Copyright: This help file is Copyright 1994, Chris Uhl


Contents
Guess for Windows version 2.0
Brought to you by: Copperware!

The Contents lists Help topics available for Guess. Use the scroll bar to see entries not currently visible in the Help window.

To learn how to use Help, press F1 or choose Using Help from the Help menu.

For an introduction, or a quick tutorial for this program, please read the file named INTRO.WRI.

Playing the Game:	Other Topics:
Low system resources	About the author
Changing your name	Copyright notice
Choosing a Number System	Distribution
Command Line Options	How to contact the author
Main Dialogue Box	Installing Guess
Troubleshooting:	License Agreement
What is VBRUN300.DLL?	Un-installing Guess
What is THREED.VBX?
Windows is a trademark, and MS-DOS is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation. The ThunderBYTE Anti-Virus utilities are registered trademarks of ESaSS BV. Central Point Anti-Virus is a trademark of Central Point Software, Inc. All other product names mentioned are acknowledged to be the marks of their producing companies.


Changing your name
Changing your name:

To change your name, select "New Player…" from the "Options…" menu. Guess will usually accept all names unless they have no vowels, or contain low or high ASCII characters. If your name fails one of the tests, Guess will refuse the name.

Guess, after it has reviewed your name, will properly format it. The first letter of the name will become capitalized (if not already) and the rest of the name will be converted to lowercase. If you prefer your name to appear verbatim, place an underscore before your name.

Low or high ASCII characters:

When this error occurs, Guess has found low or high characters in your name. Because of the possibility of internal errors within Guess, these characters are not accepted. Guess will prompt you of the error and flag the offending character. Guess will continue to search the name until all low and high ASCII characters are removed.

No Vowels:

When this error occurs, Guess couldn't find a vowel in your name. Because most names have at least one vowel, Guess assumes that the name you entered is incorrect. If you have an unusual name that does not contain any vowels, place an underscore before your name. This will bypass the vowel test.

Other Restrictions:

Your name must be at least three characters long, and no more than twelve characters long.

Permanently changing your name:

To permanently change your name, please read the section named "Command Line Options"

See also:

Command Line Options


Choosing a Number System
Choosing a Number System:

To choose a number system, select "Number System…" from the "Options…" menu. All of the number systems should be available, unless optioned out by the Command Line. When you have chosen your Number System, use the mouse and choose "OK", or press ENTER.

Guess places no restrictions on the number of times you may change number systems. However, to maintain continuity in thought, only one system should be used throughout one game. If you really want a challenge, you can change the Number System mid-game.

For detailed descriptions, select a number system:

Decimal

Octal

Hexadecimal

Binary

See also:

Command Line Options


Command Line Options
Command Line Options:

Guess accepts Command Line Options. Using the following as a Command Line Argument you can get an idea of what Guess looks for in the Command Line:

[drive:][\path\]GUESS[.EXE] [/d][/h][/o][/b] [[_]NAME= quoted string]

[drive:][\path\]GUESS[.EXE]	This is used to start Guess. Windows takes care of the drive and path settings. The .EXE setting is optional.*
[/d][/h][/o][/b]	These options are used to exclude number systems from being chosen. If you don't want someone playing the Decimal system all day, use a "/d". An error occurs if all four Number Systems are optioned out.
[[_]NAME=quoted string]	If you don't want the name "Chris" to appear every time you start Guess, place this option in the Command Line. Quoted string means the name needs to be quoted.
* Guess offers a unique ability to start Windows when the executable file is invoked from DOS. The Command Line Option is still valid when you start Guess from DOS.

Permanently Changing your Name:

To permanently change your name, you need to supply your name in the command line. Once in Windows, you may modify the command line by editing the properties of Guess. To modify the properties, select the Guess icon, press and hold the <ALT> key and strike <ENTER>. This will bring up the Properties Dialogue box. From here, locate the line that says "GUESS.EXE" and add the Name Command Line behind it. For example the name Kelsey would look like:

C:\WINDOWS\GUESS\GUESS.EXE NAME="Kelsey"

In the properties dialogue box, if some or all of the edit fields are greyed out, you do not possess sufficient rights to modify the properties of Guess. Contact your administrator to change the properties.

Example:

Command Line Example

See also:

Choosing a Number System

Changing your name


Main Dialogue Box
Main Dialogue Box:

The Main Dialogue Box is used to play the game. For help on any area of the playing field, single click it with the left mouse button.


