLamp into any ASCII word processor or text editor.
In the index you will find the following example:
HUMOR ONLINE ............ [HUM]
Genie Fun & Games.
To read this article, set your find or search command to [HUM]. If
you want to scan all of the articles, search for [EOA]. [EOF] will take
you to the last page, whereas [IDX] will bring you back to the index.
MESSAGE INFO To make it easy for you to respond to messages reprinted
"""""""""""" here in GenieLamp, you will find all the information you
need immediately following the message. For example:
(SMITH, CAT6, TOP1, MSG:58/M475)
_____________| _____|__ _|___ |____ |_____________
|Name of sender CATegory TOPic Msg.# Page number|
In this example, to respond to Smith's message, log on to page 475
enter the bulletin board and set CAT 6. Enter your REPly in TOPic 1.
A message number that is surrounded by brackets indicates that this
message is a "target" message and is referring to a "chain" of two or more
messages that are following the same topic. For example: {58}.
ABOUT Genie Genie has pricing plans to fit almost any budget. Genie's
""""""""""" services include email, software downloads, bulletin boards,
chat lines, and an Internet gateway included at a non-prime time connect
rate of $2.75. Some pricing plans include uncharged online connect time.
As always, prices are subject to change without notice. To sign up for
Genie, call (with modem) 1-800-638-8369 in the USA or 1-800-387-8330 in
Canada. Upon connection wait for the U#= prompt. Type: JOINGENIE and hit
RETURN. The system will then prompt you for your information. Need more
information? Call Genie's customer service line (voice) at 1-800-638-9636.
GET GENIELAMP ON THE NET! Now you can get your GenieLamp issues from
""""""""""""""""""""""""" the Internet. If you use a web browser,
connect to "gopher://gopher.genie.com/11/magazines". When using a gopher
program, connect to "gopher.genie.com" and then choose item 7 (Magazines
and Newsletters from Genie's RoundTables).
*** GET INTO THE LAMP! ***
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
//////////////////////////////////////// Genie_QWIK_QUOTE ////
/ Why does the AppleWorks spellchecker flag the word /
/ spellcheck? /
////////////////////////////////////////////// JOE.KOHN ////
[EOA]
[FRM]//////////////////////////////
FROM MY DESKTOP /
/////////////////////////////////
Notes From The Editor
"""""""""""""""""""""
by Douglas Cuff
[EDITOR.A2]
>>> AMEN <<<
""""""""""""
I've been away from home for what seems like a long time. It's been
just five years--five hard years. Ever since I left my home town, my
parents have always given me the same Christmas present--two plane tickets
back home for the holidays. I could wish for nothing finer.
This year is no exception, yet this year may be an exception. Don't
bother re-reading it; I'll explain: This year's tickets are for a Canadian
Airlines flight, and that airline is teetering on the brink of collapse.
I've got the tickets, but I may not get home. Perhaps a flight home will
be our Christmas miracle for 1996.
We had a (minor) Christmas miracle last year, almost exactly a year
ago today. My wife Tara and I visited a gift shop that had a display of
Christmas ornaments. At the back of the shop, some of the ornaments were
displayed on a small tree, about knee-high, made of twigs and bare
branches. If it sounds downright ugly, blame it on my weak powers of
description. That little tree looked mighty good to us.
Because we fly home for Christmas, my wife and I don't have a
full-fledged Christmas tree, so we thought this little tree would be our
chance to start our very own Christmas tradition. (That's how you can tell
when you've really left home--you and your partner establish your own
holiday traditions.) There was no price tag on it, so we asked the
saleslady about it. To our disappointment, the tree was not for sale--it
was for display purposes only.
Over the weeks that followed, we searched for a similar tree. The
full tale of that search would be tedious to relate, but not half as
tedious as it was to undergo. We found endless foot-high trees, visited
countless stores that had had them the previous year, and in one case,
arrived just as their last tree was being sold.
A week before Christmas, we happened to pass the first gift shop.
Sitting on the floor, stripped of all its ornaments and rather the worse
for the wear, was our little tree. We pounced on it before anyone else
could. This time, there was a price tag on it. We bought it and took it
home. That was our Christmas miracle for 1995.
Of course, the story comes with an epilogue. Two days after buying
our little tree, they suddenly became available in shops everywhere. There
were a scraggly lot--not the same class at all--but there they were, large
as life and quite as natural. Have you ever experienced the sensation that
some force, somewhere, is playing with you, trying to irritate you? It
feels darned good to duck such a force; to maintain both your serenity and
the smile on your face. Christmas miracles will do that.
[*][*][*]
One Christmas tradition I've developed as editor of GenieLamp A2 is
to put the January issue to bed before I leave for Christmas. That way, I
get to spend the holiday with no deadline lurking at the back of my mind,
spoiling the fun. Last year, I had to start the new year by editing the
January issue, and you, with your pure mind, would not credit just how
grouchy it made me. Just ask Tara sometime.
This year, I won't have to worry about the January issue, since this
Christmas issue is my last as editor. Ryan Suenaga takes over as editor of
GenieLamp A2 in 1997. I'll still be submitting an occasional article to
the new editor. In fact, I have two SOFTVIEW A2 columns started, and two
more sketched out. All I need is time to complete them.
In 1997, I won't have as much time for editing and writing. Tara and
I are moving back to Atlantic Canada soon. Jobs are scarce there, and I'll
have to spend the lion's share of my time looking for work.
Another person who currently has little time for writing is fellow
Canadian Peter Brickell, who's been writing the REAL WORLD APPLE column.
There's no installment of that column in this issue, because Peter is out
in the real world. The last time I heard from him, he was writing from
Korea, en route to New Zealand. He's promised to deliver some material in
1997, but expect the schedule for Peter's column to be a trifle erratic.
GenieLamp A2 is almost five years old, and has had just three
editors. Next month, you'll meet the fourth. Most of you probably already
know Ryan Suenaga from other Apple II journals--he's written for _GS+
Magazine_, _The Apple Blossom_, _Juiced.GS_, and the _The AppleWorks
Gazette_. If you do know Ryan, you'll recognize that I'm leaving you in
good hands.
Thanks, folks. It's been a wonderful 40 issues. God bless us, every
one.
-- Doug Cuff
Genie Mail: EDITOR.A2 Internet: editor.a2@genie.com
__________________________________________________________
| |
| REPRINTING GENIELAMP |
| |
| If you want to reprint any part of GenieLamp, or |
| post it to a bulletin board, please see the very end |
| of this file for instructions and limitations. |
|__________________________________________________________|
ASCII ART BEGINS
_____ _ _ ___ ___
/ ____| (_) | | / _ \|__ \
| | __ ___ _ __ _ ___| | __ _ _ __ ___ _ __ | |_| | ) |
| | |_ |/ _ \ '_ \| |/ _ \ | / _` | '_ ` _ \| '_ \ | _ | / /
| |__| | __/ | | | | __/ |___| (_| | | | | | | |_) | | | | |/ /_
\_____|\___|_| |_|_|\___|______\__,_|_| |_| |_| .__/ |_| |_|____|
| |
|_|
ASCII ART ENDS
[EOA]
[MAI]//////////////////////////////
FROM MY MAILBOX /
/////////////////////////////////
Letters To The Editor
"""""""""""""""""""""
OPERATION LAMBDA NOT MISLEADING In the previous issue of GenieLamp, a
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" letter from Mitchell Spector was
published that attacked the originality and authenticity of some of my
programming projects. I would like to offer this rebuttal.
First, Mr. Spector claims that many of the "concepts and ideas" in
Lambda were "borrowed" from another game called Rescue Rover. All I can
say in my defense is that I have never played Rescue Rover. All ideas
behind Operation Lambda were developed by me, completely from scratch,
during a rather grueling period this summer in which I racked my brains for
an original game idea, and, to the extent of my knowledge, successfully
found one. As far as I know, no one who has played the full version of
Lambda has been disappointed.
Second, Mr. Spector brings up the game PuyoPuyo, which I programmed
last year and distributed as freeware. A quick look at the game and docs
will show that not only did I not claim to do any more than the programming
(the game itself simply says "Apple IIgs version by Slixter"), my real name
appears nowhere, and there is no copyright message. I think it would be
difficult to claim that I was trying to take credit for other's ideas in a
release that was intended to be almost anonymous. Perhaps Mr. Spector's
"disappointment" would be better targeted at the author of the Mac version,
who not only "borrowed" the game play, graphics, music, and sound effects
directly from the SuperFamicon version of the game (without attributing
credit), but also requested a shareware fee.
My goal in publishing PuyoPuyo was to simply bring this immensely fun
and addictive game to the Apple IIgs community. I did this at some legal
risk to myself (which may help to explain the anonymity and lack of proper
credit), but from what I've heard about the enjoyment people have gotten
from the game, it was worth it.
My goal in publishing Operation Lambda was to write an exciting,
original game for the Apple IIgs, and to help pay for college. A massive
amount of work went into Lambda's creation, and I am offended that my
integrity would be attacked simply because there exists some other computer
game dealing with mirrors and lasers.
Bret Victor
B.VICTOR1
bret@cco.caltech.edu
[EOA]
[HEY]//////////////////////////////
HEY MISTER POSTMAN /
/////////////////////////////////
Is That A Letter For Me?
""""""""""""""""""""""""
by Douglas Cuff
[EDITOR.A2]
o BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS
o A2 POT-POURRI
o HOT TOPICS
o WHAT'S NEW
o THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE
o MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT
>>> BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
[*] CAT 8, TOP 18 ....... Postscipt and PublishIt!
