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User's Guide For BALLOON SPELLER ISD/ITD110 Version 3.01 KIDware 1380 156th NE, Suite H2 Bellevue, WA 98007 (206) 721-2556 (c) KIDware, 1992 All Rights Reserved User's Guide for BALLOON SPELLER INTRODUCTION BALLOON SPELLER is a program for home or school. You can play three different spelling games using lists of words you input or any of the 70 built-in lists. In "Word Flash," a word appears from behind a giant hot air balloon and then disappears. You spell the word from memory. In "Word Jumble," the letters of the word to be spelled are scattered around. You move a balloon around picking up the letters to spell the word. And, in "Word Guess," you guess the letters in the word to be spelled (a Hangman type game). COMPUTER REQUIREMENTS AND INSTALLATION PROCEDURE To use BALLOON SPELLER, you need an IBM compatible computer with at least 256K of memory, a floppy disk drive, DOS 2.0 (or higher), and graphics capability (Hercules monochrome, CGA color, EGA color, or higher). A mouse is optional. If you use floppy disk drives, the disk is ready to use as is. But before using the program, we suggest you do two things: make a backup copy of the disk and then set up the disk to your particular system. If you use a hard disk drive, install the disk on your hard drive and then do the suggested setup. Depending on the number and types of disk drives you have, follow the given instructions. Page 1 - (c) KIDware, 1992 Single Floppy Drive System: 1. Place DOS disk in drive A and start system. Have formatted blank disk ready for use. 2. Replace DOS disk with BALLOON SPELLER disk and type: COPY A:*.* B: This will allow you to copy the files from the BALLOON SPELLER disk (referred to by DOS as disk A) to your blank disk (referred to by DOS as disk B). Follow instructions given by computer. 3. The backup procedure is now complete. Put the original copy of the BALLOON SPELLER disk in a safe place; you will always use your copy. Now, place that copy in drive A and proceed to setup instructions. Dual Floppy Drive System: 1. Place DOS disk in drive A and blank formatted disk in drive B; start system. 2. Replace DOS disk with BALLOON SPELLER disk and type: COPY A:*.* B: This will allow you to copy the files from the BALLOON SPELLER disk to your blank disk. 3. The backup procedure is now complete. Put the original copy of the BALLOON SPELLER disk in a safe place; you will always use your copy. Now, place that copy in drive A (or B) and proceed to setup instructions. Hard Disk System: 1. Start system. 2. You first need to create a directory for the programs. At C: prompt, type MD C:\BS This creates a directory name BS on your hard disk (you may use another name if you want). Now, move to that directory by typing CD C:\BS 3. Place the BALLOON SPELLER disk in drive A. Type: COPY A:*.* C: This will allow you to copy the files from the BALLOON SPELLER disk to your hard disk. 4. Installation is now complete. Put the original copy of the BALLOON SPELLER disk in a safe place. Proceed to setup instructions. Page 2 - (c) KIDware, 1992 SETUP INSTRUCTIONS To set up the disk for your system, place your copy of the program disk in a drive (or go to directory C:\BS on a hard disk) and type: SETUP You will be asked several questions; answer accordingly. The setup routine will write two files to your disk, so if using a floppy disk, make sure it is not write-protected. The first question asks what type of graphics system you have: Hercules monochrome (HGC), CGA (Color Graphics Adapter) or EGA (Enhanced Graphics Adapter). Choose the proper response (either use the cursor key to move the highlighting and press <Enter> when the desired response is highlighted or press H for Hercules, C for CGA, E for EGA). Initially, the computer will highlight the graphics system it believes you are using. If you have VGA graphics, choose EGA as your response. If you use Hercules monochrome graphics, all text screens will appear half width, graphics screens may be slightly compressed, and of course no color will appear. This is normal. If any screen is scrambled, you have to adjust your monitor's vertical and/or horizontal hold controls. Unfortunately, the Hercules graphics driver may not work with all computer/monitor systems. The second question asks if you have a mouse installed. If you have a mouse, answer 'Yes'; if not, answer 'No'. If you use a mouse, a utility will be loaded that allows your mouse to perform the cursor key movements and two other keystrokes described in the program running instructions. For your reference, the mouse will perform the following: Move Mouse Up - Cursor Up Move Mouse Down - Cursor Down Move Mouse Left - Cursor Left Move Mouse Right - Cursor Right Press Left Mouse Key - <Enter> Press Right Mouse Key - <Esc> So, whenever the running instructions call for cursor key movements, or use of the <Enter> or <Esc> keys, you may use your mouse instead. Also, in order to use the mouse, a mouse software driver must be loaded prior to using the BALLOON SPELLER disk. This driver is usually called MOUSE.COM and is almost always loaded when your computer boots up, hence you probably don't have to make any changes. If, however, no driver is loaded when your machine boots up, you have to load it yourself. Refer to your mouse's manual for instructions. The next setup question asks if you