Main index

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	Menu commands Rules Playing the game Questions and answers Registration


Menu commands

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These commands are issued through the main menu.

Main Menu

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Game	Action

Options


Game submenu
Game

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These commands start, load, save, or end games.

Main menu

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New	Open

Save	Save as

Exit


Action submenu
Action

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These commands help to set up or play the game.

Main menu

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Setup	Roll die

Info


Options submenu
Options

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These commands change the general game options.

Main menu

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Sound	Auto move

Scale	Delay


Game-New

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This menu command starts a new game based on the current setup. See the playing the game section on how to play the game.


Game-Open

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This menu command loads a previously saved game, usually with an extension of .BUP The saved game resumes exactly where it left off.


Game-Save

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This menu command saves the current game. This saved game file should have an extension of .BUP and will include relevent information about the game so that it may resume right where it left off.


Game-Save as

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This menu command saves the current game with a new name. Otherwise this command is identical to Game-Save.


Game-Exit

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This menu command exits the Backup program completely. Depressing Ctrl+X will also invoke this command.


Action-Setup

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This menu command sets up the game.

Action-Setup dialog-box

Name

Computer

Pieces

Three roll


Player name
Name: The name of the player.


Computer player
Computer: Toggles whether the player will be human or computer.


Piece color
Pieces: The color of the given player.


Three rolls
Three rolls: Toggles whether players are given one or three rolls to get out of the start box.


Action-Roll die

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This menu command rolls the die. Depressing Ctrl+R will also invoke this command.


Action-Info

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This menu displays information about the game. Depressing Ctrl+I will also invoke this command.

Action-Info dialog-box

Player

Message

Status


Player
Player: The current player.


Message
Message: A message which will indicate one of the following actions:

Roll die

Move

Select opponent

Select piece


Status
Status: A graph displaying the comparative positions of all four players. The higher the bar, the closer to winning the game.


Options-Sound

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This menu command toggles whether sound will be played.


Options-Auto move

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This menu command toggles whether certain moves will be automated. If this option is on, any move where there is only one choice will be automated.


Options-Scale

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This menu command toggles whether the board is scaled to the screen. If scale is on, the entire board is scaled to the screen and scrollbars are not needed.

Scaled screen

Unscaled screen


Options-Delay

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This menu command determines  the delay setting of the die roll.

Options-Delay dialog-box


Rules

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Introduction

Rolling the die

The squares

Bumping a piece

Winning the game


Introduction

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The object of Backup is for each player to move all of his pieces from his start box (the darker colored area) to his home box (the lighter colored area). Along the way his pieces may be "bumped", switched, or moved back. The first player to move all of his pieces into his home box wins the game.


Rolling the die

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To roll the die and start the turn, a player uses the "Roll die" button on the dialog-box that begins her turn. This is the same as using the Action-Roll die menu command. If she has a piece (or pieces) that is (are) not in either the start or home boxes, it may move. If she rolls a six, she may also move a piece from the start box onto the corresponding start square. In addition, a roll of six entitles the player to roll again (unless she lands on Lose Turn).


The squares

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Regular squares

Box squares


Bumping a piece

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When a piece lands on a square with a piece of an opposing player on it, that piece is "bumped" back to its star box. A piece may "bump" another piece by moving onto it during its turn or being moved onto it by an opponent who has landed on Back 4 Spaces or Opponent Back 5 during his turn.


Winning the game

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A player wins the game when she has successfully moved all four of her pieces from the start box to the home box. She wins immediately.


Start

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This square is where a piece starts its journey around the board. After a player rolls a six, he may place his piece in this square and roll again.


Land

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This square is where a piece ends up after landing on the Fly!IHI_fly square.


Switch with Opponent

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This square forces a player to switch any eligible opponent's piece with any eligible piece hers. To accomplish this, a player must first double-click on an opponent's stiped piece then double-click on a piece of the player that landed on the Switch with Opponent square.


Back 4 Spaces
.Back 4 Spaces

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This square forces the piece landing on it to move back 4 squares.