[*] CAT 13, TOP 5 ....... Wolfenstein 3-D demo release and rumors
[*] CAT 17, TOP 25 ....... Trapping mouse button in UltraMacros
[*] CAT 42, TOP 11 ....... Latest issue of II Alive
>>> A2 POT-POURRI <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""
!HELP! BUG WITH PRODOS-8 FIXED For those using text based launchers, and
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" who are then having problems running P8
programs after using !Help!, I have uploaded to my web pages an update that
fixes this problem.
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/ewannop
Ewen (Speccie)
Delivered by: CoPilot v2.5.5 and Spectrum 2.1
(E.WANNOP, CAT43, TOP2, MSG:141/M645;1)
MUSIC COMPOSER V4.0 MINI-REVIEW Just thought I'd let you know I just got
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" MC v.4.0. Looks pretty good so far.
(only been playing for a day). Did several conversions from Music Studio
and Midi. They new sheet music picksup MS files real well. Instruments are
easily changed and improves the music.
I'll let you all know how its going later but looks like a good
product.
andy
(A.WALLO, CAT6, TOP19, MSG:149/M645;1)
HISTORY AS TOLD BY THE DARK SIDE A site of interest to Apple II user's,
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Glen Sanford's History of Apple
Computers Site:
http://www.apple-history.pair.com
This is perspective from a Mac user's point of view; Steve Weyhrich's
Apple II History is far more complete, but it's an interesting site (and
for the most part Lynx friendly).
Ryan
http://www.keystroke.net/~rsuenaga
ANSITerm and CoPilot v2.55
(R.SUENAGA1, CAT35, TOP8, MSG:29/M645;1)
DELETING OLD SPECTRUM HELP With the v2.1 upgrade, can I delete the
"""""""""""""""""""""""""" Spectrum:Add.Ons:Help.Files folder?
-Ken
(KEN.GAGNE, CAT43, TOP15, MSG:182/M645;1)
>>>>> Yes... After you have installed !Help!, you can delete the folder
""""" and the Spectrum.Help file...
Ewen (Speccie)
Delivered by: CoPilot v2.5.5 and Spectrum 2.1
(E.WANNOP, CAT43, TOP15, MSG:183/M645;1)
RAMFAST IIE AND ZIP CHIP Update on RamFAST 'E' (for the IIe) and 8MHz Zip
"""""""""""""""""""""""" Chip:
Sequential still doesn't know why these two won't coexist together in
a IIe. Swapping out some HCT parts with some ALS parts takes care of the
noisy bus problem, but something still causes the machine to hang if the
Zip is present.
BUT...good news -
They offered to figure it out if I'd send them a Zip Chip. So,
yesterday I sent them one of my spares and we'll just wait and see.
Hugh..
(H.HOOD, CAT20, TOP13, MSG:79/M645;1)
COOL SPECTRUM TRICKS I realised of course we were talking about your
"""""""""""""""""""" scripts, so I phrased my reply carefully... I could
have just said the script was bad! :)
We all learn tricks as we go along, and often projects evolve greatly
with time. The CoPilot scripts were of course originally written for TIC
which only had 8 variables and would limit the use of prefix variables in
this way. Spectrum 2.0 and later has no such limitations, other than
system memory!
Dave Hecker showed us a neat trick a few days ago for some scripts we
are writing using the WindowMgr. The WindowMgr returns resource ID's for
control hits. The initial script was:
----
Ext WindowMgr 3 $GenPrefs ReportedHit HitDetails
Match String "ReportedHit" $0000000A $00000013 $00000032 $000000B9
If Failed Then....
On $Matched GotoNext One, Two, Three, Four
----
To optimize this he used one of SP's cool tricks:
----
Ext WindowMgr 3 $GenPrefs ReportedHit HitDetails
GotoNext HIT$ReportedHit
----
Ewen (Speccie)
Delivered by: CoPilot v2.5.5 and Spectrum 2.1
(E.WANNOP, CAT29, TOP17, MSG:65/M645;1)
CONVERT 3200 PIRACY (AND EASTER EGGS) Tonight while fooling around I
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" found 6 Easter eggs in Convert
3200. :) Are there more? :)
[ BTW, the first one I found scared me a little. :) ]
__!__
| Terrell Smith
| tsmith@ivcf.org
(T.SMITH59, CAT28, TOP6, MSG:186/M645;1)
>>>>> > Tonight while fooling around I found 6 Easter eggs in Convert
""""" > 3200. :) Are there more? :)
> [ BTW, the first one I found scared me a little. :) ]
As far as I know, there are seven Easter Eggs in Convert 3200. I
guess you could say that they are all of the 'hidden message' type of
Easter Egg. There are six that can be accessed from the main menu screen.
Hint for Easter Egg hunters: since Terrell is a "man of God," he
should be able to locate the seventh Egg fairly easily.
Let me guess what scared you..."Convert 3200 - The new French bomb."
Keep in mind that when Brutal Deluxe was working on Convert 3200, the
French were conducting a number of atomic bomb tests in the South Pacific.
Although much of the rest of the world was upset about those tests, the
French thought of them as necessary, and I believe, even felt some
nationalistic pride about them.
So, that message refers to the pride that Brutal Deluxe feels for
Convert 3200.
In any case, before the program was released, I wrote to Olivier to
try to explain to him that in US slang, when we call something "a bomb,"
it's not exactly a complimentary term ;-)
Joe Kohn
(JOE.KOHN, CAT28, TOP6, MSG:187/M645;1)
<<<<< > There are six that can be accessed from the main menu screen
"""""
Those are the six I found.
> Hint for Easter Egg hunters: since Terrell is a "man of God," he should
> be able to locate the seventh Egg fairly easily.
Well, I know that "I believe in God" can be checked, but does it do
anything beyond that?
> Let me guess what scared you..."Convert 3200 - The new French bomb."
Nope. The one that said something about "If you want to see me
again, you'll have to _buy_ Convert 3200." :) But, but, I _did_ buy
it...
__!__
| Terrell Smith
| tsmith@ivcf.org
(T.SMITH59, CAT28, TOP6, MSG:189/M645;1)
>>>>> >> Well, I know that "I believe in God" can be checked, but does it
""""" >> do anything beyond that?
I've asked Brutal Deluxe several times what the "I believe in God"
option does, and have never gotten a serious response. I'll be honest...I
have absolutely no idea what clicking on that option does or doesn't
do...at least in regards to converting graphics.
Perhaps it's just there to serve as a trigger for the 7th Easter Egg?
I guess you'll just have to investigate that option a little further ;-)
>> If you want to see me again, you'll have to _buy_ Convert 3200.
That message was a not-so-oblique reference to "Brutal Deluxe's
LemminGS," and I believe that it also served as an anti-piracy message.
Of course _you_ bought Convert 3200, but as I so rudely learned this
week, not everyone who uses Convert 3200 did. Unfortunately, as I just
discovered, piracy is still alive in the Apple II world...not 2-3 days ago,
I downloaded Convert 3200 from the world wide web :-(
(I'm sorry if any of the above sounds weird...I'm very upset at the
moment...and have been so for the past couple of days.)
Joe
(JOE.KOHN, CAT28, TOP6, MSG:191/M645;1)
<<<<< > Of course _you_ bought Convert 3200
"""""
_That's_ why I got worried. I was afraid that even though I bought
it, it was about to self destruct. :)
> not 2-3 days ago, I downloaded Convert 3200 from the world wide web :-(
You have a right to be upset. And I hope you let the site know that
they are distributing it illegally. There ought to be some "hidden" key
that unlocks the software. People could phone you and ask for it. And it
could be tied into the machine somehow, so that if run on another machine,
it wouldn't work. Sigh...
__!__
| Terrell Smith
| tsmith@ivcf.org
(T.SMITH59, CAT28, TOP6, MSG:194/M645;1)
>>>>> > And I hope you let the site know that they are distributing it
""""" > illegally.
As it turns out, only one person downloaded one file before the site
was shut down by the Internet Service Provider. That one person was me,
and the one program was Convert 3200.
> There ought to be some "hidden" key that unlocks the software.
Neither Brutal Deluxe nor I care to have any kind of copy protection
on software.
The truth of the matter is that 99.9999% of Apple II users are fine
and upstanding and honest folks. It's the very rare "bad apple" that can
cause problems. But, we don't want the actions of 1 or 2 "bad apples" to
effect anyone else.
For me personally, I've been horribly upset these past 6 days. I
know that getting as upset as I've been certainly isn't going to do me any
good, so I need to calm down a little bit more and discuss things further
with Brutal Deluxe...before deciding what additional action to take.
Joe
(JOE.KOHN, CAT28, TOP6, MSG:197/M645;1)
SPECTRUM V2.1 SCRIPTING BUG There is indeed a problem that is crept into
""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Spectrum 2.1 and eluded the Beta testers. If
there is anything at all on the 'Set OnlineDisplay "VT100"' line after the
quote, not just a REM statement, it fails. I will sort this out for the
next version, but in the meantime, if you edit out the space at the end of
the line, so the line breaks immediately after the quote, I think you will
find it will work for you.
Unfortunately, the AutoLearn feature adds in that extra space!
Ewen (Speccie)
Delivered by: CoPilot v2.5.5 and Spectrum 2.1
(E.WANNOP, CAT43, TOP16, MSG:77/M645;1)
BILL SHUFF'S GOLD TWGS/ZIPGS CABLES The latest issue of II Alive contains
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" complete instructions for making this
cable. The article was written by Bill Shuff himself.
If you can't reach Bill here on Genie, you can try his Inet Email
address: bill2060@cris.com.
David W.
(D.WALLIS2, CAT14, TOP20, MSG:247/M645;1)
>>>>> > The latest issue of II Alive contains complete instructions for
""""" > making this cable. The article was written by Bill Shuff himself.