want sound. In most cases, you should answer 'Yes' since BALLOON SPELLER uses music and sounds to indicate correct/incorrect responses. If however, Page 3 - (c) KIDware, 1992 for instance in a classroom situation, you find the sound disturbing, then answer 'No'. If you turn the sound off, there will be slight delays in the programs where sounds would usually be heard. You may also hear some low-volume clicking sounds. You can save word lists on disk. The fourth question asks which disk drive you will use to store your spelling lists. Make your choice (the letters A and B usually designate floppy drives, C and D designate hard drives, and E and F designate RAM drives). The drive you choose will be made the default drive (the drive the program will look at for stored files). If desired, you can still change this drive in the program. Also, word lists can be written to your printer. Printers can be connected to one of three ports on the computer (usually LPT1). The fifth question asks where your printer is connected. All printing will go to the designated port. The last question involves highlight color. In all menu selections, there will be one key highlighted in some color. One way to select the corresponding menu item is to press that highlighted key. Because different graphics system have different contrast and color characteristics, the default highlight color (bright yellow) may not be acceptable. Use the up/down cursor keys to change the highlight color until it is acceptable to you, then press <Enter>. Page 4 - (c) KIDware, 1992 PROGRAM RUNNING INSTRUCTIONS Once the program is installed and set up, you can run it. Please note if you ever change your system setup (different graphics system or add/delete mouse), you should rerun the setup program. Running the program is simple. If you are using floppy drives, place your copy of the program disk in a drive. If using a hard disk, move to the proper directory by typing: CD C:\MS At the DOS prompt, type GO and press <Enter>. After loading some needed files, a title screen will appear. Press any key to clear the screen and a menu screen will appear. When the menu appears, you have four options: (1) Program Description, (2) Word List Editor, (3) Balloon Speller Games, or (4) Exit Program. To make your menu selection here (and in all menus), you may use the cursor keys (or a mouse, if installed) or a letter key. To make the selection using the cursor keys, use the up/down keys until the desired selection is highlighted, then press <Enter>. To use the letter keys, press the highlighted key in the desired menu selection. Make your choice. Choose "Program Description" for a brief explanation of the BALLOON SPELLER program, or choose "Exit Program" to stop. If you choose one of the other two options, continue as instructed below. One last comment: the <Esc> key plays an important role in running the program. At any time, if you want to leave a particular menu screen, or any screen, pressing the <Esc> key will usually accomplish this. Always try <Esc> if you seem to be stuck somewhere. Page 5 - (c) KIDware, 1992 WORD LIST EDITOR In the Word List Editor, you have seven options: (1) Enter New Word List: choose this option to input a new list. The use of the list editor is quite straightforward. Type in the words. You can use lower or upper case letters. The left-right cursor keys and <Space> bar move the cursor within a word. <Del> and <Backspace> can be used to delete letters. The up-down cursor keys and <Enter> key move you from word to word. (2) Edit Current Word List: choose this option to change the list currently being used by the program. You can add new words or delete old ones. To delete a word simply blank it out using the space bar, delete key or backspace key. The program will close up any gaps left in the list. To add a word, type it in a blank space or type over an unwanted word. (3) Use Built-In List: choose this option to use one of the 70 built-in spelling lists. There are ten lists for each grade level from K to 6. The program will first ask what disk drive the lists are on (the default drive selected during setup is suggested). Next, it ask which grade level (K,1,2,3,4,5,6) and then which particular list (1-10). Finally, you are asked if you want the words to be in lower case or upper case letters. The built-in spelling lists cannot be changed. You may, however, read in a built- in list, modify it and then save it to your own disk for future use. (4) Read Word List From Disk: choose this option to read in a list you have previously saved using the list editor. You are asked which disk drive to look on. The files you have stored on the selected drive (60 files maximum) will be listed. Use the cursor keys to point to the file you wish to read in, then press <Enter>. Once read in, you may edit/save/print the list. (5) Save Word List On Disk: choose this option to save your current word list. The program asks which drive to use and asks for a file name. The name must start with a letter and can be no more than 8 characters long. (6) Print Word List On Printer: choose this option to print out your list. The list will be printed on the Page 6 - (c) KIDware, 1992 printer port selected in the BALLOON SPELLER setup procedure. (7) Return to Main Menu: choose this option to go back to the BALLOON SPELLER main menu. Page 7 - (c) KIDware, 1992 BALLOON