megazeux/docs/old/megazeux.doc

MegaZeux ver 2.51 source -

		  Copyright (C) 1996 by Greg Janson
		  Copyright (C) 1998 by Matthew D. Williams


  REQUIREMENTS:
		  IBM PC (286 or higher) compatible computer
		  640K RAM
		  EGA or higher display adapter
		  SoundBlaster/PAS-16/GUS sound card optional
		  Mouse optional
		  Dos 2.1 or greater
		  Hard drive w/at least 5 megabytes free

              Internet: dbwilli@scsn.net
		  WWW: http://www.scsn.net/users/dbwilli/
	
  This game package may be copied or distributed according to the
  terms and conditions stated in GNUGPL.DOC.

MegaZeux --- Table of Contents

  Section

	  I.  License Agreement and Support
	 II.  Installing and Starting the Program
	III.  Overview of MegaZeux
       IV.  Controls
	  V.  Advanced Play Info, Tips
	 VI.  The World Editor
	VII.  General Editing Tips
     VIII.  Robots- What They Are and How to Use Them
	 IX.  FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
	  X.  Command Line Options
	 XI.  EMS Memory/Boot Disk Tips
	XII.  Known Bugs and Quirks
     XIII.  Thanks, Acknowledgements, and Miscellaneous

I. LICENSE AGREEMENT AND SUPPORT

  --- LICENSE ---
 
  This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
  modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
  published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of
  the License, or (at your option) any later version.
 
  This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
  but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
  MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU
  General Public License for more details.
 
  You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
  (GNUGPL.DOC) along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
  Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.

  --- SUPPORT ---

  This source code is supplied as is.  The current copyright holder is not
  required in any way to assist anyone who chooses to modify this code.

  However, the current copyright holder can be reached via email:
  Matt Williams
  dbwilli@scsn.net
  And via the World Wide Web:
  http://www.scsn.net/users/dbwilli/

II. INSTALLING AND STARTING THE PROGRAM

  It is recommended that you install MegaZeux in its own sub-directory
  on your hard disk. Do NOT run the program directly from a distribution
  disk, as disks sometimes fail.  Always make a copy and run the program
  from it!

  To install the registered version of MegaZeux, simply change to the proper
  drive (usually A: or B:) after inserting the installation disk. Type
  INSTALL and select the program to install. A recommended directory is
  MEGAZEUX. Then you must wait as the program is unarchived and copied to
  the given directory.

  You should always use INSTALL to install registered products from Software
  Visions, as they are in archived form.

  Once the program is installed, you can change to that sub-directory at
  any time and run the program.

  MegaZeux is started by typing

		  MEGAZEUX

  You will then be prompted for an output device to use for all digitized
  music and sound. If you do not pick PC Speaker, you will then be prompted
  for whether you wish PC Speaker sound IN ADDITION to digitized music and
  sound. Then, if you did not pick No Sound for digitized output, you will
  be prompted to pick a mixing rate for digitized music. Lower numbers are
  more staticy and may distort percussion sounds, but higher numbers require
  more processor power. The high end numbers will slow down the game (OK on
  a 386 or 486) or even stop it on a 286 or very slow 386. Experiment for
  the best compromise.

  You will then be whisked to the title screen for the first included game,
  Caverns of Zeux. Press P to play, or L to load another world. Press F1
  for comprehensive help AT ANY TIME. Help is context sensitive, and much
  more comprehensive than this document.

III.  Overview of MegaZeux

  Welcome to MegaZeux!

  As you may already know, MegaZeux is a game system which
  allows you to play almost limitless worlds in EGA graphics
  and with beautiful digitized music and sound. MegaZeux comes
  with worlds, and new worlds are being uploaded every day to
  major on-line services such as America Online. But the most
  fabulous feature of MegaZeux is the World Editor.