About the author
About the Author:

Now, about me. My name is Chris Uhl. The last name is pronounced Ühl (as in you´·el). The proper German way of pronunciation is Ool (as in fool). I prefer the Ühl, although it isn't spelled with the two dots "Ü", that is there for those of us who are phonetically proper.

I was born in Regina, Saskatchewan on February 23, 1975. So, for most of you "he's a young'n." That's true, I am young, but I don't think that should be held against me. I graduated high school in '92, have had a very small job at the corner store for a while, and program when I'm not working.

The language I have chosen to program in is Visual Basic Pro 3.0. This is not a cop out. Some are dead-set against people using VB, because it is so easy to use. They think we don't earn what we make. I say to heck with that. It's true, I don't "C", so that disqualifies that. I have been taught in Pascal [image] wonderful language [image] but I didn't quite catch on. I can program the simplest programs in Pascal, but it wouldn't give me the options presented in Visual Basic Pro 3.0. I'm not here to debate how I program, I'm only here to present my artistic expressions. Some people paint by numbers, others paint by memory.

For those of you who are resourceful enough, this is just a copy of the introduction. Please read the introduction for more information on Guess, and how it came to be.

Read also:

INTRO.WRI.


Copyright notice
Copyright notice:

GUESS.BAS is © Chris Uhl, 1993. As a derived work, Guess for Windows v1.0 and all subsequent revisions are also copyright. All of Guess for Windows' support files, excluding THREED.VBX, are © Chris Uhl, 1994. Any unauthorized copying that is not in accordance with the License Agreement is strictly prohibited.

Microsoft Support File:

THREED.VBX is © Microsoft, 1993.

See also:

License Agreement


Distribution
Distribution:

Guess is distributed in authentically verified ZIP form. In order to dearchive Guess, you need PkUnzip from PKWARE Inc. If you need an authentic file, please read About the Author.

Please click on a file name you wish to obtain more information on:

GUESS14.ZIP:	FILE_ID.DIZ
GUESS.EXE	THREED.VBX
GUESS.HLP
GUESS.BAS	MISC.ZIP:
INTRO.WRI	ANTI-VIR.DAT
HISTORY.WRI	CHKLIST.CPS
README.TXT	UHL.PGP
See also:

Un-installing Guess


GUESS.EXE

This is the Microsoft Windows version 3.x based executable file. This file is required. It is suggested to place this file, and its support files in a directory called "C:\WINDOWS\GUESS". Because it is placed in a known directory it can be updated or removed easily from your hard drive.

Guess offers a unique ability to start Windows when the executable file is invoked from DOS. The Command Line Option is still valid when you start Guess from DOS.

See also:

Command Line Options


GUESS.HLP

This is a Microsoft Help file. If on-line help is required, this file must reside with the executable file (or somewhere in the computer's path). If this file is not present, any and all attempts to access it will result in error.

See also:

About GUESS.HLP


INTRO.WRI

This is a Microsoft Write document detailing the author and tutorials on all four number systems. This file should be kept for future reference even though it is not directly used by Guess.

Read also:

INTRO.WRI

See also:

HISTORY.WRI


HISTORY.WRI

This in an informational file used by Microsoft Write. It contains the history of Guess for Windows v2.0. This file may be safely deleted from your hard disk because it is not used directly by Guess.

Read also:

HISTORY.WRI

See also:

INTRO.WRI


README.TXT

This is an ASCII based document containing last minute changes, quick product information and the License Agreement. This file should be kept for future reference.

Read also:

README.TXT


FILE_ID.DIZ

The FILE_ID.DIZ is an informational file used by BBSes. It contains the version number and the description to be placed on-line. Many boards use this file, some do not. You may delete this file if it is dearchived onto your hard drive.


THREED.VBX

This is a run-time library distributed by Microsoft. This file is required because of the way Guess was created. Its suggested location is "C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM"; however, it may be located with the Guess executable file. If this file is not in the system directory, in the directory in which Guess resides or in the path, Guess will not run. Please read the Copyright Notice about the copyright issues regarding this file.