SPELLER GAMES Once you have entered or selected a word list, you can play one of three games In each game, every word on the spelling list will be used (unless you stop the game before completing the list). The <Esc> key is used to stop any game. There are several ways to enter the spelling of the word. Each method is explained with the corresponding games. The three games that can be played are: 1. Word Flash: In this game, you first make the word appear from behind a large balloon by pressing the <Space> bar. You then must spell the word by selecting the letters in order. You can press the letters on the keyboard to spell the word or use the cursor keys (or mouse) to move the displayed marker until it surrounds the desired letter, then press <Enter>. You are given three tries to spell each word. You can flash the word again, but this counts as a try. The fewer tries you need to spell a word, the more points you score. 2. Word Jumble: Here, the letters to spell the word are scattered about. You must spell the word by picking up the letters in proper order. Use the cursor keys to steer your balloon. You are allowed three errors before the spelling is given to you. 3. Word Guess: The final game is like Hangman. You guess at letters in the word. If your guess is correct, the letters are shown in their proper position. If your guess is incorrect, you continue. You have five guesses each represented by a balloon. With each incorrect guess, a balloon deflates. After five misses, the proper spelling is given to you. Once you have finished playing a game (either by trying all words in the list or stopping the game), your score will be given to you and a list of the words you had trouble with will be provided. At this point, you will be returned to the Balloon Speller Games menu, where you can choose another game or choose to return to the BALLOON SPELLER main menu Page 8 - (c) KIDware, 1992 HIDDEN MENU OPTION Realizing this program will usually be used by unattended children, we have added an option that should prevent any accidental or intentional stopping of the program or changing of the spelling lists; it is the Hidden Menu option. The Hidden Menu option works with the Balloon Speller Games Menu only. What the option does is turns off the ability to return to the BALLOON SPELLER main menu. The option is turned off or on by pressing <Ctrl>-H while in the Balloon Speller Games Menu. Notice that when the option is on, only one of the three games can be selected and the message "HM On" appears at the lower right hand corner of the screen. When the option is off, the menu appears as normal. OPTIONAL RUNNING INSTRUCTIONS If you have previously saved a word list on disk (assumed to be the default drive selected in the setup procedure), you can automatically load that list and go directly to the Balloon Speller Games selection menu. To do this type: GO filename and press <Enter>. For example, if you have saved a list named LIST12, you would type: GO LIST12 and press <Enter>. The program will go directly from the title screen to the game selection menu once the desired list is found. If the named list cannot be found, the BALLOON SPELLER program will tell you so and will pause somewhere within the Word List Editor. This new feature will only work on lists you have saved, not built-in lists. Page 9 - (c) KIDware, 1992 GENERAL COMMENTS 1. When reading word lists from disk or writing them to disk, please make sure the disk you want to save the list on is in the proper drive and the drive is ready. The program contains some error trapping routines, but at times erratic behavior occurs when try to read-write from-to a disk drive that is not properly ready. 2. Similarly, when printing word lists, make sure the printer is on-line and ready before starting the printing option. WARRANTY INFORMATION The BALLOON SPELLER program has been written with care, but there still may be bugs and problems. If you find any such problems, please let us know. We cannot guarantee the program is completely error free. We do guarantee it will load and run. If, within one year of purchase, the program fails to load and run, simply return the original disk to us (postpaid) for a quick replacement. This warranty only applies to manufacturing defects. No further guarantees are expressed or implied. Also note that copying the disk (other than one backup copy) or this printed material is strictly prohibited by US and world copyright laws. For further information or help, contact us at: KIDware 1380 156th NE, Suite H2 Bellevue, WA 98007 (206) 721-2556 Page 10 - (c) KIDware, 1992 REGISTRATION FORM ISD/ITD110 - Balloon Speller We want to know who you are. By sending us this registration form, we can inform you of any updates or new products from KIDware. Thanks for your time. This information will only be used by KIDware. Name __________________________________________________________ Address _______________________________________________________ City __________________________________________________________ State _____________________________ Zip ______________________ Date of purchase _______________________________________________________________ Where did you buy this disk? _______________________________________________________________ Comments? Send the form to: KIDware 1380 156th NE, Suite H2 Bellevue, WA 98007 Page 11 - (c) KIDware, 1992