  Using the World Editor, ANYONE can create the world of their
  dreams. Make it as simple or complex, as easy or difficult,
  as long or short as you please. And we aren't just talking
  about worlds made up of petty, pre-programmed enemies and
  objects. MegaZeux has it's own, easy to use PROGRAMMING
  LANGUAGE called Robotic that allows you to create enemies,
  objects, and worlds that do almost anything you desire.

  For the new user, I recommend you play Caverns, the first
  included game, to get the feel of MegaZeux. You may wish
  to read the section entitled "Controls" to learn how
  to play MegaZeux.

  Once you have the feel for the game, however, feel free
  to dive into the World Editor and get messy! You should
  probably read the section entitled "The World Editor"
  first.

IV.  Controls

  MegaZeux is very easy to play, once you understand the
  simple control system. After that, experimentation will
  prove to be the best teacher, although you can discover
  everything within Help as well.

  To start a game, press 'P' during the title screen. To
  select another world, press 'L' during the title screen.
  Use ESC during the title screen to exit to DOS, or during
  the game to return to the title screen. You know it is
  the title screen if a message on the bottom says "Press
  F1 for help, Enter for menu". Enter will bring up a menu
  of options on the title screen, also.

  Your character is represented by a little smiley face
  in the included game(s). In other games, he may be
  a stick person, animal, spaceship, or other entity.
  Usually it is obvious where you are, since you are usually
  colored to stand out.

  To move your character, press one of the arrow keys on
  the keyboard or numeric keypad. If you hold it down, you
  will continue to move in that direction.

  To interact with objects and other characters, you usually
  must stand next to them and touch them. This basically
  means push against them using the arrow keys. Watch out
  for enemies and evil creatures, who will often hurt you
  when you touch them.

  To stop enemies, you will usually have some type of weapon,
  often with limited ammunition. The actual weapon depends
  upon the game, and may even differ from game to game, but
  by default you have a small pistol. To fire your weapon,
  hold Space and press an arrow key. You can also hold the
  arrow key and press Space. You must press both keys TOGETHER.

  To see your current status, such as Health points, Coins,
  Gems, Ammunition, and Keys, press Enter. This will bring up
  a box containing all your stats, as well as a menu detailing
  other options you have available.

  In some games, you may encounter bombs. (as usual, push
  against them to pick them up.) To use a bomb, press the
  Delete key. Then run! The bomb will not actually burn its
  fuse until you step away from it. There are two styles of
  bomb- Low strength and High strength. You can tell which
  kind you pick up by the pitch of the sound it makes. To
  change which TYPE of bomb you are using, press Insert. A
  message at the bottom of the screen will inform you of
  your new selection.

  Other games may have other controls, such as 'S' to cast
  a spell, or 'J' to jump, but they will be detailed within
  the game. Some basic play tips:

  * Make sure you visit every screen. To get to other screens,
	 enter passageways, stairs, caves, or doors. (by pushing
	 against them.) You can also often reach another screen
	 by pushing against the edge of the screen, leading to an
	 adjacent screen.

  * Touch everything! Even things of seemingly little value may
	 prove worthy of your attention. If it kills you, then...
	 well... hope you saved.

  * Save your game! It is rather simple- Press F3 to save your
	 game to disk at the EXACT point you are at. Press F4 to
	 reload a game off of disk. You can use F9 and F10 to
	 quick-save and quick-load, which work on the last game
	 you saved. Remember to save often- If something kills you,
	 you'll want a game to go back to.

  * Collect supplies! Make sure you grab every coin, gem,
	 ammo dump, bomb, chest, and pouch you see! You will often
	 be in want of supplies, so don't push things.

  * Remember how things work. Most things in MegaZeux have
	 patterns, and the same object will usually do the same
	 thing all the time. (although two objects may look alike
	 and not really be the same thing)

V.  Advanced Play Info, Tips

  You've tried some MegaZeux worlds, and they are fun, but you
  have the feeling you are missing something. This is it- the
  remaining knowledge you might need to survive in a given world.

