the file you are about to read is intended to be the primary source of information about Factor Software, its products and the people who made them; its purpose is to answer to the most common questions raised by the users (FAQ stays for "Frequently Asked Questions"). If you have any questions about Factor Software and its products, please check if it's not already answered in this FAQ before contacting me. Thank you.
A - Factor Software is in fact a single person, i.e., me, Federico Filipponi. I am a 33 years old Mac programmer living in Rome, Italy. The name Factor Software doesn't refer to any existing company: I just use it as a nickname since 1986.
I entered the Macintosh Shareware market in 1994, when the first version of MyEyes (see next question) was released to the public. Previously, I was making silly games using Basic on my first home computer, a MSX 1 (does someone out there know what I'm talking about?). Then, the name Factor Software appeared on a DEC MicroVAX II, where I programmed scientific procedures using Fortran (that was my real job!). In the early '90s I started programming on a Macintosh (a Mac SE) using Turbo Pascal first and subsequently THINK Pascal. In 1995 I switched to CodeWarrior (you know, real men use CodeWarrior ;-).
Q - What products are currently available from Factor Software?
A - My online software catalog, complete with download links, can be found on my home page at the following URL:
<http://www.kagi.com/fedefil/>
A brief description of my current software products follows; please refer to my online catalog for up-to-date information.
MyEyes - A small extension that draws on the menubar a pair of eyes constantly following the cursor movement.
Yes, I've already seen the Eyeballs INIT (I loved it!) and I must admit that it's a very old idea, but when I started working on color machines those poor, black & white peepers seemed to me a little dull. So, guess what! I added color and lived happy. Using a setup application, you can change a number of parameters affecting the appearance and the behaviour of the eyes. You can change the color of both the iris and the eyelids, the frequency of the blinking and the amount of mouse inactivity time after which the eyes must go to sleep. You can choose the eyes movement mode between normal (i.e. not focusing) or independent (chameleon-like). Finally, you can change the eyes positioning mode. You can have the eyes displayed after the last menu item in the menubar (like the old Eyeballs did), in a fixed position or on the right side of the menubar (normally, on the left of the help menu in System 7).
Current version: 2.2.2
System requirements: 68020/030/040 or PowerPC, Mac OS 7.0 or later, Color QuickDraw
Shareware fee: US$10 (single user license)
MacPipes - Classic arcade puzzle in which you have to build a pipeline of required length connecting pipe parts within a time limit.
The first public release of this game was numbered 2.0. It sounds a bit strange, doesn't it? Well, in fact this game has a long story behind its back. Despite its appeal and gameplay, it is NOT a clone of Pipe Dream from LucasArts Games; it is in fact a rendition of a small Amiga game I saw in the late 80s, called Pipeline. It was so addictive that I decided to port it to my Mac (it was a Macintosh SE, one of those small machines with a black & white built-in screen, do you remember?). I started programming it in Turbo Pascal in 1988 (I still have that proto-version floating around somewhere on my hard disk). Then the 90s arrived bringing color to the Macs. In early 1994 I produced a color version of MacPipes but never released it to the public. Until today (oh, by the way, the silly name it's because all Macintosh programs in the 80s were called MacThis, MacThat, MacSomething).
Current version: 2.2.3
System requirements: 68020/030/040 or PowerPC, 1.2 MBytes free memory, Mac OS 7.0.1 or later, any monitor supporting 256 colors, Sound Manager 3.0 or later
Shareware fee: US$5 (single user license)
BOOM - An arcade game in the grand tradition, bringing the playability and feel of the glorious 8-bit consoles on the Macintosh.
It can be described as “Bomberman meets Doom”. Actually, I took the basic Bomberman idea and dropped it in a “Super-Deformed Doom” scenario (whatever this means). If you don't know what Bomberman™ and Doom™ are, definitely you've never played a computer game. This is the right time to start.
BOOM's main features are:
• Smooth sprite based animations in 256 colors
• 8 different soundtracks and multi-channel sound effects
• Simultaneous two players action
• 80 different levels
• 10 different enemy characters varying in intelligence and weaponry
• Mid-game monsters and a final Super Boss
Current version: 1.0.1
System requirements: 68030/040 or PowerPC, 4.5 MBytes free memory, Mac OS 7.0.1 or later, 640x480 or larger monitor supporting 256 colors, Sound Manager 3.0 or later
Shareware fee: US$15 (single user license)
Reanimator - A utility for automatically restarting all applications and background-only processes killed by another process, typically an installer or a game.