Fly!
.Fly!

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This square forces the piece landing on it to skip to the next LandIHI_land square.


Roll again

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This square allows the player landing on it to take another turn.


Lose Turn

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This square forces the player landing on it to lose a turn.


Opponent Back 5

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This square allows the player landing on it to send an opponent back five squares.


End

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This square doesn't represent any action, it merely indicates the square before the home box of a player.


Start box

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This square is where every piece begins the game. Pieces in the start box are immune to Opponent Back 5 and Switch with Opponent squares. To get out of the start box, a player must roll a six and move that piece onto the corresponding Start square.


Home box

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This square is where a piece ends its journey around the board. Pieces in the home box may not move, but are immune to Opponent Back 5 and Switch with Opponent squares. A home box square must be entered by an exact roll of the die.


Playing the game

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Starting the game

The board

 	Moving the pieces


Starting the game

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To start the game, first set up the parameters using the Action-Setup menu command. Then start the game with the Game-New menu command. Last, roll the die by using the "Roll die" button (or the Action-Roll die menu command)


The board

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The board consists of 44 squares and four pairs of start/home boxes.


Moving the pieces

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After the clicking the "Roll die" button (or choosing the Action-Roll die menu command) and rolling the die, all pieces eligible to move will appear striped. To move one of the striped pieces, simply double-click on it. When it lands on a square, that square will determine what happens next.


Striped pieces

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A striped piece is one that the current player can and must select to move, switch, or send back. To select a striped piece, double-click on it. There may be several striped pieces at once, one of which must be selected.


Pieces

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Each player has a color and four pieces of that color. The four colors are as follows: blue, red, yellow, and purple.


Questions and answers

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Question: How do I begin a game?

Answer: First, use the Action-Setup dialog-box to setup the game. Next, use the Game-New dialog-box to start the game. Last, use the Roll die (or the Action-Roll die menu command) to roll the die and start the turn.

Question: How do I start a turn?

Answer: A message-box will pop up displaying something like this: "Beginning of turn, Player #1". Click the "Roll die" button (or use the Action-Roll die menu command) to roll the die. If any of your pieces is eligible to move, it will be striped at this point. Choose the one that you want to move and double-click on it.

Question: How do I move out of my starting box?

Answer: You must roll a six before you can move out of your start box. When you do, just double-click on the striped piece and it will move to the Start square next to the starting box. Because a roll of six entitles you to another turn, you may move again.

Question: How do I use Switch with Opponent?

Answer: After landing on a Switch with Opponent square, all eligible opponent's pieces will be striped. Double-click on one of these then double-click on one of your own. After this is done the two pieces will switch squares.

Question: What happens when I land the Fly! right before my home box?

Answer: You are out of luck. Your piece will bypass its home box and land on the Land square just beyond your starting box.

Question: Why can't I move into my home box?

Answer: The piece in question probably can't move into an empty home box square exactly.


Registration

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Backup is a shareware program. That means that Backup was distributed freely in order to allow people to "test drive" it. The try-before-you-buy concept allows users to find out which programs are useful before purchasing them. If a shareware program is useful or entertaining, please support it through registration. The registration fee for Backup is only $12. These twelve dollars entitle you to the newest version of the program, a printed manual, customer support (through the mail or on compuserve), and information (and discounts) on other offerings from Burnham Park Software, Inc. To register, go to the Registration Form page and use the File-Print Topic menu command. Fill out the resulting form and send to:

Mark Brownstein

Burnham Park Software, Inc.

P.O. Box #814

Chicago, IL 60690-0814

(312) 922-1326

Compuserve: 71532,3271


Registration form

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Name: __________________________________________________

Street: __________________________________________________

City: _______________  State: _____  Zip code: _________________

Country: ________________________________________________

Phone: __________________________________________________

Program registering: ________________________________________

Computer: _______________________________________________

On-line services or bulletin boards: ______________________________

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Send to:

Mark Brownstein

Burnham Park Software, Inc.

P.O. Box #814

Chicago, IL 60690-0814