  First, let me warn you that many worlds you get from public
  services or BBSes may not be of a very good quality. They may
  be unfair, boring, have bugs, and/or not give proper
  instructions. My advice is to E-Mail the author and tell him
  what you think of poor quality MegaZeux games. There is no
  problem in MAKING them, but PLEASE don't upload them. Don't
  let a few losers ruin the fun.

  Now to cover the game keys, in detail-

  F1- Help
  Use this at any time to bring up help relating to the current
  situation. Within the game, you will go to the Controls
  section.

  Enter- Menu/status
  Use this to bring up a menu of options and a list of your
  current stats, such as Score, Gems, etc.

  ESC- Exit to title
  This will quit the current game and return to it's title
  screen.

  F2- Settings
  This will bring up a dialog box where you can change the
  current game settings, such as Game Speed, Music, and
  Sound. To speed up the game, lower the speed and/or turn
  music off. A speed of 1 will cause flicker in most machines,
  so it is not recommended unless it is your only option.

  F3- Save game
  This will prompt you for a filename, then save the exact
  state of your current game. Some games may not allow saving
  on some or all of its screens. This lets you quit your game
  in the middle or take precautions against unknown dangers.

  F4- Restore game
  This will let you select a saved game from a list of filenames.
  The game will then be reloaded from the same point you left off
  at.

  F5 or Insert- Toggle bomb type
  This will switch your current bomb type between High Strength
  and Low Strength.

  F6- Debug mode
  This will bring up a small box in the lower left corner of the
  screen, detailing your position and the current memory
  situation. It is generally only necessary when testing and
  fixing your own games. Press F6 again to turn the box off. The
  debug menu, when active, will also increase the sensitivity to
  module and SAM problems. Normally during the game, no errors
  relating to modules and SAMs will be shown. With the debug menu on,
  errors loading modules and SAMs and out of memory conditions will
  be shown.

  F9- Quicksave
  This will save the game, like F3, but to the last filename you
  used, without prompting you for a filename. The old file will
  be overwritten. If no game has been saved since MegaZeux was
  started, a filename of SAVED.SAV will be used.

  F10- Quickload
  This will reload the last game saved using F3 or F9. If no
  game has been saved since MegaZeux was started, a filename of
  SAVED.SAV will be used.

  Arrows- Move
  The arrow keys will move your character and allow him to
  interact with most objects.

  Space- Shoot
  Use this key in conjunction with an arrow key to fire your
  weapon in the selected direction. Weapons vary from world to
  world.

  Delete- Bomb
  This will drop a bomb of the current type BENEATH the player.
  Move out of the way to see it, then run before it explodes!

  The following keys are active at the title screen-

  F1- Help (see above)

  Enter- Menu
  This is similar to Enter within the game. However, there is
  no status screen.

  ESC- Exit to DOS
  Pressing ESC will exit MegaZeux, returning to the DOS prompt
  or other operating system.

  F2 or S- Settings (see above)

  F3 or L- Load world
  This will allow you to load up the title screen of any MegaZeux
  world. A list of choices will be presented to you to select
  from. After the world is loaded, you may watch the title
  screen, then press 'P' to play.

  F4 or R- Restore game (see above)

  F5 or P- Play game
  This will stop the title screen and actually begin game play.

  F6- Debug menu (see above)

  F8 or E- World editor
  This will quit the gaming portion of MegaZeux and enter the
  integrated World Editor. For detailed info on using the World
  Editor, view the appropriate help sections.

  F10- Quickload (see above)

  We'll close this section with some more playing tips, some
  general hints and others specific to certain sections of
  Caverns of Zeux, the first included game.

  * Don't take anything for granted. If it looks like a spike,
	 it PROBABLY is. PROBABLY. Although it is rare that these
	 types of puzzles must be solved to complete a game, there
	 are often bonuses, hidden rooms, etc. behind illusions.

  * Don't trust anyone. All characters in a game, (including
	 yourself) have the potential to lie, cheat, and backstab.

  * Try things twice. Sometimes objects respond differently a
	 second time. If you get a new treasure, go talk to all
	 the citizens- maybe one of them will say something new!

  * Caverns hint- (DON'T READ UNLESS YOU ARE STUCK!) Many people
	 often get stuck early in the game, after a couple of bosses.
	 If you have the three amulets, did you talk to the dwarf in
	 town who wants them? Make sure you change back to a dwarf
	 by talking to the spirit. Later make sure to lavawalk across
	 the lava on the left of the room where you got the three
	 amulets.

VI.  The World Editor

  Ready to start creating your own worlds? Then let's get
  started! This section is a short editor tutorial, it will teach
  you the basics of creating your own worlds.

  To get into the editor, press E from the title screen. You will
  be presented with a blank board with a small menu at the bottom.
  You can use PgUp and PgDn to change the currently shown menu,
  and you will be presented with various keys and options. The
  mouse also works here. Feel free to fool around with these
  various options. Press Alt+R to restart and clear everything.

  For your first world, you should start simple. The screen you
  begin on is your title screen, so pick a simple name for your
  game, such as "Mike's World". Move the flashing cursor down a
  few lines and over a few spaces, using the arrow keys. Press C
  and use the arrow keys to select an appropriate color. Press
  Enter to select this color. Now press F2 to write Text. Type
  in the name of your world, and then press F2 to stop writing
  text. This screen will be your title screen.

  Now you need to create the first board, or location, of your
  game. Press A to add a board, then type in a short description
  of the board, such as "Starting Board". Press Enter to go to
  this new board.

  Now you are free to doodle around. Use C to change the active
  color. Use F3 through F9 to bring up menus of items, terrains,
  and creatures. Selecting one with the arrows and Enter will
  allow you to place it using arrow keys and space.

  For example, press F3 for terrains, and select Line. (This is
  a form of wall.) Now move around, placing walls. To ease this,
  you can press Tab to toggle draw mode. When draw mode is active,
  every move of the cursor will place the current item/color. The
  current item and color is shown on the top line of the menu.

  Try to create a pleasing-looking screen, with walls, items, and
  creatures. Some items will require that you set settings to
  determine their behavior. To place the player's starting
  position, move the cursor to the destination, press F10, and
  select Player.

  When you are done, press G to go to the Global Info screen. TAB
  to the Next button and press Enter. You will now be highlighting
  the option "Starting Board". Press Enter, and select the
  starting board (NOT the title screen) from the list and press
  Enter. Then TAB to OK and press Enter. This tells MegaZeux which
  board you want the game to start on.

  You could now press Alt+N to select a module (music) file for the
  board, if you wished. Then press S to save the world, and type in a
  filename of eight or less characters. (The extension of .MZX
  will automatically be added.) Press Enter twice to save. Press
  ESC to exit the editor, and now you can play your game! You can
  use L to reload your world in the editor to make changes, if
  necessary. See General Editing Tips for more advanced editing
  info.

VII.  General Editing Tips

  The following is a list of important editing tips. They assume
  you are familiar with MegaZeux's dialog box system, and that
  you can navigate the editor's menus.

	  Linking Boards

  One-board games get boring REAL fast. There are two ways to
  connect multiple boards. The first way is to add stairs, doors,
  and whirlpools using the Transport (F7) menu. Then you select a
  destination board. The destination board should contain a
  similar transport, leading back. The two entrances will now lead
  to each other.

  The other method of connecting boards is with X, the Board Exits
  dialog. Here, you can select boards that you will reach if you
  walk off of the screen in a given direction. The destination
  board shouldn't have anything in the way, and will not
  automatically lead back- You must set the exit on that board
  too.

  To add boards, press A, or select (new board) from a board list.
  To switch to other boards, use B.