Current version: 1.0.1
System requirements: 68020/030/040 or PowerPC, 64 KBytes free memory, Mac OS 7.0 or later
Q - I don't have Internet access. Can you send me a disk with your Shareware programs?
A - No. The only mean of distribution of my programs is the Internet (or, when I give permission, magazines with disks attached or CD-ROM collections). I prefer spending my spare time programming rather than packaging and mailing disks. This has by now become an iron rule, so please don't ask me to break it! You will be disappointed, even if you send extra money for postage coverage or blank disks. You've been warned!
A - Because Shareware it's the best way of distributing home made software. Using today network facilities it's easy for a software author to make its work virtually accessible to every computer user in the world. And that's a big advantage over traditional street distribution. On the other hand, users can download the software and try it before actually buying it. Moreover, Shareware authors can keep their prices very low by eliminating all the industrial processes like marketing, packaging and promoting.
A - Registrations for all my Shareware programs are handled by Kagi (<http://www.kagi.com/>). This means that you can pay your fee with credit card (VISA, MasterCard and American Express), NetCash, First Virtual, US checks, foreign checks in US dollars, and cash in a variety of currencies.
Each Factor program comes with a “Register X” application (where X stays for the actual program name) that you use for generating a registration form to be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to Kagi.
Please read the instructions in the “How to Register” file before using the Register program.
Send the form together with your payment to:
Kagi
1442-A Walnut Street #392
Berkeley, California, 94709-1405
USA
For credit card payments, send the form via e-mail to <shareware@kagi.com> or by FAX to +1 510 652 6589. Checks should be made out to “Kagi Shareware”.
You can still send your payments directly to me, but I can only accept CASH (US dollars or italian Lira). Anything else must be sent to Kagi.
To pay for a Factor program with cash, print out the registration form using the Register program, put it in an envelope along with the money and send the whole thing to:
Federico Filipponi
c/o Fondazione Ugo Bordoni
via B. Castiglione, 59
00142 Rome
ITALY
After receiving your fee (or a notification from Kagi) I will send to you (preferably via e-mail) a unique registration code for you to enter in the “Enter Code...” dialog.
In general, when you register through Kagi, you'll have to wait for your registration code to come directly from ME (and not from Kagi). Normally, as soon as I receive payment notices from Kagi, I send the codes to the personal e-mail addresses provided by the users.
If you're not equipped with an e-mail address, you'll have to wait a bit more (usually a few weeks). A US$1 bonus for postal coverage is greatly appreciated.
Please note that Kagi is already asking an extra US$1 for postcard receipt. That's only an acknowledgment and does not contain your registration code.
Note: when sending money in an envelope make sure it is not visible from outside: wrap the bill with an opaque paper leaf (here in Italy we are used to say: trusting others is good, not trusting is better!).
Q - I sent my registration several weeks ago and never received a reply. What's the matter?
A - Sometimes (well, often) I receive registrations from users with faulty or bouncy e-mail addresses. In such cases my policy is to wait for the “angry customer” to call in for complaining. There were also cases in which a letter containing a registration code failed to reach the user for some reason. Should this happen, there's nothing I can do about it. So, if you already sent money for one of my programs and never received a reply, please contact me as soon as you can for your registration code. Your registration has not been lost.
Q - I received my registration code for one of your programs but it doesn't work. Can you help?
A - When personalizing your copy of the program, both the code and the user name must be typed EXACTLY as reported in my e-mail or letter. If you fail to do that, the registration process will not be completed successfully. If your code is rejected, first check for typing errors. If the problem persists, it is possible that I gave you a wrong code. In this case only, contact me for a new code.
A - For any request, suggestion, bug report, etc. you can e-mail me at:
Internet: <fedefil@fub.it> or <fedefil@kagi.com>
I usually don't read messages included in registration forms. If you have something to tell me please contact me separately using one of my e-mail addresses. I reply only to e-mail messages so don't waste your time and money with snail mail or faxes.
Obviously, if you need a registration code you can use snail mail as well. My postal address is:
Federico Filipponi
c/o Fondazione Ugo Bordoni
via B. Castiglione, 59
00142 Rome
ITALY
Don't forget to visit my home page at the following URL:
