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                                MAH JONGG
                      Release 2.1, October 7, 1987

                              Nels Anderson
                             92 Bishop Drive
                          Framingham, MA  01701



MAH JONGG is an ancient Chinese game whose origins are supposed to date back
some 3000 years.  This version has similarities to solitaire played with cards
and also with dominoes since it is played with tiles.  When I first discovered
the game my initial impression was that the game would quickly become dull but
having played it for a while and having given it to friends we've all found
that it is quite addictive despite its apparent simplicity.

This version requires a PCompatible with an EGA card/monitor.  If you're
still running an older display adapter I'm afraid you're out of luck.  I had
never seen a game that used the full EGA capabilities (640x350, 16 colors)
and I thought it would be nice if there was one.

Since I do not program games for a living but still put quite a bit of effort
into MAH JONGG I am releasing the program as shareware.  If you enjoy the
game, as I think you will, an $8 donation to reward my efforts would be
appreciated.

If you have any suggestions or discover any problems with the program you
can reach me via the )(evious BBS system (300 baud, 8N1) at 617-875-3618
or 617-449-7322.  Use the command FDBACK to reach me or send email to
"THE FENIX".


PLAYING THE GAME


Most of the instructions you'll need for playing the game are built into
it.  Just type H when prompted at the title screen.  There is quite a bit
of strategy involved if you are to do well but I'll leave the strategies
up to you to discover.  Besides, I'm no expert in playing the game either.

There are a few command line options available.  They are done in a standard
way but if you're not familiar with this sort of thing they may be somewhat
confusing so here are some examples.  The full list of command line options
is included in the help screens within the game itself.

Examples:

If you want to play a game that will be timed for 10 minutes, the command 
line would be:

                             MAHJONGG -T10

Notice there is no space between the -T and the number of minutes (10).
The other commands work the same way.  To play board number 12345 the
command line would be:

                            MAHJONGG -B12345

You can combine commands too, so to play board 12345 as a 10 minute timed
game the command line would be:

                         MAHJONGG -T10 -B12345

There is also a setup screen that allows you to select any of the options
that are available on the command line.  Just hit S from the title screen
to go to setup.

Tournament games, where you play competitively against other people, have
their own setup screen.  The only way to enter a tournament game is through
this screen; there is no command line option for tournaments.


USING A MOUSE


This revision allows you to play the game with a mouse instead of with the
keyboard.  To use a mouse, you must either select it from the setup screen
or use the -m option on the command line.  The game was tested using a
Mouse Systems PC Mouse but any Microsoft-compatible mouse will probably
work.  When using a mouse all commands can be issued using the mouse.  

The mouse interface is a bit different from what you're probably used to but
it seems to be easy enough to use.  Tiles are selected by moving a colored
outline over them and clicking once.  To de-select the first tile, just
click on it a second time.  After selecting both tiles a line with the
options "Y/N" (yes/no) comes up.  If you just click without moving the mouse
you'll select yes and the tiles will be removed.  Slide the mouse left and
right to change your selection.

The commands available during the game (help, new, again, load, save, quit)
are available as "keys" along the left side of the screen.  Move the outline
over the command you want and click once.  All these command require a yes
or no confirmation so you won't do one of them by accident.  Slide the mouse
left and right to select yes or no and then click.  The help command first
asks if you want to see matching tiles (if there are no more matches it will
tell you that instead) and then prompts for a yes or no to see each additional
matching pair of tiles.  If you ask for help after you've already selected the
first tile a search for a matching free tile takes place.  If a match is 
found, it is highlighted and all you need to do is confirm to remove the pair
of tiles.  If no match is found it puts you back to select the first tile
again.  There is a short-cut for mouse users to invoke help.  Just hit the
right mouse button to get help in selecting either tile.  This is the only
place where it matters which mouse button you hit.

Any error messages that appear during the game (i.e. "Invalid Selection")
normally stay visible for a few seconds before allowing play to continue.
To immediately remove a message and resume play just click the mouse.


NEW FEATURES 


Many new features have been added since the original release of the game.
These include:

  NEW SINCE 2.0:

    Help on 2nd tile selection (find match to 1st tile if any)

    Help available with right mouse button as a short-cut

    Error messages can be cancelled by clicking the mouse

    Confirmation required for mouse action "keys" to prevent accidents

  NEW SINCE 1.0:

    Mouse support

    Setup screen, allows access to all game options more easily
    than through command line options

    Tournament play

    Selectable background color

    New commands during play
      A  (play same board Again)
      N  (play New board)

    More command line options
      -cx (background Color)
      -r  (Restart saved game)
      -m  (use Mouse)

    More authentic tile appearance

    Faster tile displaying


WINNING

  
Not all boards are win-able but during testing a number of boards that are
beatable were found.  If you want to play a board that definately can be
won, try one of the following:  55598, 49070, 64856, 15784, 29514, 54176,
40060, 8, 44213, 21, 43, 148, 290, 302, 329, 364, 370, 386, 410, 421, 459,
560, 627, 634, 656, 695, 735, 743, 795, 819, 827, 839, 858, 876, 888, 890,
905, 936, 952, 985, 1034, 1037, 1066, 1101, 1104, 1138, 1145, 1149, 1154,
1207, 1241, 1244, 1296, 1313, 1346, 1365, 1390, 1392, 1428, 1430, 1490,
1543, 55309, 43924, 47924, 38313, 23986, 45355, 55082, 6843, 52079, 50333,
24654, 64557, 47529.

Enjoy!


INCOMPATIBILITIES


It was recently discovered that MAHJONGG has problems running on an ATI
EGA Wonder card.  The problem is with the BIOS ROM on the card not with
the game.  ATI should by now have an upgrade ROM available to fix their
bug so you may want to contact them about it.
DataMuseum.dk

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