And botched by the editor of II Alive. The instructions as printed
in II Alive do not work, and the only saving grace is that it is the
instructions themselves that do not work, i.e. you cannot construct a
defective cable using the instructions, you can't construct ANY cable using
them. :)
Gary R. Utter
(H.MOST, CAT14, TOP20, MSG:250/M645;1)
GENIE PRIME TIME BILLING RULES AND REGS Last month, Harold wrote
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> If you are online -prior to- primetime begining, then your current
> session is not billed as primetime.
then Gary wrote
> Unless there has been a change in recent years (possible but not
> likely), you are charge Prime Time rates based on what time you logged
> on, and pay those rates for the entire session.
I logged on to Genie at 7:58 EST and then off at 8:00. I ended up
being charged $.02 for prime time. When I wrote to feedback, I received
this explanation:
> Your logoff time was 8:00.15, the .02 charge was for the 15 seconds
> after 8:00 am.
So beware! You will be charged for any portion of primetime.
-Ken Wong-
(K.WONG1, CAT29, TOP39, MSG:57/M645;1)
COMPUTER DESKS Possible Apple II Product Recommendation:
""""""""""""""
I found a catalog today for adirondack direct, a computer furniture
supplier. One thing I found interesting was that along with the generic
PeeCees in the catalog for display, they had quite a few macs, a fair
amount of GSs and a //e!
They sell some units that accomodate up to 6 "stock" GSs with only a
few external devices with overhead tables for a printer.
I assume becuase they show these machines, they could be of some
assistance in picking out the right desk for your CPU
They sell the desk systems that APS sells, (at least they look the
same) and a wide variety of other items.
They look like they have some nice stuff, and aren't afraid of
throwing some II's and Macs in the catalog.
Hope this helps somebody!
adirondack direct
THE ADIRONDACK BUILDING
31-01 Vernon Blvd.
Long Island City, NY 11106
Phone: 800-221-2444
Fax: 800-477-1330
A neat thing on pg 54 of the catalog (education workstations
featuring the GSs) you'll notice all the GSs on the top of the page have
been .reversed...Apple logo on right of case, This was most likely a simple
flip of the negative during the stripping process of making the catalog.
--GSer
(P.KRASS, CAT4, TOP45, MSG:54/M645;1)
MARC COLLINS, R.I.P. >From Marc Wolfgram...
""""""""""""""""""""
For what it's worth...
I just got back up to the frozen tundra of Wisconsin Rapids from a
day trip to Milwaukee. I was down for Mark Collins' funeral. He had a
massive stroke in Fox Lake last Thursday night and died Friday morning in
Madison.
If you can think of anyone else in the old Apple community that may
be interested in knowing of his passing, please forward this.
Thanks,
-- Marc
http://www.wctc.net/~wolfgram
__________________________________________________________________
Marc Wolfgram - Sr. Software Engineer - Advantage Learning Systems
INET: wolfgram@wctc.net, mwolfgra@advlearn.com AOL: M Wolfgram
___________ "Never pretend you know what you're doing" ___________
(JOE.KOHN, CAT2, TOP16, MSG:237/M645;1)
>>> HOT TOPICS <<<
""""""""""""""""""
ULTRAMACROS PEEK FOR "MOUSE BUTTON PRESSED"? Not exactly what you asked
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" for, but here's what I've
used in the past to force the mouse button to do what I wanted:
<ba-R>:<all><poke 2005, 160>! make mouse button "Return"
<ba-A>:<all><poke 2005, 239>! make it "Arrows"
|
-(+)-
|
|
...Will (Cat 13, Top 11)
(W.NELKEN1, CAT17, TOP25, MSG:74/M645;1)
>>>>> >poke $b8c1,$98:>! // Mouse button down does a Ctrl-
"""""
Setting the mouse button to ctrl-x means giving up the <onerr>
command. If onerr is active, pressing the mouse button will activate the
onerr routine.
(S.BEVILLE, CAT17, TOP25, MSG:77/M645;1)
>>>>> >ctrl-
"""""
Or, onerr is used trap the mouse button.
Alternately peek $360.
(S.BEVILLE, CAT17, TOP25, MSG:78/M645;1)
[EDITOR'S NOTE: Steve Belville also added this caution in E-mail to me:
"But be aware that remapping the mouse to ctrl-x is NOT a good idea. If
you try to use onerr to trap the mouse button, any error will cause that
routine to kick in."--DGC]
TWEAKING POSTSCRIPT WITH PUBLISH IT! Lately, I haven't been able to work
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" on the other two patches to PI that
we discussed earlier. (e.g. External font specification from within
AppleWorks and Symbol/Dingbat Postscript font substitution.)
I do still plan to work on them, though the latter of the two seems
much easier to do than the former.
If anyone _really_ needs info on the first two completed patches
(external number space specification and the removal of octal character
trapping), please let me know. I'd prefer to upload all four patches with
docs at one time, however.
OTHER TRIVIA:
It has been asked here (by Jim, I believe) what PI sends to the
PostScript printer _prior_ to sending the Laserprep file. I've located the
following:
First, it sends
/md where {/md get / av get cvi 68 eq {(1)}{(2)} ifelse} {(0)}
ifelse} = flush
This searches for the existance of Laserprep (md), and returns a '1'
if the version is 68, and a '2' if the version is other than 68. It returns
a '0' if 'md' has not been found at all.
If '0' then, it sends:
serverdict begin exitserver
which sets up Laserprep to be 'persistently downloaded', or available
until the printer is powered down.
If '2', PI tells you that the LW was intialized with a version other
than 68, and asks you if you want to reinitialize the printer.
If '1', PI does _not_ need to intialize the printer (i.e. send
Laserprep) and begins sending the job.
Along the way, PI apparently sends numerous status requests, which
slows things down a bit. I haven't found this code yet.
Hugh...
(H.HOOD, CAT8, TOP18, MSG:119/M645;1)
<<<<< FINALLY
"""""
It appears we have solved the problem with the lack of
transportability of PublishIt! PostScript Print-to-Disk generated files.
And, it only takes three lines of code additions to the LASERPREP
file supplied with PI, which is AKA version 68 of the Laserwriter Driver.
As you know, even though PI4 provides a print-to-disk option, few of
us have had any luck getting those _print-to-disk_ PI files to print on
other systems, or even with our Apple II's connected to Laser printers.
Jim Goodman came up with one Apple II based workaround by first
initializing his printer with a PI4 blank page, and then sending his
print-to-disk files from ProTerm3. His questions of 'What else must PI4 be
sending?' got me to looking into the internals of PI.
So...
To make this work, rename your 'LASERPREP' file from the PI disk as
'PRINT.LASERPREP' and name a _copy_ of it 'LASERPREP'.
Then use a text editor (e.g. ProTerm or AppleWorks 5.x {it deals with
TXT files much better than 3.0 does, and has capability for _very_ large
file sizes}) to add the following two lines to the _start_ of the copied
LASERPREP file:
systemdict
serverdict begin exitserver
Then, to the _end_ of the LASERPREP file, embed a CTRL-D (ascii 13).
Do this in the ProTerm editor with the 'CTRL-P' 'D' sequence, or from
within AppleWorks with the .storechar dot command from within a macro. {I
haven't tried this with a High ASCII CTRL-D, or the CTRL-T change type key
sequence might work.} Some of the low-ASCII cntrl characters will cause
weird screen effects in AppleWorks, though.
Save the changes to the LASERPREP file. That's it. Now, when you
print to disk and use the file elsewhere, it should print. For normal
direct printing with PI, though, be sure and use the original LASERPREP
file, not the modified copy. (Though I haven't tried it otherwise. It may
not hurt to use it, except for memory wasting.)
What I _think_ this does is first place the system dictionary on top
of the stack {systemdict} (as opposed to the user dictionary), then set up
'md' (LASERPREP) to be persistently downloaded {serverdict begin
exitserver}.
The CTRL-D is the postscript end-of-file character, and signals the
end of the persistant download. The actual PI4 file then immediately calls
up the 'md' dictionary that was just persistantly downloaded and begins to
reference it. Without the CTRL-D, the PI4 file never gets executed on its
own. Plus, I _think_ some code in the LASERPREP file may flush to the end
of the file if it discovers it is already present. This would flush the
PI4 file component too if the CTRL-D end-of-file character weren't present.
If you do use ProTerm to send these files, remember that LASERPREP
sets a fairly long end-of-job timeout. So, you may want to send a 'quit'
or another CTRL-D at the end of your transmission, if you plan to send
another file soon.
I don't have a MAC. If calling the systemdict might mess something
up, you can try deleting the first line given above, and replacing the
second line with:
serverdict begin 0 exitserver
This also prints on an Apple II. Notice the addition of the '0'.
The first method, however, is how PI4 sends the file.
BTW, if you think this was a rambling explanation, I agree. <g> I'll
clean it up when the other patches are ready for uploading.
Hugh...
(H.HOOD, CAT8, TOP18, MSG:132/M645;1)
<<<<< To those who have tried to use PI with AppleTalk
"""""
I've noticed that the dictionary in the 6.0.1 Laserwriter driver is
called 'GSd'. PublishIt! expects to see 'md'.
If you have a hacker spirit, you may try changing the Laserwriter
driver - (on a _copy_ only) to 'md' and then see what happens.
If it works, I imagine that PI could be changed to reference 'GSd'
instead of 'md', but doggoneit, it could be 'fun' to squeeze in that extra
byte without the source code.
Hugh...
(H.HOOD, CAT8, TOP18, MSG:137/M645;1)
>>> WHAT'S NEW <<<
""""""""""""""""""
WOLFENSTEIN 3-D BETA DEMO SHIPS!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
* * * IMPORTANT NOTICE * * *
On Sunday, November 17, you will be inserted deep
behind enemy lines. You will infiltrate the darkest of
the Nazi prisons and you will probably not return.
You are the one hope the Allied forces have of
learning the terrifying secret of Castle Wolfenstein.
And this weekend, you will experience the
beginning of one of the greatest adventures of all
time. And that will only make you want more.
At long last, it's time to get psyched!
The first publicly available beta version of Wolfenstein 3D for the
Apple IIgs will be released on Sunday, November 17, 1996!
This first release will only include the first three levels of the
game, and will not include the save game feature. But this will let you
finally experience the excitement!
So get your trigger finger ready!
The first release of the game will occur on the Logicware home page
at http://www.logicware.com/wolf3d_gs.html (and might happen a day early).
Then it will be uploaded here on Genie, as well as Delphi's A2 Forum.
Have fun. :)
Sheppy
(SHEPPY, CAT13, TOP5, MSG:13/M645;1)
<<<<< Wolfenstein 3D Demo Requirements
"""""
(Note that the demo being released this weekend is a BETA version,
and may have bugs and missing features.)
Wolf 3D requires a hard disk drive with at least 2 megabytes of free
space, as well as 4 megabytes of RAM.
An accelerator card is strongly recommended, but is not required.
Wolf 3D requires System 6.0 or later.
Sheppy
(SHEPPY, CAT13, TOP5, MSG:14/M645;1)
<<<<< I have just finished uploading WolfBeta.BXY to the A2 library here
""""" on Genie. Once released, it will be file #27979.
Please be aware in advance that this demo does not include the sound
effects data file; I will try to get that uploaded within the next day or
two. The game can be played without the sound effects (although it does
lose a bit of entertainment value :).
Unfortunately, there's been an unexpected delay in getting the new
sound effects recorded, so they're not yet available. If nothing else,
I'll try to get a temporary sound effects file uploaded this weekend.
At any rate, I hope you enjoy this initial demo; I apologize for the
delay in getting the sound effects file to you.
Sheppy
(SHEPPY, CAT13, TOP5, MSG:20/M645;1)
<<<<< The final version of Wolf 3D will be FREEWARE
"""""
I intend to release a full version of Wolf 3D by Christmas, but it
probably will not be final yet by that time. It will be feature complete,
though.
(There is new art being made for the game, both for the gameplay
textures and sprites AND for the interface art, and it may not all get into
the game in time for Christmas, in which case there will be another release
early next year).
Sheppy
(SHEPPY, CAT13, TOP5, MSG:22/M645;1)
<<<<< GSer
"""""
I would ask that the beta demo of Wolfenstein 3D -NOT- be distributed
on any user group DOMs. This is primarily because it is only a beta, and
I'd prefer that only people who definitely have direct access to email get
their hands on it; I want them to be able to report problems. :)
I want this version of Wolf 3D to only be distributed online. In
fact, I'd prefer that it remains only on usenet, Logicware's home page,
Genie, and Delphi, but I didn't say that from the outset so I won't say it
now. :)
Eric,
To be honest, I both forgot that Wolf 3D requires ADB -and- forgot
that there were IIgs systems without ADB. The next version of the docs
will mention that an ADB keyboard is required. Thanks. :)
Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd
Logicware, Inc.
http://www.logicware.com
(SHEPPY, CAT13, TOP5, MSG:86/M645;1)
LATEST ISSUE, APPLE BLOSSOM I have a few announcements to make.
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Number One: The latest edition of the Apple Blossom, Volume 2 Number 5
''''''''''' just got back to me from the printer, and it will be hitting
the mail between now and Friday. Look for your copy next week (a bit
longer if you are outside the U.S.). This issue features four major
articles:
o HyperTalking...May I Repeat Myself?
o Talking ][...Lorin Evans, President of Washington Apple Pi
o AppleWorks...Total 'em Up
o Beginners' Corner...Formatting Disks in DOS and ProDOS
as well as news, announcements, etc. The next issue is well under way, and
I hope to have it mailed out by the third week of December (so as to be
able to take a break then with my family). It should be an "oversized"
issue ;)
Number Two: Renewals for the 1997 edition, Volume 3, are being accepted.
''''''''''' To renew your subscription, send $15.00 in US funds ($20.00
outside the U.S./Canada) made out to "Apple Blossom Publishing" to the
following address:
Steve Cavanaugh
Apple Blossom Publishing
P.O. Box 120434
Boston, MA 02112-0434
After December 31, the price of a renewal will be $16.00 ($22.00
outside the U.S./Canada).
New subscribers who wish to get both the 1996 and 1997 edition can
send $26.00 to the same address, etc.
Third: I'm sorry to announce the sad news that I'll no longer have an
'''''' account here on Genie after tomorrow. I will miss the
friendliness of the A2 RoundTable, as well as the outstanding tech help,
but _personal_ financials make this a decision I cannot put off.
I continue to have an account on AOL, and you can reach me there at
SteveC1021@aol.com
I've also got an account on Delphi. My address there is:
AppleBlossom@delphi.com
You can continue to find out about the Apple Blossom through my web
site:
http://members.aol.com/newblossom/
Thanks again for a great two years on Genie. I hope to "see" you
elsewhere!
Regards
Steve Cavanaugh
(S.CAVANAUGH1, CAT13, TOP17, MSG:49/M645;1)
LATEST ISSUE, JUICED.GS Announcing ...
"""""""""""""""""""""""
=== Juiced.GS ===
=== Fall, 1996 ... Volume 1, Issue 4 ===
The fall edition of Juiced.GS, the quarterly, printed, IIGS-specific
magazine, is ready for the mail. In fact, several dozen issues were mailed
on Wednesday and should begin arriving at their destinations in a couple of
days. The rest of the mailings will take place Friday and Saturday, so
U.S. subscribers should have their copies by the middle of next week.
Juiced.GS, Volume 1, Issue 4, is the final issue of the 1996
subscription year. The magazine, which once again contains 24 pages, is
being mailed to 266 paid subscribers in 41 states and 11 foreign countries.
Here's a sampling of what you'll find in this issue:
Cover Story: Day dawns on Delphi ... With Genie's future in doubt,
an alternative on-line home is found for the A2 Roundtable. And it can be
accessed via Telnet from the Internet for a minimal price. ... By Max Jones
Unix, the Internet, and the Apple II ... A closer look at the path
Apple II users must now travel if they want to explore the vast frontiers
of Cyberspace. ... By Tim Kellers
Reviews: Spectrum v2.1 upgrade and ANSI v1.3 on-line display for
Spectrum.
Desktop Publishing: Good design doesn't just 'happen' ... The first
in what will be an ongoing discussion of page design. ... By Dave Bennett
Hardware: Power-boosting the IIGS ... A how-to guide for modifying
PC-style power supplies to work on your IIGS and end your low-power
hassles. ... By Stephen Buggie
The Hardware Repair Bench: Maintaining your ImageWriter ...
Step-by-step instructions for keeping your printer in top form. ... By M.H.
"Buzz" Bester
II Be Named Later: A Retrogrouch in a Technoweenie world ... In his
column this issue, Ryan M. Suenaga muses about how satisfying it is to get
more and more out of an "obsolete" computer while others can only find
satisfation continually buying the "next" latest and greatest technology.
Also in this issue ...
Shareware spotlight: The light shines down on Tonight's Sky GS 4.3,
an astronomy program, and Sorry 1.0, a Hangman-style word game. Capsule
reports on other current shareware/freeware titles also included.
DumplinGS: News from the Apple II world ... Snippets of the hottest
news items to be found in the last quarter of 1996.
If you are a current subscriber and have not yet renewed for 1997,
now is the time to do so. This issue marks the end of your subscription. A
renewal subscription is $14.
If you have not yet subscribed but would like to do so, you have
several options:
1 ... All four 1996 issues, and a subscription for 1997 -- $28 in the
U.S., Canada, Mexico ($40 elsewhere in the world)
2 ... The final two issues (summer and fall) of 1996, and a
subscription for 1997 -- $21 in the U.S. Canada and Mexico ($30 elsewhere)
3 ... A 1997 subscripition (four issues), to begin with the winter
issue to be published in late February -- $14 in the U.S. Canada and Mexico
($20 elsewhere)
4 ... A 1997 subscription, plus the final issue of 1996 (fall) -- $18
in the U.S. Canada and Mexico ($26 elsewhere)
(Single copies are available for $4.)
To subscribe, send a check or money order in U.S. funds to:
Max Jones
Juiced.GS
2217 Lakeview Drive
Sullivan, Indiana 47882
Sorry, no credit cards or purchase orders accepted. Make checks
payable to Max Jones.
If you have any questions, please contact me at the above postal
address or one of the following e-mail addresses:
Genie: M.JONES145
Delphi: JuicedGS
Internet: m.jones145@genie.com, or juicedgs@delphi.com
You can also find more information on Juiced.GS, and a table of
contents of back issues, on my home page. The URL is:
http://users.ids.net/~kerwood/juiced.gs
Happy holidays to all ...
Apple II Forever,
Max Jones
Juiced.GS
(M.JONES145, CAT13, TOP43, MSG:288/M645;1)
>>> THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
FAST EDDIE EMULATOR--LATEST Seen at http://www.macintouch.com on Oct. 29,
""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 1996:
_Fast Eddie_, an Apple IIgs emulator, is nearing the beta stage.
Ryan
http://www.keystroke.net/~rsuenaga
ANSITerm and CoPilot v2.55
(R.SUENAGA1, CAT35, TOP29, MSG:139/M645;1)
LEMMINGS--LATEST It looks like Brutal Deluxe's LemminGS is getting close
"""""""""""""""" to completion.
I just downloaded the latest 20 levels, so 80 of the 90 planned
levels now appear to be completed. But, I guess I won't be able to
personally confirm that until I finally figure out how to get past Level 49
;-)
Actually, Olivier says that there will be 92 levels, but I'm just not
sure yet if those final 2 levels will be Easter Eggs or what. Apparently,
Level 91 will be dedicated to the beta test team, and Level 92 will be
designed by Olivier. He says now that Level 92 will only look impossible
to complete.
