!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! Jon Persky Games Presents ! ! TARGET v. 3.0 ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please read the file ANNOYING.TXT for some important information regarding shareware registration. I. PACKING LIST TARGET.EXE - the executable program file. ANNOYING.TXT - why this version of Target may be the last! TARGET.TXT - this text file. TARGET.INI - the file containing the configurable data for your options in Target. If you have the Visual Basic source code version of Target, you should find instead of the TARGET.EXE file these: ABOUT.FRM, ARROW.ICO, GLOBAL.BAS, POINTVAL.FRM, PROBABIL.FRM, SHAREBUG.FRM, TARGET.BMP, TARGET.FRM, and TARGET.MAK. You can install Target into any directory you choose (below I have suggested C:\WINDOWS,) but all the files MUST be in the same directory. If any of these files are altered or missing, please let me know! II. REQUIREMENTS Windows 3.x, VGA. I'm not sure if you can get by without at least a 386, you're free to try. IMPORTANT: This program needs the file VBRUN100.DLL to operate. Please see the Technical Notes section below for details. III. INSTALLATION First, copy the three files that came with Target to your C:\WINDOWS directory, or any other directory, by using File Manager. Close File Manager and open your Games group in Program Manager. Select File...New and click on Program Item. In the Description box, type "Target". In the Command Line box, type "\windows\target.exe", or substitute "\windows" for the directory you use. You don't need to worry about the rest; just click OK. The icon will be there and you're ready to go! To load Target, double-click on the dart icon. (Loading may take up to 15 seconds on a 386 machine. This is because the computer is gathering data from the TARGET.INI file and coming up with figures for the mystery throw.) If you have the Target source code, open the Visual Basic Program, choose "File...Open" and select the file "TARGET.MAK." Then press Shift-F5 to run. IV. TECHNICAL NOTES Target was made on Microsoft Visual Basic v. 1.0. To work effectively, the program MUST be accompanied by the file VBRUN100.DLL. You should either receive the file with this program or separately from the person or board you received this from. On CompuServe, this file is available in compressed form as VBRUN.ZIP in Library 5 of the Microsoft Basic Forum (GO MSBASIC). If you cannot access this file, please contact me via CompuServe [70661,700] or by mail (see below for address) and I will upload or mail a disk to you at no charge. Note: VBRUN100.DLL is a large (270+ KB) file. You only need one copy of this file. So if you have previously downloaded a Visual Basic application or have the Visual Basic program, you do not need another copy of this file. However, you should have a copy of VBRUN100.DLL in the same directory as the Target program. V. OVERVIEW TARGET is a dart-shooting game. You throw the dart by choosing one of four shooting styles: Fast, Slow, Underarm, or the Mystery Throw, whose settings change every time and are not changeable or viewable. The dartboard has four rings. From outer to inner they are: Blue, yellow, green, and red is the bullseye. Your goal is to accumulate the highest score you can in the number of tries you specify. You can also choose the point values and the probability settings for each ring on the dartboard. VI. HOW TO PLAY A. Setting up and playing You can use the default settings or choose your own from the Settings menu. Choose how many rounds you want to play from the Number of Turns option. Then, choose the point values for each ring by selecting Settings...Point Values. The amount can be anywhere between 0 and 9999. Finally, you can select the probability of each result with each style of shooting. You can do this by selecting Settings... Change Probablility. Then you will be ready to play. To shoot, click on one of the four buttons on the right side of the window. The chart below shows the default probabilities of each result with each style of shooting. The numbers indicate percent of all throws of each shooting style. Remember that you can change these figures from the Settings Menu. Miss Blue Yellow Green Red Fast Throw 50 2 2 2 44 Slow Throw 5 30 30 30 5 Underarm 20 20 20 20 20 While in motion, the area around the dart changes to the color of the ring it is near to show the ring you would land on if the dart stopped there. B. The Mystery Throw The "Mystery" throw will have different probability settings each time Target loads. You cannot configure this setting nor see what the setting is. Also, the "Choose the Best Throw" option will not include the Mystery Throw, so if the Mystery Throw is the best choice, you will never know! If you like your result using the mystery throw, you can keep the current mystery settings when you choose New from the Game Menu. This command is available in the Settings Menu. C. Saving your options When you configure your options from the Settings Menu, you may want to save the data so you can play at a later time without having to reenter your options. To do this, simply click the "Save Settings" button in the lower right of the screen. Your saved settings will reappear the next time you load Target. Remember that if you want to start over from scratch, choose "Set to Default" from the Specials Menu, then save your settings. VII. COMMANDS A. Game Menu New (F2): Starts a new game with your specified options. Exit (^X): Quits Target. About Target: Shareware info and other stuff. B. Settings Menu Number of Turns (^T): Select the number of darts you wish to throw. Point Values (^V): Choose