ANTI-VIR.DAT

This is an informational file used by Thunderbyte Anti-Virus utilities. It serves no purpose other than to Thunderbyte Anti-Virus. This file contains checksum information, length and other critical information needed to recover from a viral attack. In order for it to be useful it needs to be in the directory in which Guess resides. TbScan, TbScanX, TbClean, TbCheck and TbSetup all use the ANTI-VIR.DAT directly. If you don't have the TBAV anti-virus package, you may safely delete this file as it does not pertain to you.

See also:

CHKLIST.CPS


CHKLIST.CPS

This is an informational file used by Central Point Anti-Virus. It serves no purpose other than to Central Point Anti-Virus. This file contains checksum information, length, and other critical information needed to recover from a viral attack. In order for it to be useful, it needs to be in the directory in which Guess resides. Central Point Anti-Virus directly uses the CHKLIST.CPS information file. If you don't have the CPAV anti-virus package you may safely delete this file as it does not pertain to you.

See also:

ANTI-VIR.DAT


ASCII

The basic set of text codes used by DOS. It includes 128 letters, numbers, punctuation marks, and other codes. Most computers recognize the extended ASCII set of 256 characters, which includes line-draw characters and international characters.


GUESS.BAS

This is a Microsoft QuickBasic file used by QuickBasic and compatible BASIC compilers. Please read the Copyright Notice for copyright information.

Run also:

GUESS.BAS


BASIC

Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code.


UHL.PGP

This is the Public Key for Chris Uhl, the author of Ask. If you have Pretty Good Privacy working on your hard drive you may add this public key to your key-ring. When you do that, you may send Chris Uhl files and messages that only he can read. Please read the information within UHL.PGP for more information. After you have added it to your key-ring, or if you don't have PGP, you may safely delete it from your hard drive.

-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----

Version: 2.3

mQCNAizlS5MAAAEEAK01tmtA0V0LXjt92qXs1h62n2g3wjJjNm4n/tps6LDkeyYF

ZDj3Br1ryIJQtSAN/i71tyTd46+aQ6vII1w74TJjuxxJbLN3ldz5gV1d86cypgF7

+1fWbnZo3JGNNicIew8++x5B+lL018RBbSfADNXlz8Iz1bxAfgzGPSXKjYH5AAUR

tBdDaHJpcyBVaGwgPENvcHBlcndhcmUhPg==

=UYVh

-----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----

To be absolutely sure that this is the Key Block of Chris Uhl contact the Community BBS to obtain the "finger print" or download UHL.PGP from the BBS. The "finger print" is not provided with Guess.

Do also:

Copy PGP Public Key Block to clipboard

See also:

How to contact the author


Command Line Example:

C:\WINDOWS\GUESS\GUESS.EXE NAME="Kelsey" /O /H

This will tell Guess to use the name Kelsey and to exclude the

Octal and Hexadecimal Number systems.


Quoted String:

Word:	Definition:

Quoted	"this phrase is quoted"
String	Because this contains letters, it is a string


Command line:

[drive:][\path\]GUESS[.EXE] [/d][/h][/o][/b] [[_]NAME=quoted string].

See also:

Command Line Example

Command Line Options


License Agreement
License Agreement:

Users of Guess must accept this disclaimer of warranty: Guess is supplied as is. The author disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of merchantability and of fitness for any purpose. The author assumes no liability for damages, direct or consequential, which may result from the use of Guess.

Guess is a "shareware program" and is provided at no charge to the user for evaluation. Feel free to share it with your friends, but please do not give it away altered or as part of another system. The essence of "user-supported" software is to provide personal computer users with quality software without high prices, and yet to provide incentive for programmers to continue to develop new products. If you find this program useful and find that you are using Guess and continue to use Guess after a reasonable trial period, you must make a registration payment of $0.00 (Can) to Copperware!

Commercial, Governmental or Educational users of Guess must contact the author of Guess within 30 days of first use or their license is withdrawn. Site-License arrangements may be made by contacting Copperware!

Anyone distributing Guess for any kind of remuneration must first contact Copperware! at the address below for authorization. This authorization will be automatically granted to distributors recognized by the (ASP) as adhering to its guidelines for shareware distributors, and such distributors may begin offering Guess immediately. (However Copperware! must still be advised so that the distributor can be kept up-to-date with the latest version of Guess.)

You are encouraged to pass a copy of Guess along to your friends for evaluation. Please encourage them to register their copy if they find that they can use it.

Copperware!