The biggest surprise found in his note to the beta test team was that
Brutal Deluxe plans to complete the game by early December. Of 1996, that
is.
Will they, or won't they? Stay tuned for details.
Joe
(JOE.KOHN, CAT28, TOP6, MSG:212/M645;1)
WOLFENSTEIN 3-D: THE FULL RELEASE It looks like the full release of Wolf
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 3D may be delayed until next year.
There's a positive reason for the delay, if the delay occurs. I can't go
into more detail right now.
Sheppy
(SHEPPY, CAT13, TOP5, MSG:71/M645;1)
WOLFENSTEIN 3-D: BETA DEMO SOUND EFFECTS There are no sound effects; any
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" sound you're hearing is an
artifact of another program you have installed.
I'm not sure about the timeline on the sound effects right now. I'm
trying... :/
Eric "Sheppy" Shepherd
Logicware, Inc.
http://www.logicware.com
(SHEPPY, CAT13, TOP5, MSG:88/M645;1)
SOME OLD APPLE IIE/IIC BACK "IN PRINT"? In regards to those 8 bit games
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" that I purchased from BRCC...I
have to admit that I get a real kick out of offering Apple II software for
unbelievable pricing. And, it's obvious to me now that when it comes to
older software, people will only purchase it for "unbelievable pricing."
After all, I've had boxes and boxes of software taking up room in the
SSII warehouses, and it was only after I offered 15+ boxes of software for
$50 that it started to sell.
In an attempt to put together yet another low cost "entertainment
bundle," it looks like I'll be able to do that again...but on a somewhat
limited basis. I located a few more IIe/IIc games that are out of print,
so maybe in a week or two, I'll be able to offer the "That's Entertainment"
bundle.
Because some of the titles will still be available in only limited
quantities, I think I'll make that package available only to Genie
subscribers. That way, it'll be easy for folks to check on availability.
Stay tuned for details.
Joe
(JOE.KOHN, CAT28, TOP4, MSG:136/M645;1)
>>> MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
Category 2, Topic 31
Message 111 Mon Nov 18, 1996
A2.CHARLIE at 13:50 EST
A quote that seems appropriate...
"It's no surprise that talk radio and chat rooms can be such mean
places. It's not the radio's fault. It's not the chat room's problem.
The radio and the computer are just vehicles for all the ugly voices out
there.
"For all our societal worries that technology would bring an
Orwellian society -- a place where we could not express ourselves, could
not share our opinions without oppression -- the fact is that just the
opposite has happened. More and more we find anonymous opportunities to
express our meanest thoughts, our ugliest emotions, our pettiest
prejudices."
... Beverly Bartlett, _The Courier-Journal_ 11-18-96
[*][*][*]
While on Genie, do you spend most of your time downloading files?
If so, you may be missing out some excellent information in the Bulletin
Board area. The messages listed above only scratch the surface of
what's available and waiting for you in the bulletin board area.
If you are serious about your Apple II, the GenieLamp staff strongly
urge you to give the bulletin board area a try. There are literally
thousands of messages posted from people like you from all over the
world.
[EOA]
[HUM]//////////////////////////////
HUMOR ONLINE /
/////////////////////////////////
Phrases That Signal Impending Doom
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
by Alan Meiss
[ameiss@indiana.edu]
>>> SOME FAMOUS LAST WORDS <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
o You'll be perfectly safe behind this much lead plate.
o That's not smoke, that's steam.
o Of course it's sterile.
o Well, we're the next best thing to a bank.
o That should be at least enough gas to make it across Nevada.
o It's so tame you can put your head in its mouth.
o It was fresh just last week.
o These are the safe kind of mushrooms.
o It should be ok to swim in.
o He's been a perfectly safe driver ever since his first Model T.
o Clip the red wire first.
o It's ok to format this disk.
o It's supposed to make that noise.
o It's pretty much grounded.
o It doesn't *look* like the bridge is out.
o They only attack when they're hungry.
o I can hold my breath at least that long.
o The boss won't mind.
o It shouldn't take long to reach Anchorage.
o Let's ask those soldiers for directions.
o It'll shrink in the wash.
o Jason won't find us in this closet.
o I'm sure I turned my lights off.
o I bet I can fit in there.
Copyright 1995 by Alan Meiss.
Reprinted by GenieLamp with the author's permission.
Visit Alan's archive of his humor files at:
http://www.cs.indiana.edu/hyplan/ameiss/humor.html
[EOA]
[SOF]//////////////////////////////
SOFTVIEW A2 /
/////////////////////////////////
Lordlings of Yore
"""""""""""""""""
by Douglas Cuff
[D.CUFF]
_Lordlings of Yore_ (subtitled "The Game of Knights, Knaves and
Necromancers") is a strategy game set sometime around Britain's 12th
century, give or take a century. The game is designed for four players,
but the computer will stand in for any absentees, so you can play all by
your lonesome. You battle the three other lordlings in an attempt to mass
the biggest armies and control the most peasants. You can use magic to
accomplish what brute force cannot.
The game includes a 24-page manual packed with information. You
should at least glance at it before playing--this isn't the sort of game
you pick up as go along.
All you need to run this game is an Apple II with 48K, a 5.25" disk
drive, and a monitor. A printer is optional, but a good idea if you have a
printer compatible with the game. If you have an Apple II with lower case,
be sure to keep the Caps Lock key down throughout.
CHOOSING YOUR GAME The game opens with a visual pun--a scrolling
"""""""""""""""""" animation technique used to open a scroll (as
"medieval" music plays). You begin by starting a new game or loading an
old one.
You start a new game by choosing the number of human players, plus a
name, a password, and a level for each. Your name can be anything you
want--but be advised that "Lord Tom" looks really incongruous to anyone who
knows anything about the nobility. (If your name is Clarence Threepwood,
you're probably not Lord Threepwood either. You're Lord Emsworth--your
title doesn't necessarily have anything to do with your name.) I mention
this only because the computer will be choosing more authentic-looking
names, and your "Lord Tom" might look odd alongside them. You can change
your name in the middle of the game if you don't like it.
You can have a password that's 1-4 characters long, or you can just
press Return, which effectively ignores the password feature. Your
password can also be changed in the middle of a game.
The level (1-4) merely refers to the troops and gold that each player
starts with. Buried in the middle of the manual is the suggestion that new
human players be given the maximum gold and troops and computer players be
given the minimum. It's good advice. There will always be four players,
and the computer will play any roles not selected by a human. Don't be so
soft-hearted as to give the computer players an even break.
The final opportunity to customize your game comes with the terrain
modifiers. If you like, you can have more mountains, more forests, and
more swamps, or any combination thereof. When you're learning the game,
it's better to keep the terrain as uncomplicated as possible.
THE GAME BEGINS Once your Apple II has sorted out the four players, it
""""""""""""""" randomly assigns each of you to one of the four shires.
(Unfortunately, it doesn't give you a list of the players and their
respective shires. And player numbers are important.) Each shire has a
map of 49 squares (7x7) and has a home castle in one square. The other 48
squares may be a certain type of terrain, which affects battle outcome, or
hold groups of 100-400 peasants (for a total of 5000 peasants), all of
which you get to tax. As long as the other players don't occupy the
squares with those peasants. Squares can also be occupied by fog,
maelstroms, and dragons--magic conjured by one of the four necromancers.
Each turn in _Lordlings of Yore_ has six phases. For your first
turn, only four of the six phases are available. The first phase concerns
the Necromancer. You can have your necromancer cast a spell. Two spells
are free--the rest have to be requested and paid for on your previous turn.
You'll already appreciate that this game requires planning and forethought!
Spells require either a map coordinate (A-1 through N-14) or a unit number
(1-A through 4-Z). Frankly, this is every bit as confusing as it sounds,
and there's no chance to glance at the map at this stage. Often, there's
no graceful way to back out of a spell if you've chosen it before you know
the correct coordinate or number. There's little your Necromancer can
accomplish on your first turn. Your Necromancer can be killed; if he is,
this phase of the game disappears.
The second phase of a game is the Treasury phase. You can spend your
gold on knights, men at arms (footsoldiers), appeasement (give the peasants
some return on their taxes or they'll get rambunctious), spells from your
necromancer, bribery, and intelligence. You'll probably find knights, men
at arms, and spells vital, but don't neglect appeasement nor overlook the
value of intelligence. Bribery has no guaranteed value--players can accept
your bribes and then ignore your requests without penalty.
The third phase of a game is Deployment. You get to move knights and
men from your castle in units. You can have 26 units active at a time,
though you'll usually have significantly less. You assign each unit a
letter to identify it.
The fourth phase is Movement. This phase is not available on your
first turn. You cannot move a unit that you've just deployed--and since,
on your first turn, the only units that exist are ones that have just been
deployed, there's nothing to move! Units can move north, south, east, or
west, one square at a time. In the movement phase, for each unit, you can
choose to hold where you are, deploy the unit (split into other units),
plus get a roster of your units, and a few other options.
The fifth phase is Combat. This phase is also not available on your
first turn. When one of your units runs into an enemy unit, battle
results, and the outcome turns on how strong each unit is. You can advance
or retreat... or have your unit wiped out (that is, all knights and men are
killed).
The sixth phase is the Options phase, which lets you perform some
housekeeping, like changing your name or password, saving a game, resigning
from the game, sending a message to another player, or printing a map or
roster. Unfortunately, printing doesn't work on my Apple IIgs. Oddly,
when I try to print, the game boots my GS from slot 7 (even when that's not
the boot slot). Of course, the programmer couldn't foresee the standard
Apple IIgs set-up in 1985, but it would have been nicer if he had allowed
players to tell the program what slot the printer was in.
PLAYING THE GAME Because strategy games have never appealed to me, I
"""""""""""""""" wasn't prepared to enjoy this game, but I did. The game
involves you--at least, I found myself drawn into it.