how many points each ring receives. (You cannot set point values for a miss, this permanently remains at 0.) Change Probability (^P): Set the probability figures for each type of throw for each ring. Be sure to check your math to make sure all the figures in each column add up to 100%. Keep Mystery Data on New Game (^M): If the mystery throw was to your liking, you can keep the same data when choosing New from the Game menu. Select this menu item to turn the selection off and on. NOTE: Choosing a command from this menu (except for Keep Mystery Data on New Game) will restart the game, and if the Keep Mystery Data option is off, will stall for approximately 10-15 seconds while it gathers new data. All the mentioned configuration options are savable in the TARGET.INI file. C. Specials Menu Compute Best Throw (^C): Target will tell you the throw for your probability and point settings that mathematically is expected to get you the highest average score. If you get a dialog box saying "No one particular throw is best," then two or more throws will both or all give you the highest expected per-throw score. (The Mystery Throw is not included in this feature.) Set to Default (^D): Set all parameters to their original settings (10 turns, blue=10, yellow=20, green=30, red=50, and probability as charted above.) D. Help Menu - a dialog box that tells you to open this file. VIII. FOR KEYBOARD USERS Although a mouse is helpful while playing Target, it is not required. On the caption for each button or Menu item, one letter will be underlined. You can press the Alt key and that letter and the command will be performed. For example, if you wanted to throw a Mystery Throw, press Alt-M. If you want to get to the Game menu, type Alt-G, then the underlined letter of the menu option (there is no need to hold down Alt for this.) For your convienence, alphabetically, here are the Alt-commands to use: Alt-E: Settings Menu C - Change Probability Settings K - Keep Mystery Data on New Game N - Number of Turns P - Set Point Values Alt-F: Throw the Fast Throw Alt-G: Game menu A - About Target N - New Game X - Exit Target Alt-H: Help Alt-M: Throw the Mystery Throw Alt-P: Specials Menu C - Compute Best Throw S - Set to Default Alt-S: Throw the Slow Throw Alt-U: Throw the Underarm Throw Alt-V: Save your settings in the TARGET.INI file. For both keyboard and mouse users, there are several shortcut commands (executable by holding down the Control key and pressing the appropriate letter.) To use a shortcut command, you need not access the menu it is in first. Refer to the "Commands" section above for the available shortcut keys. IX. STRATEGY & HINTS Which button to choose? It all depends on the point settings and the probability settings. I will show you the mathematics for the default settings (10, 20, 30, 50 points, and the default probability settings). Fast Throw: Score for throw Probability Score X probability Miss 0 .50 0 Blue 10 .02 0.2 Yellow 20 .02 0.4 Green 30 .02 0.6 Red 50 .44 22 Average per-throw score (add up last column): 23.2 Slow Throw: Score for throw Probability Score X probability Miss 0 .05 0 Blue 10 .30 3 Yellow 20 .30 6 Green 30 .30 9 Red 50 .05 2.5 Average per-throw score (add up last column): 20.5 Underarm Throw: Score for throw Probability Score X probability Miss 0 .20 0 Blue 10 .20 2 Yellow 20 .20 4 Green 30 .20 6 Red 50 .20 10 Average per-throw score (add up last column): 22.0 Since I have made the defaults so that the bullseye is slightly out of pattern with the rest of the colors, you can see that even though half of the time you will miss the target altogether, the fast throw is your best option. The computer will also save you the trouble of doing all this math. You can just press Ctrl + C and the computer will inform you which throw is best for you. The Mystery Throw is a complete gamble - use at your own risk! X. NEW IN VERSION 3.0 Since version 2.1, I have made many changes, additions and extras, as former version users will quickly note. These are the changes made: 1) Set up the TARGET.INI file so you can save your configurations. 2) Created the Mystery Throw. 3) Cleaned up the menu system. FYI, here is a brief summary of the changes made in previous versions: V.2.1 (9/1/92): The Choose the Best Throw feature. V.2.0 (8/18/92): The configurable probability settings and the Set to Default feature. V.1.2 (7/25/92): Lots of the other configurable settings. XI. SHAREWARE INFO Target is Shareware. If you enjoy it, you should register by sending $5 to this address: Jonathan D. Persky 5 Oak Lane Weston, CT 06883 Please include your name, address, and where you got your copy of Target. If you register, you will receive a disk (please specify 3.5" or 5.25") of the latest versions of all completed Jon Persky Games so far. The disk will only contain one copy of the file VBRUN100.DLL, and will not include the shareware nagging title screens or shareware information in the text files. You can also register electronically if you subscribe to CompuServe. Simply type GO SWREG and search for registration #256. The registration fee will appear on your CompuServe bill. If you register by this method, the fee will be $6 instead of $5. This additional charge covers CompuServe's 15% processing fee. However, you may find this method more convenient, as you can include the fee on your CompuServe account and you don't have to bother with sending cash or checks. Please remember that the only way I receive compensation for my time and effort is by your registration payment. Remember that you'll receive a disk with the complete set of Jon Persky Games in exchange for your