1 Bryan Scattergood, September 1996 2 3This is release 1.8m of my version of the ITF Infocom interpreter. 4(1.8d was the first distribution release of 1.8.) 5 6Changes from 1.7 include 7 8 * Support for version 8 games (Jigsaw!) 9 * Reduced memory consumption on the Psion 10 * Improved performance on the Psion 11 * Undo support 12 * New MS-Windows version 13 * Colour support under MS-Windows and X11 14 15 16What is it for? 17=============== 18 19In all versions, the package is intended to make playing infocom games 20as simple and pleasurable as possible. To this end it adds the 21following features to those found on most interpreters 22 23* Command line editing using standard (and emacs) keys 24* History of commands with full recall and editing 25* Full integration with the appropriate windowing systems: 26 . Uses resources for configuration under X11 27 . Full desktop integration with drag and drop on the Acorn 28 . Full font and dialog support on the Psion 29 . Standard file and font dialogs under MS-Windows 30* Proportional font support with optional justification 31* Significantly reduced memory consumption for the Psion version 32* Save files compatible across platforms 33 34If you want a standard 'non-windowing' interpreter then a version of 35Mark Howell's Zip interpreter is probably a better bet. Similarly, 36there are an increasing number of more accurate interpreters 37available; this one has a number of weaknesses, especially with V5 38games. 39 40 41Is this Public Domain, CopyLeft or what? 42======================================== 43 44This package is *not* public domain. 45It is *not* copylefted. 46I retain the copyright. 47You may not distribute modified versions of these packages. 48 49So what *are* you allowed to do? 50 51You may freely copy these packages, provided you the copy you supply 52is unmodified and complete. You may do whatever you want with the 53packages, *provided* it is for your own personal use. 54 55The basic intention here is to stop you generating and distributing 56derivatives; if you make useful changes, then send them to me and I'll 57probably include them in the next release. 58 59The Psion, Acorn and MS-Windows versions are available only as a 60binary release; for technical and legal reasons I cannot distribute 61the source for these platforms. The X11 version is available in 62source since any other release mechanism is impractical under Unix, 63however some of the features from other platforms (dynamic window 64sizing and font changes) have been removed from the source tree. 65 66The Psion, Acorn and MS-Windows versions are shareware; if you send me 6710 pounds sterling (translation: $15 US), then I'll keep you informed of 68updates and give priority to your feature requests. The X11 version 69is intended to operate in the usual Unix tradition of sending patches 70to the author. 71 72As a guideline, please think about registering if you finish a game 73using the interpreter, or if you are buying games to use with the 74interpreter. Registration gives me useful information on how many 75people are using the different versions of the interpreter: current 76development is concentrated on the Psion since the vast majority of 77registrations have been for that version. 78 79(There is also a 'pre-registered' version for the Psion available from 80Lacegem on (0)161-792-2871 under the name InfoZip; this and the 81version available to registered users are generally at least three 82very-minor-versions ahead of the shareware releases. For example, 83registered users were receiving 1.8i while the shareware 84release was at 1.7c. It is hoped that future versions of InfoZip will 85include a version of the MS-Windows interpreter in the package.) 86 87 88Alright, but how do I install it? 89================================= 90 91You read the installation instructions for this particular package in 92the file Install in the Doc directory (which should be in the same 93directory as this file.) 94 95You may want to browse through the other documentation in that 96directory as well; in particular, if you have used a previous version 97then the files Changes may be of interest. 98 99 100And where do I get the games? 101============================= 102 103You will not find the classic Infocom games available for ftp. They 104are now owned by Activision who sell them in various bundles. 105 106The first such bundles are known as the Lost Treasures of Infocom 107(volumes I and II); you buy these as you would any other commercial 108software, either mail order or if you are lucky from a local shop. 109 110The Lost Treasures were available for the Mac, PC and Amiga; I recommend 111the PC version since just about anything can read PC format floppy disks. 112They may still be available in some places; for example, Lacegem may 113have some stocks remaining. 114 115The Lost Treasures were being replaced by themed packs of around 116five adventures; I have seen these in the US, but not in the UK at the 117time of writing. These in turn are being replaced by a single CD 118known as the Masterpieces Collection. I've heard reports that the 119CD is available (pretty much at random) in some parts of the USA. 120 121If you feel that you can't justify buying a collection of games for about 122the original cost of *one* infocom game, then you'll have to make do with 123games written using Graham Nelson's compiler Inform. The original 124(and still the best) such game is Graham's own Curses, but a port of 125Colossal Cave is also available, as is Graham's latest work, Jigsaw. 126Both Inform and Curses are available from ftp.gmd.de. I have also 127heard favourable comments about Christminster (Gareth Rees) and 128Theatre (Cave Rock Software). 129 130 131Contacting the author 132===================== 133 134First the standard disclaimer: 135 136This program is provided "as is", without any warranty of any kind. 137The entire risk as to its quality and performance is with you. In no 138event will I be liable for damages arising from the use of this 139program. 140 141However, if you have any bug reports or feature requests then you 142can send them to 143 144 104312.2206@compuserve.com 145 146or (failing that) to 147 148 bryan@fsel.com 149 150or (failing that) to 151 152 jbs@comlab.ox.ac.uk 153 154PLEASE do NOT send a copy of your message to all three addresses; try 155them in the order given, allowing about a week for a reply. If you 156send three copies a reply will take *longer* because I'll get confused 157about whether I've answered it on another system. 158 159The email addresses should eventually reach me; forwarding will be set 160up if required. 161 162If you don't have email, or you need to send something through the 163post then I can be reached as 164 165 Bryan Scattergood 166 c/o Formal Systems 167 3 Alfred Street 168 Oxford 169 OX1 4EH 170 England 171 172(the old college address is due to become invalid around mid 1996.) 173