_Lordlings of Yore_ is very easy to play, but not at all easy to win.
Heck, it's not even easy to finish. This is not a quick game. I hate
reviews from reviewers who have barely glanced at a product, so I allowed
muself over a month to review _Lordlings of Yore_. (Incidentally, this
explains why it is that you're unlikely to see the first review of a
commercial product in GenieLamp A2.)
Normally, over a month would be ample time to review a game, but each
game of _Lordlings of Yore_ takes a long time to play out--three or four
hours of play at a time, and even then you won't finish in one sitting.
With a game taking something like 90 turns, you're going to need that saved
game feature. After agreeing to help in the review by providing a second
human player, my wife advised that players to "bring a novel". We were two
humans playing against two computer opponents, and each time the computer
took a turn, it wasn't quick, even though the computer is lots quicker than
a human player and even though we weren't shown any of the six phases.
During another player's turn, you're supposed to walk away from the
screen if it's a human player. If it's a computer player, all that happens
is that the name of the computer player is shown while the dirty work takes
place. If there's a combat phase during a computer player's turn, you're
informed of that, and each skirmish is accompanied by a few noises from the
speaker (which quickly become irritating).
The fact that you don't get to see what's happening during other
players' turns means that this isn't a game for woolgatherers. By the time
you regain control of the keyboard, you may find that two of your units
have disappeared--but you're not notified of this in any way. It's up to
you notice it when you look at the map or at the roster. Same thing if
you've lost knights or men from a unit during a battle.
There's an awful lot to keep track of, and the game isn't designed to
be of as much help as it should be. When you're asked which unit you want
to spy on, or which square you want to land a dragon in, there's no chance
to refresh your memory with a quick glance at the map. You'd better have a
phenomenal memory, a printer that works with _Lordlings of Yore_, or a pad
of graph paper.
The most discouraging part of the game is that the computer players
are so much darned better. Why shouldn't they be? They understand every
possible nuance of play, and they can keep track of more than most humans
can.
You don't have to be a practised strategy gamer to enjoy Lordlings of
Yore, but on the other hand, I wouldn't try to play it with anyone who had
never played any sort of computer game before. You need some understanding
of the vagaries of computers to tackle _Lordlings of Yore_, but don't worry
too much about it. If you've cut your teeth on Raster Blaster and
Milestones 2000, you're ready to become a lordling.
The use of animation on the maps is a nice small touch. When fog or
a dragon have been conjured to pester you, instead of a simple little icon
on the hi-res screen, there's a short animation.
Not every attempt to make the game attractive works. The game uses
two custom hi-res fonts, and both are more irritating than they are
legible. (The font in the manual, also meant to lend a period feel, was
also a mistake.) This illegibility matters most when trying to read the
letters of enemy units. If you don't know whether the "Olde English" font
is display an C, E, or F, it's going to be impossible to get information on
it. The cursor for both the large and small font is a coat of arms. This
cutesy feature doesn't get in the way of the game, but it doesn't add
anything either.
STEPPING BACK IN TIME When I received my review copy of _Lordlings of
""""""""""""""""""""" Yore_, I felt for a moment as though I had been
transported back in time. Fresh in its shrink-wrapped package was a game
with a 1985 copyright date.
(I asked John Hudson of Hudson's Hobby Games, who supply the game,
about this. Had he uncovered a motherlode of old Apple II games? No, Mr
Hudson is a friend of Jon Baxley, the designer of the game.)
There are minor irritations due to the game's age. Apart from not
being able to print using an Apple IIgs and an ImageWriter II attached to
the printer port, there's no support for the delete key. The game
sometimes recognizes lower-case key pressed, but other times does not--it's
better to keep your Caps Lock key on at all times. There's no reason NOT
to keep Caps Lock depressed, because there's no real support for lower case
input. If you type your name as "Ickenham", the game will address you
throughout as "Lord ICKENHAM". This also gets a bit irritating when
receiving messages from other human players. A second 5.25" drive is not
supported--when saving games, you must swap your program disk and your
saved game disk.
All these are fairly minor irritations. On the whole, the game holds
up pretty well considering it's at least 11 years old. The game's age also
means that it's available at a bargain price--$10! And that includes
shipping inside the United States. (Outside the U.S., add $5.)
SUMMARY _Lordlings of Yore_ is never likely to become a classic nor a
""""""" crowd pleaser, but anyone who has a bit of time to invest in
games-playing will enjoy this game, even if she or he is not experienced
with strategy games. The complexity level of this game is about
medium--too involved to merely dabble in, but not so complicated that you
have be Nikola Tesla just to survive three moves. The design of the game
is not great--it doesn't use the abilities of a computer to its full
advantage--but it is good enough that it hardly shows its age, a decade
after it was conceived. The bargain price of $10 should help sales.
Published by
''''''''''''
Softlore Corporation (1983, 1985)
Distributed by
''''''''''''''
Hudson's Hobby Games
P.O. Box 121503
Arlington, TX 76012-1503
E-mail: HudsonGame@aol.com
phone: (817) 461-0126
Price
'''''
$10 (including shipping inside U.S.A.; $5 elsewhere)
(some Spanish copies available)
[EOA]
[BAN]//////////////////////////////
FILE BANDWAGON /
/////////////////////////////////
Top 10 Files for October
""""""""""""""""""""""""
by Douglas Cuff
[D.CUFF]
This feature lists the ten most popular files for the month. To give
files a chance to seek their own levels, no files will be added to the list
until they've been in place at least a month. This month, we look at the
files uploaded 1-31 October 1996.
This isn't the Academy Awards ceremony, folks; it's more like the
People's Choice Awards (both of which are trademarked, by the way). The
Top 10 doesn't necessarily tell you what's new and interesting--what files
_you_ might find interesting--it simply tells you what files have been
downloaded a lot--what other people found interesting!
This month, the October and November issues of GenieLamp A2 occupy a
total of eight spots on the list (five and three, respectively), but we're
just counting each issue as one file each. We hope this explains why there
are 17 files on the Top 10 list.
File # Filename Bytes DLs Short description
------ --------------- ------ --- -------------------------------------
27925 JPEGS.1.1.BXY 147072 118 New version of JPeg viewer
27930 A2.DOM.9610.BXY 439680 116 A2 Disk of the Month, October 1996
27909 ALMP9610.BXY 54528 69 GenieLamp A2, Oct. 1996 (text)
27919 SORRY.BXY 45824 63 Hi-res word guessing game. Fun!
27965 ALMP9611.BXY 58624 57 GenieLamp A2, Nov. 1996 (text)
27921 PT3.1INET.BXY 3456 53 PT3.1 Genie Internet Macros
27906 ALMP9610.AW.BXY 60544 44 GenieLamp A2, Oct. 1996 (AppleWorks)
27964 ALMP9611.HS.BXY 94848 40 GenieLamp A2, Nov. 1996 (HyprStudio)
27924 NOV96.DESK.BXY 308420 36 Desktop background INIs for Nov. 96.
27908 ALMP9610.HS.BXY 89088 36 GenieLamp A2, Oct. 1996 (HyprStudio)
27962 ALMP9611.AW.BXY 64896 30 GenieLamp A2, Nov. 1996 (AppleWorks)
27922 DESKBACKAC.BXY 10880 29 3 Backgrounds for BackDrop NDA
27911 HWEEN96DESK.BXY 141824 29 Halloween desktop background INIs.
27910 ALMP9610.ASC 94820 29 GenieLamp A2, Oct. 1996 (ASCII text)
27907 ALMP9610.HC.BXY 79872 26 GenieLamp A2, Oct. 1996 (HyperCard)
27905 A2.SEP.ADB.BXY 9340 25 ADB Update of A2 Library Index - SEP
27961 A2NDX9611TX.BXY 19180 22 A2 BB Index 11/96 ASCII VER. rev.
JPEGS.1.1.BXY jpeGS v1.1 by Mark Marr-Lyon lets you view JPEG graphics
""""""""""""" (so popular on the World Wide Web). It will take advantage
of a SecondSight video card, but will work without one. Its preview,
grayscale, and ratio controls help speed up the viewing of each graphic.
This new version is faster than the previous one. Freeware.
A2.DOM.9610.BXY marks the return of the Genie A2 RoundTable disk of the
""""""""""""""" month. (The disk did not appear for three months, July
through September.) In addition to the July and October issues of
GenieLamp A2, the October disk features Computer Keyboarding by Charlie
Hartley (now freeware), PUFF by Craig Peterson--a collection of ampersand
enhancements for Applesoft BASIC, Scavenger Hunt USA by Charlie Hartley
(also now freeware), and SWAPSCSI by Craig Peterson, an added BASIC command
for users of the Apple Rev. C SCSI card. All these can be used on an Apple
II. For Apple IIgs users, there's CoolWriter GS v3.0 by Rolf Braun, a
stand-alone text editor/word processor.
ALMP9610.BXY All five editions of the October issue of GenieLamp A2 make
"""""""""""" it into the most popular files this month. Features include
the second installment of Peter Brickell's REAL WORLD APPLE column, an
APPLE ANECDOTE about personal programming highlights from editor Doug Cuff,
a song parody from unofficial Apple II historian Steve Weyhrich, and three
gems from the library. In order of popularity: the packed text version,
the AppleWorks word processor version, the HyperStudio version, the
unpacked text version, and the HyperCard version.
SORRY.BXY Sorry by Russ Nielson is a word game with a certain resemblance
""""""""" to Hangman. The implementation is terrifically attractive.
There are plenty of word lists, and a program to help you add your own.
For more details, see last month's PD_QUICKVIEW column. Freeware.
