1`Casino Vrit Blackjack Shareware Instructions This is the Shareware version of Casino Vrit Blackjack. The card counting strategy tables have not been included. To register as a user, send $70 check or money order to: QFIT P.O. Box 7556 FDR Station New York, NY 10150-7556 Registered users receive the 60 page manual, the strategy tables, update information, technical support, and a version of the code without the annoying Shareware screen. If you decide not to register, you must remove all copies of this software from your system. You may not make copies of this software for any reason. I apologize for being a pain about this. Fact is, for some reason, many people believe that software developers do not need money to live. I have included the Features and Quick Start sections of the manual below which should provide enough information to use the basic features of CV. Installation Put the ZIP file (CVBJS.ZIP) into its own directory and unzip it, then use Windows Program Manager FILE - RUN and type in the directory name and SETUP to install. If any of the files cannot be installed, shut down Windows and from DOS, enter the following command: xxx\CLEANUP C:\WINDOWS where xxx is the directory where you have unzipped CVBJS. Then try again. Disclaimer Overall, Casino Vrit Blackjack can act on over 1,000,000,000,000,000 possible combinations of rules, options and cards. Also provided is a casino file containing 63 option settings each for 548 Blackjack games in 338 actual casinos. In addition, the rules and play in casinos vary continuously. Partially as a result of this large number of combinations, it is guaranteed that errors exist in this software. No warranty is made to the contrary. Copyright Copyright 1993, Norman Wattenberger. All rights reserved. Once the Shareware version has been downloaded to your system, it may not be copied for any purpose. It must be deleted from your system within two weeks if you do not register as a user of the full version. The full version copyright rules are simple. One license is good for one PC. We do not care how many people use it on this one PC. The license can be moved to another PC owned by the same person if the license is removed from the first PC. No part of the documentation can be copied in any way for any purpose without prior written permission. If you violate this copyright, then the next time that you complain about criminals, you will be complaining about yourself. Comment/Suggestions... ... are welcome at the address above or via Electronic Mail to the following network addresses: CompuServe 72142,1200 MCIMAIL X400:(c=US;a=CompuServe;p=CSMAIL;d=ID:72142.1200) INTERNET 72142.1200@compuserve.com America Online 72142.1200@compuserve.com Features The main thrust of CV is practice under realistic casino conditions. Toward this end, many unusual features have been implemented. This section gives a brief rundown of some of these features. Included Rule variations - 77 Blackjack rule and play variations exist which can be independently set in literally trillions of combinations. Casinos - A casino file exists containing 548 rule sets in 338 actual casinos. You can set the game's rules by selecting a casino instead of setting each of the rules manually. Maps - Simple maps of Las Vegas and Atlantic City allow casino rule display or selection by casino location. Search Function - A casino file search function is provided to locate actual casinos with unusual rules. Statistics - Extensive logs, graphs and statistics, including dynamic update of graphs and statistics tables during play are supported. Counting Drill - You can practice card counting with cards thrown at you in different combinations of number of cards, card placement and orientation. Flashcard drill - The Flashcard Drill presents you with selectable situations to which you must respond correctly according to the selected strategy. This drill is designed to practice strategic play. Strategies - You can select from basic or card counting strategies. The Flashcard drills and actual play can be tested against these strategies. Customized Strategies - You can modify one of the standard strategies or define your own. Warning on strategy error - This option allows testing of your play against the selected strategy. Tournament play - This feature simulates a Blackjack tournament. Here, you play against the other players, not against the dealer. Unusual Games - New variations of Blackjack, like Multi-action, Over/Under 13, Double Exposure, and Bust Out are supported. Improving the odds - Expert methods, like peeking at the dealer down card, "Wonging" and team play, are supported. Voice commands - If you have the Microsoft Sound System, support is included for play by voice command. Unusual features - To increase realism, features like tipping, dealer errors, face up or down dealing, players coming and going, and the dealer playing for you in obvious situations are included. Table formats - To increase realism, different table orientations are provided. You can sit at