Welcome to Basic Computer Adventures The ten programs on this disk are simulations of actual and imaginary journeys in which you, the player, take the role of the leader of the expedition. The programs originally appeared in the book, "Basic Comput- er Adventures" by David H. Ahl, published by Microsoft Press in 1986 and reprinted in 1988. We recommend that you try to find a copy of the book, as it has a detailed story of each journey along with maps, hints, and program notes. You can certainly make the journeys without the book, but it may take you a few tries to get the hang of them. Brief descriptions follow: * Marco Polo simulates a three-year journey over the Silk Road in 1271. It is easy to play once you get the hang of using jewels in place of money. However, it is a challenge to complete the journey in three years with any jewels left over. * Westward Ho simulates a six-month journey over the Oregon Trail in 1850. It uses the same framework as Marco Polo but, because you have fewer resources, it is more difficult to finish. * The Longest Automobile Race simulates the 1908 auto race from New York to Paris (east to west). Unreliable cars, treach- erous roads, and unpredictable weather make this game tough. * In Orient Express, you are a secret agent with assignments to make contact with an arms dealer who wants to defect and to arrest the killer of one of his former associates. Clues are provided by famous passengers who actually rode the Orient Express. The routing is real and follows the 1923 route from London to Constantinople. * Amelia Earhart simulates the around-the-world flight attempt of the famous aviatrix in 1937. If you load enough fuel and pay attention to maintenance and repairs, you should be able to reach Southeast Asia. From there on, good luck. * Tour de France simulates the famous three-week bicycle race. Along with intelligent decisions, this game requires manual dexterity on the keyboard during the sprint stages. There is a short routine at the start to adjust the timing loop to your computer, but we have found it doesn't always work correctly with 20MHz and faster machines. You can still play the game though. * Appalachian Trail simulates the trek of a hiker walking the 2007 miles from Georgia to Maine. Preparation is half the key to completing the hike, but you'll have to contend with boredom and make sensible decisions about eating and injuries. * Subway Scavenger simulates the rounds of a messenger using the New York Subway system. During the first few plays of the game, you must develop a map of the subway system. Even with its help, you will find this a challenging game to finish. * Hong Kong Hustle simulates the Tai Pan collecting bags of gold from various locations around Hong Kong. Using the same approach as Subway Scavenger, you must first develop a map and then go for the gold. * Voyage to Neptune simulates an imaginary journey to Neptune in the year 2100. It is a game of trading a tradeoffs. It is not difficult to get to Neptune; it is very difficult to do so in six years or less and have enough fuel for the return trip. How to Load and Run the Programs The games are stored on the distribution disk in "tokenized" Basic format. They run under standard PC Basic or Microsoft GW Basic. Running the Programs from a Floppy Disk System: Load Basic by placing your DOS disk in Drive A and typing BASIC, BASICA, or GWBASIC. Remove your DOS disk and place the Basic Computer Adventures disk in Drive A. From Basic, run the games menu program by typing RUN "M". Follow the directions to select the game you want. Installing the Programs on a Hard Disk System: Put the Basic Computer Adventures disk in Drive A. Using the CD/ command, change directories and go to the directory where Basic (BASIC, BASICA, or GWBASIC) resides. From that directory, type: COPY A:*.* and the 11 program files on the floppy disk will be copied to your hard disk. Running the Programs from a Hard Disk System: After you have copied the programs onto your hard disk, load Basic by typing BASIC, BASICA, or GWBASIC. From Basic, run the games menu program by typing RUN "M". Follow the directions to select the game you want. Exiting from a Journey: When you finish a journey, the program will return you to the menu program. If you wish to exit a program before finishing a journey, press Ctrl/C or Break, and you will be in Basic. To run another game, simply type RUN "M" again. Sound Effects: Several of the programs have sound effects that are set to work with a "standard" 4.77 MHz PC. On faster systems, they sound rather strange. If this bothers you, you can disable the sound subroutines or rewrite the timing loops. Please refer to your Basic manual. Thank You For Your Honesty Basic Computer Adventures is Shareware and I thank you, in advance, for sending your $20.00 payment to: David H. Ahl 12 Indian Head Road Morristown, NJ 07960 Paying your $20.00 is not only the honest thing to do, but it also entitles you to free program updates for three years, the printed 8 to 12 page story for any one journey (your choice), and hints for solving the mystery of the Orient Express.