ALMP9611.BXY Three editions of the November issue of GenieLamp A2 make it
"""""""""""" into the most popular files this month. Features include
the third installment of Peter Brickell's REAL WORLD APPLE column, a look
at Russ Nielson's word game Sorry, a chart of GenieLamp A2 back issues, and
a brief history of GenieLamp. In order of popularity: the packed text
version, the HyperStudio version, and the AppleWorks word processor
version. (This makes the first time that the HyperStudio version has been
#2!)
PT3.1INET.BXY Three ProTERM A2 v3.1 Genie Internet Macros by Art
""""""""""""" Coughlin. The first macro loads your bookmark file into
the ProTERM editor, sets VT100 emulation and full duplex, and takes you
through Genie's Internet gateway to Lynx. The second returns from Genie's
Internet gateway, emulation and duplex, and logs you off. The third macro
pastes a URL from the bookmark file to the modem. There is also a bonus
macro--you'll have to download the file to find out what it is. Freeware.
NOV96.DESK.BXY These 42 files from Pat Kern are .INI format, meaning they
"""""""""""""" can be used to create new background for IIgs desktop
programs. All freeware.
o APPLE96.INI: a red apple with a green leaf still attached, and a
November 1996 calendar.
o BIRTHDAY.INI: a round two-layer cake with white icing and seven
purple candles on a light blue background.
o BUBBLES3.INI: 3x5 grid of bubbles; each large bubble is
surrounded by five smaller bubbles.
o CIRCLE.INI: 5x6 grid of white circles with red outlines on a dark
blue background.
o DISK1A1.INI: 5x6 grid of blue 3.5" disks with labels on a white
background.
o DISK1A2.INI: same as DISK1A1.INI (above), but with a light blue
background.
o DISK2.INI: the reverse side of one large 3.5" disk--the side with
the hub and write protect tab, not the label--on a light blue
background.
o DOWNOUT96.INI: a frazzled cartoon figure lies prone on the ground
over the legend: "If at first you don't succeed... / call it
version 1.0". There is also a November 19965 calendar.
o FROGG.INI: a nice drawing of a small frog clutching a branch or
reed, on a white background. In my opinion, one of the three best
in this archive.
o FROGGY.INI: same as FROGG.INI (above), but on a green background.
o HIBISCUS2.INI: a large hibicus on a white background and a large
pink border.
o HIBISCUS3.INI: same as HIBISCUS2.INI, but with a white border.
o HIBSCUS1.INI: same as HIBISCUS2.INI, but with a black background.
o HRN.PLNT96.INI: a colorful cornucopia (horn of plenty) on a white
background, with a November 1996 calendar.
o HRN.PLNTA.INI: same as HRN.PLNT96.INI (above), but shifted
slightly up and to the left, and no calendar.
o HRN.PLNTB.INI: same as HRN.PLNTA.INI (above), but with a black
background.
o LOOPSA.INI: ~6x10 grid of color red/yellow/orange loops on a blue
background.
o LOOPSBB.INI: ~4x6 grid of loops--similar to those in LOOPSA.INI
but larger--on a blue background.
o MOUSEWRTR96.INI: a mouse with a bottle of ink and a piece of
paper is writing a letter, using his tail as the quill! Also a
November 1996 calendar, on a pink background.
o NORODENT.INI: stylized drawing of a mouse (the kind that eats
cheese, not the computer input device) and a red Euroslash on a
blue background. In my opinion, one of the three best in this
archive.
o NOUVEA1.INI: an ornate drawing which includes a classically
dressed young female, on a yellow background.
o PERIODIC.INI: a periodic table of elements on a dark blue
background--alas, there's not enough resolution to be able to read
all the data in the table.
o PHSNT.INI: a colorful drawing of a pheasant in the woods.
o PHSNT96.INI: same as PHSNT.INI (above), but with a November 1996
calendar.
o POPPY96.INI: colored line drawing of a poppy, with a November
1996 calendar, on a blue background.
o SAFETY.INI: colorful drawing of confetti and streamers on a black
background, with the legend "The designated driver is the life of
the party." In my opinion, one of the three best in this archive.
Possibly I'm biased here, since I don't drink and am usually the
designated driver at family gatherings.
o SNOW.INI: blue and white snow stretches to the horizon.
o SNOW96.INI: same as SNOW.INI (above), but with a November 1996
calendar.
o TGR.LILY1.INI: a tiger lily on a white background.
o TGR.LILY2.INI: same as TGR.LILY1.INI (above), but with a green
(yellow?) background.
o TGR.LILY3.INI: similar to TGR.LILY1.INI (above), but with the
image inverted laterally (a mirror image) and a black background.
o TGR.LILY96.INI: similar to TGR.LILY1.INI (above), but with a
November 1996 calendar.
o THANK.YOU.INI: a cartoon of a boy and a turkey sitting at a time,
giving thanks for their bowls of soup. The legend reads: "Thank
you, Lord, for everything."
o THANK.YOU96.INI: similar to THANK.YOU.INI, except the graphic has
been moved right of center and a November 1996 calendar has been
place left.
o THANKSGIVIN.INI: a large, more realistically rendered cornucopia
(horn of plenty).
o TILEA.INI: diamond tiles, subtly shaded with gray on gray.
o TILEB.INI: as above, but with green/gray.
o TILEC.INI: as above, but with black/pink.
o VETERANS.INI: an American flag and text on a blue background.
The text reads: "In honor of our trues heroes / This Veteran's Day
/ Take time to remember our heroic veterans / To those who have
served / to protect our great nation, / let us salute them in our
memories and thoughts / with heartfelt gratitude."
o WTR.LILY.INI: a water lily on a white background.
o WTR.LILYA.INI: a large version of the water lily in WTR.LILY.INI
(above).
o WTR.LILYB.INI: same as WTR.LILYA.INI (above), but with a black
background.
DESKBACKAC.BXY Three freeware backgrounds from Art Coughlin for use with
"""""""""""""" Softdisk's Backdrop NDA (programmed by Greg Templeman):
o Colorfield: horizontal scattering of wildly disparate colors.
o TheBlues: a mottled, marbled blue and black pattern.
o Wallpaper: a small green geometric pattern.
HWEEN96DESK.BXY These 26 files from Pat Kern are .INI format, meaning
""""""""""""""" they can be used to create new background for IIgs
desktop programs. All freeware.
o CATMC.INI: a night scene featuring and a black cat and a bat
flying in front of the moon--also in the sky is a "collision" of
the words "HAPPY" and "HALLOWEEN".
o DEVILA.INI: silhouettes of eight devils (four large, four small)
on a red background.
o FLAMSKUL.INI: a large grinning death's head in the centre of a
flame.
o GHOSTA.INI: a simple, scary rendition of a ghost on an orange
background--BOO! appears in the lower left corner. In my opinion,
one of the five best in this archive.
o HALLOW.INI: a haunted tower and a dead tree--HAPPY HALLOWEEN also
appears
o HALLOWEEB.INI: a checkerboard pattern featuring small
jack-o-lanterns, bats, and leaves.
o HALLOWIN.INI: a big, distorted, cartoony but scary man-eating
jack-o-lantern with bloody fangs. In my opinion, one of the five
best in this archive.
o HALLOWN.INI: in the foreground, a large cheerful jack-o-lantern
sitting on the pavement; in the background a row of houses... and a
couple of ghosts.
o HLWEEN2.INI: a young, attractive with on a broomstick flying in
front of the moon, with the legend: HALLOWEEN... WITCHES... BOO
o JACKB.INI: a 5x6 grid of oblong jack-o-lanterns.
o P.PUMPKIN.INI: very nice, colorful drawing of a pumpkin (not
carved); with room down the right for the Finder's disk/drive
icons. In my opinion, one of the five best in this archive.
o PUMKFACE.INI: just the carved eyes, nose, mouth, and scar of a
jack-o-lantern's face; yellow (green?) on white.
o PUMKFACE2.INI: same design as above, except the color scheme has
changed to yellow (green?) on pink.
o PUMPKIN.INI: a cheerful jack-o-lantern, orange on a black
background.
o PUMPKINA.INI: more colorful version of above, with the pumpkin
stem colored green, and the face glowing yellow, giving the
impression of a candle inside.
o PUMPKINCAT.INI: color digitized photo of a jack-o-lantern and a
cat; resolution not so good.
o PUMPKN2.INI: cheerful, goofy drawing of a one-toothed
jack-o-lantern.
o PUMPKN3A.INI: evil-looking jack-o-lantern, orange on black, with
legend HAPPY HALLOWEEN.
o PUMPKN4.INI: mid-sized pumpkin (not carved) in the center of the
screen; at the bottom of the screen, the legend HAPPY HALLOWEEN in
large, green "flame"-style letters.
o PUNKIND.INI: 5x6 grid of jack-o-lanterns on a dark blue
background.
o SKULL.INI: 5x6 grid of grinning skulls on a black
background--spooky! In my opinion, one of the five best in this
archive.
o SKULL2C.INI: a skull with red eyes sits on a plate in a
dungeon--a spider web is nearby.
o SKULL3.INI: a large, misshapen gray skull on a black background.
o SKULLS2B.INI: a crazy patchwork of skulls, entirely in black and
white. In my opinion, one of the five best in this archive.
o SPOOKCLR.INI: a staggered pattern of black cats on a green
background.
o WITCH33.INI: orange profile silhouette of a witch on broomstick
flying in front of the moon, on a black background.
A2.SEP.ADB.BXY The September update to the A2 RoundTable library listing,
"""""""""""""" in AppleWorks data base format. Prepared by Tom
Zuchowski. Freeware.
A2NDX9611TX.BXY An index of the A2 RoundTable bulletin board for
""""""""""""""" November, in a text file format. Prepared by Chuck
Stites. Freeware.