	  Board Sizes

  You can change the maximum size, and the view position, of a
  board, with Alt+P. Here you can move and re-size the view, or
  center it on-screen.

  You can also change the actual size of the board, as well as
  the maximum, overall size. The lowermost radio control
  determines the MAXIMUM size possible for the board, one of
  60x166, 80x125, 100x100, 200x50, or 400x25. The Virtual size
  is the ACTUAL size of the board, which is always equal to or
  less than the MAXIMUM size. Example- If you wanted a board
  that was 180 wide and 40 high, you would select a MAXIMUM
  size of 200x50, then set the Virtual size to 180x40.

  Note that reducing the size of a board will permanently
  destroy anything outside the new limits.

	  Other Important Editing Keys

  You can use Insert to "grab" the object beneath the cursor, or
  Enter to edit it and then grab it as well. Use P to modify the
  current object's settings. Use Alt+N to select music for the
  current board, or turn the music off if it is already selected.
  Use Alt+Z to clear the current board entirely. You can edit
  important Board Options with I, and important Global (world)
  Options with G.

VIII.  Robots- What They Are and How to Use Them

  Robots are the heart and soul of MegaZeux. Anything you could
  want to do in MegaZeux, anything you see done in a MegaZeux
  game, many things you didn't know were possible, can be done
  with MegaZeux's Robots.

  Robots are programmed in their own programming language, called
  Robotic. Robotic is a fairly simple language to learn, somewhere
  along the lines of BASIC, although a bit more complex. If you've
  ever used Epic Megagame's ZZT, Robotic is a bit more complex
  than ZZT-OOP, although it is similar and more logical in style
  and syntax.

  To place a Robot in the editor, press F10 and select Robot, or
  Pushable Robot if you want things to be able to push the Robot.
  Then name the Robot, and select a character to represent it. Now
  you are brought to the Robot editor, where you can program the
  Robot in Robotic.

  Complete info and a tutorial on Robotic is included in the online
  Help.

IX.  FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

  The following is a list of questions that I have received
  through mail or E-mail about MegaZeux repetitively.

  Q: My robot can't change it's/the player's characters! I
	  use CHAR "A" but it turns invisible!

  A: Use CHAR 'A' instead. You MUST use single quotes
	  (apostrophes) or it will use the value of the COUNTER
	  A which is probably 0.

  Q: Can I distribute a world I made with MegaZeux? Is it
	  legal? Must I/Can I include MegaZeux with it? Can they
	  be shareware worlds?

  A: Of course you can distribute your worlds! That is what
	  MegaZeux is for! Please refrain from uploading worlds
	  that you made as a novice user, if they contain only
	  built-in enemies, items, and no plot/etc. People will
	  only yell at you. Get creative and use Robots! Please
	  include any SAM, MOD, and CHR files with the games,
	  as well as a short TXT description file if necessary.
	  Don't include MegaZeux, but make sure MegaZeux itself
	  is available on any BBS or online system that you
	  upload worlds to. (MegaZeux is available on AOL) Your
	  worlds can be freeware, public domain, or shareware,
	  whichever you prefer.

  Q: Can I use the music from Caverns in my games? How about
	  the music from the registered games? How about the SAM
	  files?

  A: I would prefer it if you did not use Caverns music in
	  any games you distribute, because most people have
	  heard it and it is getting old. The music from the
	  registered games is illegal to distribute. The SAM
	  files are public domain and may be used as you please.

  Q: Where can I get module files?

  A: If you can't make them, search public BBSes and online
	  services for public domain ones. AOL has a large MOD/S3M
	  library, as do many CD-ROM collections. Or employ a
	  friend to do it for you. I myself (Greg Janson) am
	  not available to create module files unless I am being
	  paid well for my time.

  Q: What is some good software to create module files?

  A: For modules, Fast Tracker II by Triton is fairly good, but
	  you have to avoid using the XM features. ScreamTracker 3.0
	  is good for making S3M files.

  Q: How do I make SAM files?

