READ ME FILE FOR ALPHATWIST 1.00 ******************************** CONTENTS ******** 1. About this version 2. Upgrading from previous versions. 3. Frequently asked questions. 1. About this version ********************* AlphaTwist V1.00 is a new version of the game that was previously known as WordTris by Jaffasoft. The following improvements have been added for this version over the latest version of WordTris (V1.03). a) Improved Dictionary Editor (32bit Windows only) allows letter distribution and points values to be edited, import from various file formats, search for words etc. b) New "Super Challenge" options to stop the game from getting too easy ;) c) Pause mode now shows High Scores for current game type. d) Freehand style title graphics ;) 2. Upgrading from previous versions *********************************** IMPORTANT : Please be sure to write down your registration code before you upgrade from an earlier version! To upgrade from WordTris V1.02a or later you should do the following. (1) DO NOT DELETE WORDTRIS FROM YOUR PILOT YET (2) With WordTris still installed on your Pilot, hotsync AlphaTwist and its dictionary. AlphaTwist and WordTris should both be listed on the application launcher of your Pilot. (3) Run AlphaTwist on your Pilot and check its registration details and High Scores (4) If the registration code and/or High Scores are not correct in AlphaTwist then delete AlphaTwist from your Palm Pilot and return to stage (2). (5) When you are happy with the registration code and High Scores in AlphaTwist you can delete WordTris from your Palm Pilot. To upgrade from WordTris V1.01 or earlier you should delete WordTris from your Pilot and then hotsync AlphaTwist and its dictionary. Your existing registration code will work but you will have to write it in again like you did when you first bought the game. If you lose your registration code in the upgrade process then please send an email to support@miaowsoft.fsnet.co.uk explaining the situation. If your name shows up in the list of registered users we will send you a reminder of your registration code. 3. Frequently asked questions ***************************** (1) Why is the game now called AlphaTwist from Miaowsoft? (2) I bought the game, where is my registered version? (3) How do I enter my registration code? (4) Why is my registration code rejected? (5) Why have I not received a registration code? (6) Why does AlphaTwist reject two letter words? (7) How do I make changes to the dictionary? (8) Why is (your word here) not accepted? (9) Why is (some nonsense word) accepted? (10) Why do I get 8 consonants or 6 vowels in a row? (11) How can I make the game easier? (12) Why can't I claim words when I run of space? (13) What are the best in-house AlphaTwist scores? (14) Why is my question not in the FAQ ? Answers ******* (1) Why is the game now called AlphaTwist from Miaowsoft? The name changes were made to avoid confusion with an existing game called WordTris and an existing company called Jaffasoft. We were not aware of either when we first released the game. (2) I bought the game, where is my registered version? To unlock the full features of AlphaTwist you must enter a valid registration code, but you do NOT need to get another version of the software in order for these features to appear. (3) How do I enter my registration code? To enter the registration code you must choose the "Register AlphaTwist" option from the "Info" menu and then enter your code at the prompt. (4) Why is my registration code rejected? All registration codes for AlphaTwist take the form XXXX99XXXX where X stands for any letter and 9 stands for any number. Please check that you haven't confused the letter "O" with the number zero or the letter "I" with the number one at any point in the code. If you're still having a problem with entering the code then please send an email to our support address. (5) Why have I not received a registration code? Please check any email you received from Handango or PalmGear as the code should be in one of their messages. If you still don't see the code after doing this then please send an email to our support address. (6) Why does AlphaTwist reject 2 letter words? AlphaTwist can only support 2 letter words if the following conditions are satisfied. (a) Your dictionary must include some 2 letter words. (b) You must select one or both of the two letter word options in the Preferences screen (Clear Space or Score Points). (7) How do I make changes to the dictionary? The new Dictionary Editor (AlphaTwistDict.exe) for Windows 95/98/NT/2000 PCs should have been included in your download of AlphaTwist. Instructions for using this program can be found at the following url: http://www.miaowsoft.fsnet.co.uk/dictedit.html (8) Why is (your word here) not accepted? AlphaTwist will allow you to claim any word that is included in its dictionary file. The dictionary contains all the common words of 2 to 5 letters and some very uncommon ones that are sometimes seen in word games such as Scrabble(R). If you played a common word ( ie "and", "fish" ) and it wasn't recognised then one of the following must apply. (a) The word has only two letters and you have not met the conditions in answer (6) above. (b) The word does not pass through the most recent letter you played. (c) The word is really missing from the dictionary. Contact us at our support address and we will try to sort this out. (9) Why is (some nonsense word) accepted? The standard AlphaTwist dictionary contains a lot of strange words that are useful in board games such as Scrabble(R). If you look these words up in a suitable dictionary you will see that they really do exist! (10) Why do I get 8 consonants or 6 vowels in a row? This is a quirk of the way AlphaTwist sorts the bag into sets of 7 letters with 4 consonants and 3 vowels in each, The following sequence across two sets would give you a run of 8 consonants: SET 1 SET 2 VVVCCCC CCCCVVV ( c = consonant, v = vowel ) AlphaTwist has an option to sort all the sets as CVCVCVC. This takes out some of the randomness but makes the game easier to play. (11) How can I make the game easier? Use "Learn" instead of "Play" to start the game and you will be taken a screen full of special options. The further you move each option to the right the easier the game will become. Practice high scores are saved in a separate table so they do not get mixed up with standard games. AlphaTwist has an extra game called "FreeTwist" which allows you to place letters in any empty space. FreeTwist supports the full range of practice options and has its own separate high score tables for normal games and practice. (12) Why can't I claim words when I run of space? AlphaTwist assumes that when you run out of moves or grid space the only logical thing is to try to claim a word. The program will make a claim for you automatically and will offer any words that it finds in the dictionary. If it just says "game over" when you run out of moves or space then there really were no valid words to claim! (13) What are best in-house AlphaTwist scores? Miriam's best score in the normal ( non practice ) game of AlphaTwist is 40,000+ and she has many other scores of 10,000 and higher. Graham's best score in comparison is too feeble to mention. (14) Why is my question not in the FAQ? Please send an email to our support address if you have any other questions about this software. If the answer may be helpful to other layers then we will happily add it to the FAQ.