[EOA]
[PDQ]//////////////////////////////
PD_QUICKVIEW /
/////////////////////////////////
Yours For The Asking
""""""""""""""""""""
by Douglas Cuff
[D.CUFF]
Program Name: Wolfenstein 3-D IIgs (demo)
Filename: WOLFDEMO.BXY
Program Number: 27979
File Size: 499,200 bytes
Program Type: arcade game
Authors: Bill Heineman and Eric Shepherd
Version Reviewed: 1.0b7 (16 Nov 1996)
File Type: freeware
Requirements: 4 megabytes of memory; hard drive
FROM THE AUTHOR You are B. J. Blazkowicz, the greatest spy and biggest
""""""""""""""" risk-taker the Allied forces have ever known. The Second
World War has been raging for two years, and your mission was to infiltrate
the Nazi fortress Castle Hollehammer and retrieve Hitler's twisted plans
for building the perfect army. Rumors have it that one of Hitler's most
maniacal scientists, Dr. Schabbs, has perfected a technique for building
fierce armies from the bodies of the dead. As bizarre and unreal as it
sounds, you were sent to investigate.
You failed. Captured as you attempted to grab the plans, you were
taken to the Nazi prison, Castle Wolfenstein, for questioning and certain
execution. You've been held here for twelve long days, deep in the
dungeons beneath the castle. Just beyond your cell door sits a single
brutish Nazi guard, who helped torture you a few hours ago with a cattle
prod.
You can't take it anymore! Quivering pathetically in the corner, you
beg for medical care in exchange for information. The guard smugly grins
and reaches for his keys. He opens the cell door, the tumblers in the lock
grinding noisily, the sound echoing down the dark corridors. The door
squeaks open... the guard comes through...
A quick blow to the knee takes him down. You grab his knife and
finish him quietly. Standing over him, you quickly take his gun. Trapped
in the bowels of the Nazi prison, you must escape. If you fail, you will
surely die.
[*][*][*]
. __
(^) <^> /~ ~\
\-=======_/"\_======-/ \)
PD_Q RATING "\. 1 ./"
""""""""""" "\._ _ _./"
. __ (_____) . __
(^) <^> /~ ~\ (^) <^> /~ ~\
\-=======_/"\_======-/ \) \-=======_/"\_======-/ \)
"\. 2 ./" "\. 3 ./"
"\._ _ _./" "\._ _ _./"
(_____) (_____)
. __ . __
(^) <^> /~ ~\ (^) <^> /~ ~\
\-=======_/"\_======-/ \) \-=======_/"\_======-/ \)
"\. 4 ./" "\. 5 ./"
"\._ _ _./" "\._ _ _./"
(_____) (_____)
FIVE LAMPS (1-5)
PD_Q COMMENTS It took a long time, but Castle Wolfenstein is once again
""""""""""""" available for the Apple II, the computer platform that
started it all. MUSE Software released Castle Wolfenstein for the Apple II
in the early 1980s, and followed it up with Beyond Castle Wolfenstein. In
the first game, you had to escape the prison. In the second, you had to
plant a bomb to assassinate Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, and then get out,
preferably before the bomb detonated.
Those early MUSE game were fun to play. They were two of the few to
use digitized voices--the German guards and S.S. officers calling to me to
pay attention or follow them always managed to make me jump. Both games
had a few irritating aspects, however. The machinations one had to go
through in order to move your character and/or point a weapon were tortuous
beyond the telling. The maps of the castle were just a little crude.
Long after MUSE Software had lost the source code to these two games,
three-dimensional versions of Castle Wolfenstein began showing up on other
computers--Macintosh and IBM compatibles--but not for the Apple II.
Wolfenstein 3-D showed you the rooms and hallways you travelled from the
player's point of view. DOOM is essentially Wolfenstein 3-D that allows
for multiple players. In all incarnations, the point of this game is the
same: run around and shoot everything that moves and pick up everything
that doesn't.
If you found the history of Castle Wolfenstein tedious and arcane,
you'll want to skip the history of Wolfenstein 3-D IIgs at Logicware. In
fact, I feel like skipping it. So I will. Suffice it to say that it's
incredible that Wolfenstein 3-D IIgs has made it as far as a beta version
of a demonstration copy.
The demo, while limited to three short levels, is pretty fairly
operational. You get to run around the hallways and rooms, firing at
anything that moves. This includes guards, members of the SS, killer dogs,
and, in one case, a three-armed mutant. Other nasties, including Hitler,
will appear in the full-blown version, but that's it for the demo.
As you tear around Castle Wolfenstein, you also get to pick up
bullets, back packs, machine guns, chain guns, first aid kits, food, keys,
and treasure. Not to mention power-ups (spheres containing pictures of
your character which restore you to full health and give you another life).
The fully-enabled game has a few other objects--notably nastier
weapons--but, once again, that's it for the demo.
Wolfenstein 3-D has a few features not available in the originals (to
the best of my memory). Wolf 3-D has an automap feature--just press Tab
and you can see a map of the level you're on--at least, the rooms you've
already seen. I don't remember any secret doors in Castle Wolfenstein
(possibly in Beyond Castle Wolfenstein, but don't quote me)--in Wolf 3-D,
finding hidden sections of the castle not only increases your score, it
increases your chances.
I'm not much for any sort of arcade game, much less a shoot-'em-up,
but I have to confess that I love Wolfenstein 3-D. Heck, just being able
to run around the castle would be a kick.
In the original Castle Wolfenstein and Beyond Castle Wolfenstein, you
could chose to control your character via the keyboard or the joystick.
Which was worse? Both, but for different reasons. Keyboard control was
viciously involved and complicated. Joystick control wasn't accurate
enough. With Wolfenstein 3-D IIgs, I'm happy to report that you get to
choose between keyboard control and mouse control, and both work just fine.
The graphics in Wolfenstein 3-D IIgs are colorful and
three-dimensional, but the resolution isn't anything to write home about.
(Finer resolution would make the game run so slowly that watching grass
grow would be enthralling by comparison.) This low resolution sometimes
make it difficult to tell if that splotch of color in the distance is a
guard or a plant stand. You can reduce or enlarge the game window by
pressing Apple-1 (the smallest) through Apple-7 (the largest). The smaller
the window, the faster the game runs. If you're going to have the largest
window, you're going to want a pretty zippy accelerator--the documentation
recommends a clock speed of 10 mHz or faster.
Speaking of accelerators, the documentation recommends some kind of
ZipGS or TransWarp GS accelerator just to play the game. It is possible to
play on a stock 2.8 mHz Apple IIgs, but the game is a little sluggish.
This matters most in the combat phase--you can't seem to pull the trigger
quickly enough.
There are currently no sounds effects--the sound effects file was
expected to be released the day after the demo was, and it's beginning to
look as though it won't be available until the full-blown version is ready.
That means that all events trigger the same sound (or no sound). Since a
beep usually announces an enemy entering the room and/or firing at you, you
feel you have to pay attention to every beep. This can be embarrassing
when you whirl around at the sound of a beep, only to find that it's the
door closing behind you.
The demo comes with three pieces of music--one for the start of the
game, one for between levels, and one for winning. The documentation
doesn't speculate--probably wisely--on how much music the finished game
will have nor when it will play.
My biggest complaint with the Wolf 3-D demo is that it's only a demo
and, as such, is too darned short. (On the other hand, it does mean I
haven't gotten frustrated by being unable to get past the high-level
baddies.) I'm looking forward to the release of the full game--which will
be FREEWARE--sometime in 1997!
RATING SYSTEM
"""""""""""""
5 LAMPS.........What? You haven't downloaded this program YET?
4 LAMPS.........Innovative or feature rich, take a look!
3 LAMPS.........Good execution, stable program.
2 LAMPS.........Gets the job done.
1 LAMP..........A marginal download.
0 ..............GenieLamp Turkey Award!
//////////////////////////////////////// Genie_QWIK_QUOTE ////
/ But that has nothing to do with my messing around with /
/ designing an 8Mb memory card that is 100% DMA compatable. /
/ I'm doing that simply because: /
/ /
/ 1) Nobody else has /
/ 2) Apple claims it can't be done /
/ (them thar's fightin' words ;-) /
////////////////////////////////////////////// HAROLD.H ////
[EOA]
[LOG]//////////////////////////////
LOG OFF /
/////////////////////////////////
GenieLamp Information
"""""""""""""""""""""
o COMMENTS: Contacting GenieLamp
o GenieLamp STAFF: Who Are We?
GenieLamp Information GenieLamp A2 is published on the first of every
""""""""""""""""""""" month in library 55 of Genie's A2 RoundTable (page
645;3). GenieLamp is also distributed on CrossNet and many public and
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o To reach GenieLamp on Internet send mail to genielamp@genie.com or to
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o Back issues of GenieLamp A2 are available in the A2 RoundTable
Library #55 on page 645 (m645;3).
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or just to say hi, you can contact me in the A2 RoundTable (Category
3, Topic 3) or send GenieMail to Doug Cuff at [EDITOR.A2] on page
200.
>>> GENIELAMP STAFF <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""
GenieLamp o John Peters [GENIELAMP] Publisher
""""""""" o Mike White [MWHITE] Managing Editor
APPLE II o Doug Cuff [EDITOR.A2] Editor
""""""""
A2Pro o Tim Buchheim [A2PRO.GELAMP] Editor
"""""
ATARI o Sheldon H. Winick [GELAMP.ST] Editor
"""""
IBM o Sharon Molnar [SHARON.LAMP] Editor
"""
MACINTOSH o Richard Vega [GELAMP.MAC] Editor
"""""""""
POWER PC o Ben Soulon [BEN.GELAMP] Editor
""""""""
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are included in this publication with permission from Genie Online
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Material published in this edition may be reprinted under the fol-
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The preceding article is reprinted courtesy of GenieLamp Online
Magazine. (c) Copyright 1996 T/TalkNET Publishing and Genie Online
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