the center or at either end of the table. The table is rotated and cards are dealt sideways and upside down to give you a more realistic perspective. Normal movements - To increase realism, play can be performed with natural casino hand movements instead of using buttons. Full table support - A full seven seats and split up to four hands is supported with all hands on the table displayed at once. Also, up to 18 chip stacks in one seat can be displayed for unusual betting situations. Window sizes - Three window sizes are supported. Graphics are NOT stretched; but, are generated at different resolutions. Player File - Multiple people can be registered as users of CV. One hundred three parameter, option and status settings are saved for each player. Separate logs are also kept by user and session. Not Included Simulation - Simulation is a valuable tool for determining strategies against new rules. I have not included this because I do not feel that anyone should trust software that they have not written themselves for this purpose. If you are interested in this function, you can try RWC Analyzer which can be ordered from RGE publishing (510-465-6452) or Gambler's Book Club (800-522-1777). Bouncy cocktail waitresses - Sorry, Trump Castle 3 by Capstone (IntraCorp) has this feature if that is what you are looking for. Quick Start This section provides a quick method of understanding the use of CV. Ideally, you should start CV and watch its operation as you read this section. Start CV now by double-clicking on the CV icon on the Windows Program Manager. Note: CV uses only the left mouse button. Actions are taken by positioning the mouse over an object and clicking this button. Who Are You? The first screen that you see is used for player identification. You may register any number of players. CV will remember over 100 options and settings for each player. This allows you to exit CV (or trip over the power cord) and then to restart it later and continue from where you left it. Normally, when you start CV, the name of the last person using CV will appear at the top of the player list. Clicking the mouse on PLAY (or pressing the ENTER key) will continue that session. If you want to register a new player, type the name of the player and click on NEW PLAYER. Pressing NEW SESSION will start the game with the selected player with a new Blackjack session. Sessions are described later. RESET will reset all options for the selected player and start the game over. Since you are a new player, type your name now and press NEW PLAYER. Casinos Next, since you are a new player, you must select a casino. You can change the casino at any time. CV includes the rule sets for 548 Blackjack games in 338 casinos. Two methods are available for casino selection. 46 of the casinos can be selected by map location. All can be selected by region and name at the bottom of the screen. You can examine the rules before selection if you wish. The rules screens are fully described later in this manual. As a new player, if you wish to start quickly, click the mouse on LAS VEGAS in the box at the lower left. In a few seconds, a scrollable list of the Las Vegas casinos will appear in the box on the lower right. Now click the mouse on GENERIC CASINO at the top of this list. Now press OK to select this casino. This will load the casino rules for an average Las Vegas strip casino without any unusual rules. Select Table The Select Table screen is now displayed. Most casinos have more than one set of rules. If you have selected Generic Casino, you will see two rule sets: one for a single-deck game and one for a six deck game. The Select Table screen is fully described later in this manual. For now, select the six deck game using the mouse and press SELECT. This will load the rule set for that game. If you select the single deck game, the cards will be dealt face down which is a bit more confusing for a new player. Table Format Since you are a new player, you must now select a table format. CV supports six general table formats and two specialty game table formats. This screen is fully described later in the document. It is suggested that you select the simplest table format - a six seat table with the dealer at the top of the screen. Select this format by clicking the mouse on the picture in the upper left corner. New Player Introduction For new players, an introduction screen is now displayed. This screen allows you to preview some of the features of CV. You can preview features by pressing buttons at the left. This will enter the selected feature and allow you to experiment. Descriptions of these features can be found later in this manual. If you are tired of the New Player start up procedure, select PLAY at the bottom of the screen with the mouse. Entering the Game When you have finished with the New Player procedure, the screen will go to gray while the graphics are generated for the format that you have chosen.. This will take from 3 to 50 seconds depending on CPU speed, screen size and options. When