  A: There are three easy ways to create SAM files. First,
	  you get recording software, a sound card, and a mike.
	  Hook 'em all up (read the instructions) and go for it.
	  Second, you can download them or get them from module
	  files or other games. Third, you can take existing files
	  and change them with effects like echo. Blaster Master
	  is a good piece of software to handle numbers one and
	  three.

  Q: But I can only find software to make WAVs! (or VOCs)

  A: There is a nice small program called CVT2SAM which can
	  convert most WAVs and VOCs to SAMs. I believe it is in
	  the public domain. It is available on AOL.

  Q: The TELEPORT PLAYER command doesn't work!

  A: It does now. That was a small (er... big) bug in version
	  1.02, which was corrected in version 1.03 and 2.51.

  Q: Is the world design contest still going?

  A: Until you see a Best of MegaZeux series OR the calendar
	  reaches 1-22-97 without sufficient entries, the contest
	  will continue. So far I've received only one board,
	  which wasn't even acceptable. However, I've received
	  E-mail from several interested parties, so the contest
	  continues. See CONTEST.TXT for details.

  Q: I need more than 256 characters!

  A: Then you'll need to carefully utilize the Robot command
	  LOAD CHAR SET and ration your characters carefully. The
	  limit of 256 is a hardware limit and cannot easily be
	  worked around.

X.  Command Line Options

  The following command line options are available for use when
  starting MegaZeux. To use them, type them in after MEGAZEUX
  at the DOS prompt. Separate all options with spaces.

  -?

  Bring up command line option help screen.

  -lxxxxxxxx.MZX

  Loads up xxxxxxxx.MZX at start up. (the .MZX is optional)

  -nomouse

  Don't activate the mouse, even if one is present. Use if the
  mouse gets in the way or MegaZeux seems to think you have a
  mouse when you don't.

  -noems

  Don't use any EMS memory. Use if MegaZeux's use of EMS memory
  is causing a problem. Note that with this option, you will
  probably not have enough memory for module and SAM files.

  -ega

  Use EGA mode even on VGA or higher. This only affects the
  granularity of palette fades and color changes.

  -keyb2

  Use another style of keyboard handler. Use if your keyboard is
  locking up or otherwise causing problems.

  ** Sound Card Options

  -port###
  -irq#
  -dma#

  Allows you to specify the settings for your sound card. -port
  sets the base port and must be followed by a hexadecimal number
  such as 220. -irq sets the IRQ line number, and should be
  followed by a single digit such as 7. -dma sets the DMA number
  and should be followed by a single digit such as 1. See your
  sound card manual for details. These options are only neccesary
  if autodetection fails. An example of a command line for the
  default SoundBlaster settings-

  MEGAZEUX -port220 -irq7 -dma1

XI.  EMS Memory/Boot Disk Tips

  MegaZeux makes extensive use of EMS and conventional (first
  640k) memory. The more you have available, the better it will
  run.

  To have EMS memory available, you must have an EMS driver
  installed. Most EMS drivers also require an XMS/HIMEM driver
  loaded first. You will need lines similar to the following in
  your CONFIG.SYS to load HIMEM and an EMS driver, respectively-

  DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS
  DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE 3072 H=160

  The 3072 tells DOS to reserve up to 3072K of memory (3
  megabytes) for EMS. Feel free to lower or raise this value,
  but a minimum of 2048K (2 megabytes) is recommended.

  It is also recommended that you load SmartDrive to run MegaZeux.
  SmartDrive is a disk-cache utility that is usually loaded,
  because it greatly speeds up repeat disk accesses. You probably
  already have a line such as SMARTDRV.EXE /X in your AUTOEXEC.BAT;
  if not, you should consider adding it somewhere after the PATH
  statement.

  To help free up conventional memory, you may need to create a
  boot disk. This is a common procedure for games that use less
  conventional setups (such as MegaZeux), and if a certain boot disk
  works for one game, it may work just fine for MegaZeux. However,
  you must remember to include HIMEM and an EMS driver, and include
  a mouse driver if you want your mouse to be available.