registration. At the current time, the disk will include 7 programs (see the "Won't You Please Check Out" section below.) With shareware, disk, and postage costs, this is a $37 value for your $5 registration! The good thing about shareware is that the author and the user both benefit from it a great deal. And, if you don't like the game, simply remove it from your hard disk and your only cost is any charges associated with downloading the program. Also, you are not required to pay registration for the games you receive upon registering this game. (However, you are not permitted to distribute registered copies.) You may upload Target to bulletin boards in condensed or uncondensed format or pass it to your friends provided you do so at no cost and you keep the files TARGET.EXE and TARGET.TXT intact and unaltered. (Please check with your bulletin board to see if it has a copy of VBRUN100.DLL, and if it doesn't, please upload it separately.) XII. AND WON'T YOU PLEASE CHECK OUT... A. As of October 10, 1992, these are all completed Jon Persky Games, with the latest version number in parentheses and the *.EXE file in brackets. 1. What's My Number? (3.0) [WHATSMY#.EXE] Can you guess the computer's secret number in as few turns as possible? 2. Switch (2.0) [SWITCH.EXE] 100's of combinations, only 2 solutions to this challenging logic puzzle! 3. 23 Pickup (2.1) [23PICKUP.EXE] The game where you get to prove the mechanical brain is not always smarter than the natural variety. 4. Target (3.0) [TARGET.EXE] Shoot for the bullseye in this fun dart-shooting game. Which type of throw is best for you? 5. Number Crunch (2.0) [NOCRUNCH.EXE] Can your trigger finger beat the clock and uncover the numbers in order? Based on the board game Numbers Up. 6. Jeopardy Scorekeeper (1.1) [JEOPKEEP.EXE] An accessory program that lets you play along with the contestants on TV! B. Other Windows applications now avaliable: The Periodic Table (1.0) [PERIODIC.EXE] A graphical periodic table that features detailed data on an element that you click on. You can do a search by any category of data you choose, plus you can copy the data to the Clipboard and paste it into any document. C. On the cluttered desk in my mind: The Matrix Wiz (1.0) Add, subtract, and multiply large or small matrices with a few clicks of the mouse. An algebra lover's (and hater's) dream come true! Make-your-own-Quiz (1.0) You choose the questions and the answers, and test yourself or someone else! I'm looking to have a choice of multiple choice, matching, fill-in-the-blank, or short answer. Any feedback on these or ideas for additional games or programs would be greatly appreciated. (See below.) XIII. FEEDBACK I'd love to chat. If you subscribe to CompuServe, E-Mail me at ID# [70661,700]. Questions, comments, ideas, suggestions, criticism, or ideas for new games would be appreciated. If you don't use CompuServe, you can use the traditional mailbox method and send it to the address below in section XV. I'll be sure to get back to you personally. I am 14 years old, a novice computer programmer, and would like to learn all I can! P.S. PLEASE SPREAD THIS AROUND!!! Public domain and shareware software is the most popular kind out there, and its essential purpose is to provide you with quality entertainment for a low cost. Please do your best to upload this game to all the bulletin boards you subscribe to, and pass it around to your friends. It will make us all very happy ! If enough people let me know what they think, I'll feel motivated so I just might decide to put that little world peace plan I've been conjuring up into action. :-) XIV. TO SOURCE CODE RECIPIENTS In addition to the .EXE file version of Target, I have also sent another version containing the Visual Basic source code to selected places such as the MSBASIC forum on CompuServe. If you receive the source code version, you are free to tamper, play, and fool around with the program all you like, but I must stress that you do not redistribute anything you alter. If you can improve on the program in any way, please send me a copy of the new source code and I will look at what you have done and probably incorporate it in the next version. XV. CONTACTING THE AUTHOR A. Mail: Jonathan D. Persky 5 Oak Lane Weston, CT 06883 B. Compuserve: Jon Persky, ID# 70661,700 Shareware Registration #: 256 C. BBS: The Fine Blue Line, (203) 226-3565, tell the sysop I sent you and leave a message to Jon Persky! XVI. FROM THE LEGAL DEPT. A. Disclaimer The author hereby disclaims any charges or damages resulting from use of this software that is higher than the registration fee paid directly to the author by the user, minus costs such as CompuServe's electronic registration processing fee. If you do not register this software, it is not legally yours and therefore no claims can be filed against the author. I will refund your registration fee of $5, if accompanied by a written reason for refund (and if possible, proof of such) and return of the disk obtained upon registration. B. A Word about Computer Piracy Please remember that you are only allowed to distribute unregistered copies of software. If you pass around software that someone else has paid the author for, it is considered computer piracy and is against the law! This version of Target is marked as an Unregistered Copy and therefore may be distributed without permission from me. Target is #4 in the Jon Persky Games series. ©Copyright 1992, Jonathan D. Persky. All rights reserved. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy playing Target as much as I did writing it! (hrummph, yeah, right...) Jon Persky Sunday, September 26, 1992