completed, the Blackjack table is displayed. The dealer then shuffles the cards and waits for bets. If you do not make any bets, the dealer will eventually ignore you and deal to other players. You can watch the game play itself to get an idea of play. You can jump in anytime by laying bets on either or both of the two hands with "$0" in the player chip box. However, you should read on before proceeding. The Table Options are selected using standard drop down menus at the top of the screen. For example, you can select the table format by using the OPTIONS - TABLE FORMAT menu. The table is described here. There are six normal table formats. The cards are dealt very differently on each format. Three formats are six seat tables and three are seven seat tables. Seat one is directly to the dealer's left (your right). Seats are numbered clockwise one through five, six or seven. Two formats allow play at seats 1 and 2, two others allow play at seats 3 and 4, and the final two allow play at the last two seats. Note, your hands are always in front of you (bottom middle of screen). The table, the dealer and the other players' hands are rotated to give you a sense of being at a different seat. I suggest sticking with seats 3 and 4 in a six seat table until you get used to CV. In the upper right or left of the screen (depending on format) you will see a "shoe" that contains the cards that have not yet been played. As cards are dealt, you will see the number of cards in the shoe decrease and the "cut card" move toward the end. Shuffling occurs the hand after the cut card reaches the end and flies across the table. To the dealer's right is the table limit sign. You can change the limits by clicking on this sign with the mouse. The Limit Table that will be displayed is generated from the selected casino. The casinos Limit Table can be modified from menu OPTIONS - PLAYER. If you have SuperVGA capability, table size can be changed from menu - OPTIONS - TABLE SIZE. The graphics are not stretched, they are regenerated for the desired resolution and improve substantially at higher resolution. Bankroll Your chips are in the lower right corner for seat 3 and 4 play and the dollar value of these chips is displayed at the left of the chips. Other table formats place the chips at the far left or right of the screen. The denominations of chips provided depend on the table limits. For example, if the minimum bet is $100, the game will not display $1 and $5 chips unless it must. As you play, change is made automatically to ensure that you do not have empty stacks. If necessary, half dollar coins will also be displayed and can be bet. If you have more than $18,000, only $18,000 in chips will be shown. However, the number in the chipbox will show your actual bankroll. If you run out of chips, a MARKER button will appear in the chip box for borrowing money. You can also select menu FILE - MARKERS to buy and sell multiple markers. Sessions Blackjack play is divided into sessions. There may be several sessions in one execution of CV or one session covering several executions over months. Logs are kept by session/by player. Selecting FILE - LOG MAINTENANCE provides tracking and controlling of these logs. New sessions are created from the startup screen or from menu FILE - NEW SESSION. Seats, Hands, Chip stacks You can play zero, one or two seats and up to five computer players can use the other seats. Other players are set from menu OPTIONS - ENVIRONMENT (explained further below). Each of your seats can be split into up to four hands. Each of these hands can have up to ten cards. As a result, a huge number of cards can be placed on the table at one time. As in a real casino, the dealer may move cards around to make certain that all cards are visible in crowded conditions. Your seat can also have up to 14 chip stacks for each hand including: original bet, double down bet, win stack, double down win stack, Blackjack bonus stack, side bet stacks, tip, tip win, insurance and multi-action bets. These will all be described later. Additional stacks can exist at a seat for split hands including split bets, split payoffs, double down after split bets and payoffs and tips on split hands. These can exist for up to eight of your split hands. Again, as in a real casino, the dealer may move around chip stacks when conditions become very crowded. Normal Play You may control play with buttons, the mouse, the keyboard, or voice (more on this later). The game was designed to work primarily with the mouse as this is the quickest, easiest and most realistic. Besides, when was the last time that you saw a casino table with buttons. If you do wish to use buttons, they will be provided by using the "Show buttons" option on the OPTIONS - ENVIRONMENT menu. Showing the buttons, even if you do not use them, does have an advantage for novice players as they indicate which plays are valid at any given time. Mouse actions are designed to mimic normal casino movements as follows: You bet by moving chips from the chipbox to one