  To create a boot disk, stick a blank disk into your A: drive and
  type the following:

  FORMAT A: /S <enter>

  Answer Yes to all questions. Give the disk a label if you wish.
  Answer No to "Format another?" and then type:

  COPY CON A:CONFIG.SYS <enter>
  DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS <enter>
  DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE 4096 H=160 <enter>
  DOS=HIGH <enter>
  <ctrl+z>

  COPY CON A:AUTOEXEC.BAT <enter>
  PATH C:\DOS;C:\WINDOWS <enter>
  SMARTDRV /X <enter>
  C:\MOUSE\MOUSE <enter>
  C: <enter>
  CD \MEGAZEUX <enter>
  MEGAZEUX <enter>
  <ctrl+z>

  The line to load the mouse driver is optional, and may vary on
  different computers. The drive and directory you have MegaZeux
  in may differ as well. Your windows and dos paths may differ.

  Once you've followed these instructions, you can insert the
  disk and reboot the computer to run MegaZeux. It is best if you
  get a computer-wise friend to help you, if you can't get the
  above to work.

  One note- most newer sound cards require drivers or other
  programs to be run before they can be used. Check your existing
  configuration files and/or manuals to find out what these
  commands are if you intend to use MegaZeux with a boot disk.

XII.  Known Bugs and Quirks

  Note that the graphics quirks are more likely to appear on laptops
  as their graphics cards are usually proprietary and may contain
  non-standard quirks.

  A. A couple of computers/graphics cards display MegaZeux in the
	  "9-pixel-character" mode. This basically means that thin black
	  lines appear between each column of most characters. This doesn't
	  affect gameplay but can be annoying. Known offenders- Zenith
	  Z-Note MX laptop.

  B. A couple computers/graphics cards may display characters with the
	  bottom of every character stretched down a little (2 additional
	  rows of pixels added). This does not affect gameplay but can be
	  annoying. Known offenders- Sharp 8700 Laptop

  C. Certain SVGA cards display black as deep red. Again, this doesn't
	  affect gameplay but can be annoying.

  D. The Global Robot's code has been reported to be trashed while
	  music is on. (in the editor.) It happened very rarely and I cannot
	  seem to reproduce or pinpoint the bug. It may be an isolated
	  cause.

  E. Certain modules may play slightly off-tune.

  F. MegaZeux does not always run under certain Windows or Win95
	  configurations, or if it does, sound does not work.

  If you have something to add here or might be able to help solve one
  of these quirks, drop me a line.

XIII.  THANKS, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, AND MISCELLANEOUS

  ** Credits and Acknowledgments **

  Programming and Overall Design by Gregory Janson
  Music/Sound code by Edward Schlunder

  Included Game Modules by Gregory Janson
  Included Music by Gregory Janson

  Beta Testing and Special thanks:

  Jason Albanese
  Alek Benedict
  Chris Bromley
  Christopher Christensen *
  Chris Cooper
  Carlos DaSilva
  Jacob Farmer
  Geoff Friesen *
  Tim Gallagher
  Themie Gouthas *
  Jamie Holub
  Jason Kim
  Dave Kirsch *
  Elbert Lim
  Joe McManis
  Vic Putz *
  Robin Rudge *
  Brian Schweitzer
  Allen Shirvanian
  Tim Sweeny (author of ZZT)
  Tony Vanvranken

  * = Thanks for the public domain code!

  AOL Beta Testers

  Compukid
  Shammydog
  DMcgee1008
  SpectreB1
  NL Aric
  JustJoshua
  SkreenNme
  MegaKev
  Herbie III
  Spider124
 
				- Originally by Greg Janson
				  ZZT'er at heart

				- Modified by Matt Williams
				  also a ZZT'er at heart
				  on March 1, 1998