David's BackGammon has taken several years to develop and many more hours than I would like to admit. I have taken extra time to make it into a quality, full featured program that is very easy to use. I think you will find that it is one of the best (if not the best) backgammon programs available for personal computers.
Some people feel that software made available on the internet is inferior to software purchased at your local computer store. This might be the case sometimes but not always. I have purchased many programs in local software stores only to be very disappointed. As you know, you can't return the software. You are just out of luck. They make money even if you don't like the software. With demo software you only pay for what you like! Actually I have to make the game better that way. I don't get any money unless you like it a lot.
You also get support thru e-mail. I return most e-mails within a day. If there is something wrong with your copy of the game I will fix it and get you a new fixed version of the game for free.
This is a demo version. You are able to finish about half of the games. This should allow you to get the feel of the game to see if you like it before you send your money.
For the latest version visit my web page at:
http://members.aol.com/wingammon/backgammon
How to Order
Use the REGISTRATION menu from within the game for information on registering the game and to print a registration letter.
You can order on-line using a credit card by going to my web page mentioned above.
If for some reason you can't print the registration letter please include the following information with your order.:
Your name
Your address (optional if you provide an e-mail address and want the game or password e-mailed)
E-mail address (please include this even if you want a disk mailed to you. It is very helpful if I have a question)
Your computer's operating system - The version of windows you are using or that you have a Macintosh.
The version of David's Backgammon that you have - you can find it by selecting "About David's BackGammon" under the Help menu or by selecting "3 Letter ID & Verision" in the Registration menu.
3 letter ID - (This is only necessary if you select the option to have the password sent for your copy of the game. You can find it under the Registration menu.)
Where you obtained the game from (optional but nice for me to know)
Comments - your comments, bad or good, are greatly appreciated.
Send it to:
David Byrum
10767 SE Mather Rd
Clackamas, OR 97015
USA
The price for the game is:
$20 for the password to make the copy that you have now fully functional,
$25 for the latest registered version e-mailed to you,
$25 + $3 S&H to have the latest mailed to you on a disk. International orders please add $2.
You can also find it on many web sites including www.gamecenter.com, www.Hotfiles.com and www.zdnet.com/mac/download.html
I can be contacted at MacGammon@aol.com. Let me know what you think. My intention is to continually improve the game. Your input will help me in this process.
Macintosh Version
Speech is an integral part of the game. It makes it much more fun to play.
It is strongly recommended that you install either the original Macintalk (Not for the Power Mac) or the new Speech Manager software. Both the original Macintalk and the Speech Manager are supported. Even though the Speech Manager will not work on slower computers the original Macintalk will work. The Speech Manager works fine on my Quadra 630. The Speech Manager and the various voices can be found on the System 7.5 or later and System 7.5 Update CD-ROMs or from Quality Computers ( 1-800-777-3642). The Speech Manager is part of the PlainTalk software.
The use of Speed Doubler with a PPC Macintosh improves the quality of game play. I highly recommend Speed Double. It speeds up your PPC Mac consideraly for amost all things you do on a Mac. I have no affiliation with the makers of Speed Double. I just like the product and the improvement in the speed of the macintosh. The older/slower the Mac the more it will help.
Low memory or crashes
If the game crashes, most likely it is because there is not enough memory allocated to the game. You can either increase the amount allocated to the game or decrease the amount required by the game.
The reason your computer might need more memory is because you have millions of colors selected or you have your screen set to a high resolution or both.
The best way, if you have enough memory, is to increase the amount of memory allocated to the game. You can do that by using Get Info in the File menu of the Finder. First select David's BackGammon by clicking on it's icon just once. Then select Get Info from the File menu. At the bottom right you should find Memory Requirements. The last number should be Preferred Size. This is the number you want to increase. Try increasing it in increments of 100 or 200. If you have your computer set to millions of colors and a high screen resolution you might need to go up quite a bit.
With a desktop size of 1024 x 768, millions of colors selected and the largest board size selected, you will need to set the Preferred Size to about 3500.
The other way is to change the number of colors or screen resolution. You can change these by selecting Monitors & Sound in the Control Panels. The Control Panels can be found in the Apple menu.
Once you get the program working, you can reduce the memory requirements by decreasing the Board Size in the board menu.
The game should work on all machines with a 68030 or faster processor including the Power Macs. If it does not please contact me. I will get you working! It might be a little slow on some 68030 processors though. It works best on the 68040 processor or faster machines.
If the game still crashes on your machine try starting your Mac with Extensions Off. You can do this by holding down the Shift key while restarting your computer.
If you use a small board size or 256 colors, you can reduce the amount of memory that the game uses by reducing the Preferred Size. You can try reducing it until the game crashes, then increase to the next size that didn't crash. This will leave more memory for other programs.
Window's Version
The same game is also available for Windows 3.1 and later including Windows 95. I also have a 32 bit version for Windows NT.
Conversation with any interested distributors would be welcome.
This software is distributed as a Demo version. You are granted a free license to use it as long as you wish as long as the following restrictions have been met:
1 - When distributing this software, it must be in its original unmodified form.
2 - Prior written consent from David Byrum must be obtained before a fee or charge is made for David's Backgammon other than a nominal fee to cover copying and/or distribution costs.
DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY
THIS SOFTWARE IS SOLD "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES WHETHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED. BECAUSE OF THE VARIOUS HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE ENVIRONMENTS INTO WHICH THIS PROGRAM MAY BE PUT, NO WARRANTY OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE IS OFFERED