of the player bet boxes. The bet boxes are the light green semicircles with a small black "$0". You can bet in either of your two seats, in both, or in neither. Click on the chip that you wish to move, drag it to the player box by moving the mouse while pressing the left mouse button, and then release the chip by letting go of the button. You may grab several chips at once by selecting into the chip stack instead of selecting a chip from the top of the stack. The chip stack that you are creating is the original bet chip stack. You can add more chips by repeating the above. To keep the chip stack at a reasonable height, change will automatically be made to the smallest number of chips possible. You can also drag chip stacks from one spot to another. To remove a chip stack from the table - just click it with the mouse once. Dragging is not necessary. To hit a hand, scratch the table vertically. That is, push down the mouse button somewhere on the table and drag the mouse vertically up, down or both then release the mouse button. The distance moved can be anywhere from one inch up to the full screen. Standing is performed by waving the hand - push the mouse button and move the mouse horizontally, once or back and forth, and then release. Double down and split are performed by adding more chips from the chipbox to the bet box. When a double down or split is allowed, press the mouse button anywhere in the chipbox and the correct number of chips will be grabbed. Drag these to the desired bet box and release. Insurance is handled in the same way; but, drag the chips to the Insurance line of the bet. This is the line that says "2 TO 1 - INSURANCE PAYS - 2 TO 1". The bet must be released directly above the player bet box on this line. You can insure both of your hands quickly by clicking on the black box that says "Insurance?" Surrender is performed by clicking once on the bet to be surrendered. At the end of play, many chip stacks may be left on the table. You can take them off of the table by clicking on them, or you can add to the original bet chip stack. When the deal is started, all stacks that are left will be combined into one stack per seat. To begin deal, just wait, or click the shoe, or double-click the table. Note, if you do not wish to have the dealer deal automatically, you can turn this feature off by de-selecting the "Dealer doesn't wait for bet" option on the OPTIONS - ENVIRONMENT menu. The feature is temporarily turned off whenever you select any menu. You must click the shoe or double-click the table to restart play. Note, the reason that hand movements are required in a casino instead of voice commands has little to do with the noise level. Casino play is monitored via closed-circuit monitors and catwalks above the ceiling. The observers can read hands; but, not lips. Keyboard Although CV was designed for use with a mouse or trackball, you can use the keys as follows: G Go, deal a hand B Bet, increase the bet for the selected hand by the minimum 0 Zero the bets for the selected hand 1 Select the first player hand 2 Select the second player hand H Hit, draw a card S Stand P Split pairs D Double Down Q Quit, Surrender the hand Y/N Yes or No, Respond to Insurance or Bust Out Summary This is the end of the Quick Start section. You now have enough information to play basic Blackjack. The remainder of the manual (not included with Shareware version) discusses over 100 additional features and options. Complete Strategy List The full version (registered users) contains over 300 strategy tables. Following is a complete list of the strategies supported by the full version. DAS stands for double down after split allowed, NHC indicates European no hole card and H17 indicates dealer hits on soft 17. These tables are supplied in the full version with permission of the following copyright holders: Arnold Snyder, Dr. Lance Humble, Stanford Wong, Bryce Carlson, Stanley Roberts. Basic Strategy with mods for DAS Complete Basic single deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Complete Basic multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Complete Basic single deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Complete Basic multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Red Seven single deck with mods for DAS Red Seven multiple deck with mods for DAS Zen Count with mods for DAS Complete Zen Count single deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Complete Zen Count multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Complete Zen Count single deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Complete Zen Count multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Basic Omega II single deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Basic Omega II multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Basic Omega II single deck H17 with mods for DAS Basic Omega II multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS Advanced Omega II single deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Advanced Omega II multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Advanced Omega II single deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Advanced Omega II multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Hi-Opt I single deck Hi-Opt I multiple deck Hi-Opt I single deck H17 Hi-Opt I multiple deck H17 Basic High-Low with mods for DAS Basic High-Low H17 with mods for DAS Complete High-Low single deck with mods for DAS Complete High-Low multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Complete High-Low single deck H17 with mods for DAS Complete High-Low multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Halves single deck with mods for DAS Halves multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Halves single deck H17 with mods for DAS Halves multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC High-Low with Aces single deck with mods for DAS High-Low with Aces multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC High-Low with Aces single deck H17 with mods for DAS High-Low with Aces multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Halves with Aces single deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Halves with Aces multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Halves with Aces single deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Halves with Aces multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Optional Systems Support for these systems is available from Gambling Times Inc.: Uston SS Count Single Deck with and without H17 and mods for DAS Uston SS Count Double Deck with and without H17 and mods for DAS Uston SS Count Four Deck with and without H17 and mods for DAS Uston SS Count Six Deck with and without H17 and mods for DAS Uston SS Count Eight Deck with and without H17 and mods for DAS Uston APC single deck with mods for DAS Uston APC multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Uston APC single deck H17 with mods for DAS Uston APC multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Uston Simple Plus/Minus single deck with mods for DAS Uston Simple Plus/Minus multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Uston Simple Plus/Minus single deck H17 with mods for DAS Uston Simple Plus/Minus multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS & NHC Uston Advanced Plus/Minus single deck with mods for DAS Uston Advanced Plus/Minus multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Uston Advanced Plus/Minus single deck H17 with mods for DAS Uston Advanced Plus/Minus multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS & NHC Winning Blackjack single deck with mods for DAS Winning Blackjack multiple deck with mods for DAS and/or NHC Winning Blackjack single deck H17 with mods for DAS Winning Blackjack multiple deck H17 with mods for DAS and/or NHC Quotes "This is outstanding software. It is the best, most realistic casino Blackjack practice software I have seen. Any player, regardless of skill, will improve his game using Casino Vrit Blackjack. I highly recommend it." -Bryce Carlson Author: Blackjack for Blood Developer: Omega II System "Best Game Play Software" "Best Tournament Software" (The above are awards earned in the "Software Wars" article in the 12/93 issue of Blackjack Forum Magazine.) -Arnold Snyder Editor: Blackjack Forum Author: Blackbelt in Blackjack Author: Blackjack for Profit Developer: Red Seven & Zen "It is undoubtably the best I have ever seen...." "The graphics on the product are superb." -Stanley Roberts Editor: Win Magazine Author: Winning Blackjack Author: Gambling Times Guide to Winning Blackjack "The Casino Vrit Blackjack program by QFIT is the best blackjack practice software I have ever used. Take this from a computer scientist who has attempted to review every blackjack software program on the market...." "Casino Vrit Blackjack is the most realistic and enjoyable blackjack game on the market." -Miles Saugen Reviewer: Blackjack Confidential Magazine "I know of no other blackjack game software anywhere that incorporates the level of detail Casino Vrit does." "Outstanding. Highly Recommended. Casino Vrit Blackjack is the hottest game playing software available anywhere." -Michael Dalton Editor: Blackjack Review Author: Blackjack: A Professional Reference for DAS and/or NHC Complete High-Low singx tplh`di`W \m Yq U Qx MiH4 x wK sU qmkg#c_]YWQ"S]"Q ]"[$wi$u%q&o'k'i_*eh*c1_ 1]j4Yr4W5S 55y :u:sGoGmIiIgJcJ_U[UYRZUXZQ XZZwZs`oGoGmIiIgJcJ_U[UYRZUXZQxxackqs $&@B<^`km} U W o q ( <( M x z I K U W np<_aPR<>13ce[<[]02 #%<%$ !O"Q"_"a"`#<`#Y$[$i$k$j%%%&&'''''()]*_*j*l*<l*0+2+1,0---.//1/00608011"1$1#2"3!4h4<h4j4t4v4u555556789: :::;<=<?<<?<<y<p=p>p?p?p?p@p@pApApApApBpBpBpCpDp=<<<DDrMDrODrNErSErUErTFrFrFrGGGGGOHcHHHH<HI%I0I@IPImIIIIIyJJJJJjLlLLLMM?M~MMMM/NnNNN+OfOOO PHPPPPPQQ2QTQzQQQ RbRRRRSQSSS TFTTTUUUUU\U^UUU"VaVVVW0WjWWW"XeXXX#Y#YhYYYZPZRZZZ\Z9[;[T[{[[[[[D\F\_\\\\\\\U]W]s]]]]]^-_3_L_|_~_c`e``````\U]W]s]]]]]^-_3_L_|_~_c`e`` Arial Author: Winning Blackjack Author: Gambling Times Guide to Winning Blackjack "The Casino