Chris Uhl

342 J.J. Thiessen Way

Saskatoon, SK S7K 5P4

Canada

In such an event that this license agreement differs from the one found in the README.TXT, the latter shall prevail.

See also

Copyright Notice

How to contact the author


Uninstalling Guess
Un-installing Guess:

To remove Guess from your hard drive do the following:

Review:

Review the section "Distribution." There, you can get the filenames of the files you actually want to delete.

Files you may not want to delete:

There are two special files you may not want to delete; they are THREED.VBX and VBRUN300.DLL. These files are common enough that they can be used by other programs. If these programs reside in your Guess directory, move them to your system directory. These files are not updated so you should keep only one copy of each.

Deletion of files:

1.	If you inadvertently dearchived Guess in a directory containing other program you should not use the DELTREE command.
2.	Before deleting any file, make sure you actually want to delete it.
3.	You must always use caution when deleting files because you may accidentally delete more files than you originally intended.
4.	Delete each file by using the File Manager, using the DEL or DELTREE command in DOS.


DELTREE.EXE

Deletes a directory and all the files and subdirectories that are in it. This is executable file is included with MS-DOS 6.x and other operating systems.


Installing Guess
 Installing Guess:

This section assumes you have not yet successfully installed Guess on your hard drive, or are looking for suggestions on where you should place the files.

1.	Write on a piece of paper where the files ended up.
2.	Create a directory called "C:\WINDOWS\GUESS".
3.	Move all the files described in "Distribution" to this directory.
4.	From the File Manager (or its equivalent in other shells) drag and drop the GUESS.EXE from the File Manager and drop it onto the games group.
5.	You will see its icon appear in the group.
6.	Select the icon, press and hold the ALT key and hit ENTER.
7.	You will be given the standard properties dialogue box.
8.	Where it says "C:\WINDOWS\GUESS\GUESS.EXE" add to it a 'NAME="your name"' so it would say 'C:\WINDOWS\GUESS\GUESS.EXE NAME="Kelsey"' for example. *

The file called THREED.VBX can be moved to your system directory. The system directory is generally called "C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM"

* In the properties dialogue box, if some or all of the edit fields are greyed out, you do not possess sufficient rights to modify the properties of Guess. Contact your administrator to change the properties.


What is VBRUN300.DLL?

VBRUN300.DLL is a Microsoft Windows Run Time and Dynamic Link Library used specifically by Visual Basic 3.0 compiled programs. This file is required by all Visual Basic 3.0 programs. This file is distributed by Microsoft and can be distributed freely. You may find it on a BBS by searching for the keyword "VBRUN" or looking for the file named "VBRUN300.???". This file is common enough that it is worth keeping on your hard drive. Its suggested location is "C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM".

This file is not distributed with Guess, because of space requirements. Adding this file would increase the ZIP file an additional 230K! Making the total ZIP file close to 300K! Keeping in mind that most people already have VBRUN300.DLL it would be a waste of money and resources if it were included.

This file is available from the support BBS. Read How to contact the author for support BBS information.

See also:

How to contact the author


What is THREED.VBX?

THREED.VBX is a Custom Control Library used by Visual Basic and other development languages. This file is required by some Visual Basic 3.0 programs. This file is distributed by Microsoft and can be distributed freely. Its suggested location is "C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM". Please read the Copyright notice for copyright issues regarding this file.


Low System Resources

This message appears when Windows has less than 30% system resources. Guess will alert you of the fact your computer is running low of resources, but will do nothing unless your system resources run too low.

Because low system resources have been linked to system crashes and slow system updates, Guess will refuse to run. To remedy this situation, save your work and restart Windows. Some older Windows programs were poorly written, and did not properly release system resources. This would mean that resource would be lost for the duration of your Windows stay. It is a good idea to periodically restart Windows, just to keep it fresh.


System Resources: Explination
System Resources: Explanation

The term System Resources actually refers to three types of resources. The percentage given with System Resources is always the lower of the three types of resources. For example, if resource number one is at 56%, and the other two are at 99%, Windows will tell you there are 56% free recourses.

USER:  Shows the percentage of free USER resource space, which includes handles to objects such as windows and menus.

GDI (graphics device interface):  Shows the percentage of free GDI resource space, which includes handles to device contexts, brushes, pens, regions, and bitmaps.

MEMORY:  Shows the percentage of free global memory. This represents memory available to Windows programs, and includes physical memory plus swappable memory that Windows stores in its swap-file.

In layperson's terms, that means:

USER: The ability to show (and keep in memory) menu's and windows.

GDI: The ability for Windows to draw the screen. If you had lots of paint and no painters, things would slow down.

MEMORY: Your computer's ability to store information.


Decimal System: Explained

Don't be confused by its name. This is the number system we use every day. Its numbers start from zero to nine, then repeat.

I am going to go out on a limb here and assume we all know the intricacies of the Decimal System.

See also:

Octal

Hexadecimal

Binary

INTRO.WRI


Octal System: Explained

The name Octal means of or by the number eight. Octal System means the number eight will be used as a base for counting. In the Decimal number system, the base number was ten. Using this as an example you can extrapolate:

0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19

However, the Octal system is based on the number eight, so here it is:

0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17

The system bypasses the numbers eight and nine.

Usage:

To use the Octal System, you don't need to know the intricacies of the system, all you need to know is how the number system is set up. Follow the routine you would use with the Decimal system, except don't use the numbers eight or nine.

See also:

Decimal

Hexadecimal

Binary

INTRO.WRI


Hexadecimal System: Explained

The name Hexadecimal means of or by the number 16. Hexadecimal System means the number 16 will be used as a base for counting. In the Decimal number system, the base number was ten. Using this as an example you can extrapolate:

0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19

However, the Hexadecimal system is based on the number 16, so here it is:

0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	A	B	C	D	E	F
10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	1A	1B	1C	1D	1E	1F

The system includes the characters A through F.

Usage:

The Hexadecimal system is the most difficult system to use. When you first start your game, choose the number roughly half of the highest and the lowest number. Once you get close, start using the Hexadecimal numbers (A through F). There is no use trying to think in Hexadecimal because it doesn't work.

See also:

Decimal

Octal

Binary

INTRO.WRI


Binary System: Explained

The name Binary means of or by the number two. Binary System means the number two will be used as a base for counting. In the Decimal number system, the base number was ten. Using this as an example you can extrapolate:

0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19

However, the Binary system is based on the number 2, so here it is:

1	10
11	100
101	110
111	1000

The system excludes the numbers two through nine.

Usage:

the Binary system is the most difficult system to learn. The easy thing about this number system is that when you take a character away from the right, it halves itself automatically. Here's an example: "10000" is half of "100000". It doesn't really matter what the number means in Decimal, it is always half.

See also:

Decimal

Octal

Hexadecimal

INTRO.WRI


How to reach the author
How to reach the author:

The author can be reached electronically by the support BBS. If you have a modem, a communications package and a working knowledge of modems, please phone the Community BBS at (306) 652 2487. This BBS uses No Parity, 8 Data Bits and 1 Stop Bit with speeds up to 14.4K. When prompted, enter in your name and your password. Once logging on has been successful, you may download the latest version of Guess.

At the Community BBS, you may also leave Chris Uhl electronic mail. Please leave any mail in the Message Menu under the area Copperware! Shareware Support. The author checks for mail regularly, with a response rate within two days.

The author may also be reached by mail or by fax. Copperware!'s Fax number is (306) 934 0004. The preferred mode of communication is by mail or electronic mail. The Fax should be used only when the situation demands it.

Copperware!

Chris Uhl

342 J.J. Thiessen Way

Saskatoon, SK S7K 5P4

Canada


Underscore: _

The underscore can be created by holding down the shift key and hitting the hyphen key or using this key combination: ALT+0095.


Previous Guess

This displays your last guess, telling you if it was higher or lower than the number. It also welcomes you to the game when you have just started.


Gaming Info

Displays your name and the current number system, as well as the upper and lower limits.


System Menu

Oops, my fault.


Guessing Input

This is the area where you enter your guess. You may use up to five numbers.


Informational Box

This box shows you information during your game.


Guesses taken

This shows you how many guesses you have taken. (You are always limited to 35 guesses.)


Efficiency Bar

Displays your efficiency up to your last guess. (Leave a message to Chris Uhl for the formula.)


Bars

These bars show you (roughly) your guesses. (Don't rely on them too much!)


Oops

Hmmm, I wonder what that does?


Guess Button

Use this to guess. You may use the mouse, or hit ENTER. (If you press TAB to go over there, you can see some information within the informational box.)