W A X M A N version 1.1 pocket chess for the PC Copyright 1990-91 Ivan Bacigal Box 802411 Chicago, IL 60680 RUNNING THE PROGRAM. To start WAXMAN, type its name at the DOS prompt; optional parameters following the name can be used to control its runtime configuration: C>_ WAXMAN [/R] [/T] [key] ÄÄÂÄ ÄÄÂÄ ÄÄÂÄÄ ³ ³ ÀÄ TSR hotkey (see TSR MODE) ³ ÀÄ force text mode (see DISPLAY MODE) ÀÄ reverse display colors (see DISPLAY MODE) (Note: the /T and /R switches only apply to the graphics TSR version of WAXMAN. The standard version only runs in text mode.) Once running, WAXMAN is controlled by these function keys: F1 online help F2 new game, clear board - see NEW GAME, POSITION SETUP F3 your move - see PLAY F4 take back - see PLAY F5 analysis on, off - see ANALYSIS F9 set clock - see PLAY LEVEL F10 alter board - see POSITION SETUP, PLAY To quit, press Esc. at any point and answer `Y' to the `Quit?' prompt. Quitting is possible only as long as WAXMAN is running in non-TSR mode (see TSR MODE); afterwards, you can get rid of it completely only by rebooting your system. TSR MODE. WAXMAN is a TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) program. That is, it can remain present in your computer's memory while you run other programs. You can bring it to the screen at any time by typing a combination of keys (the `hot key' sequence); you can then use it and put it away again, while your other work remains intact. WAXMAN gives you the choice of running it in non-TSR mode. It will not become a TSR until you type its hotkey for the first time. When you override the hotkey from the command line, WAXMAN goes into TSR mode immediately. This also enables you to invoke it from a batch file. The default hotkey sequence is Alt+Shift+W, pressed in that order and released all at once. If this combination is already used by some other TSR, you can override the default by specifying another letter or a whole string (up to 8 alpha keys) on the command line. For example, `WAXMAN X' makes Alt+Shift+X the new hotkey sequence; `WAXMAN CHESS' sets the key to Alt+Shift+C,Alt+Shift+H,Alt+Shift+E, Alt+Shift+S,Alt+Shift+S. As a convenient shortcut, the function of the Esc. key changes from `Quit' to `Hide' once WAXMAN is in the TSR mode so that a single keystroke is all you need to put it away and return to your work. As with other TSR programs, the usual caveats apply. The inter- action of a TSR with the system is intricate and the presence of other programs, or even other TSRs, complicates matters a great deal. It cannot be guaranteed that a TSR will work under every possible set of circumstances. Make sure WAXMAN works in your particular setting before you do any serious work while WAXMAN is active as a TSR. DISPLAY MODE. (Note: this section applies only to the graphics TSR version of WAXMAN. The standard version only runs in text mode.) By default, WAXMAN selects a display mode suited to the system hardware. If a high-resolution screen is present, it will be used to display the board; otherwise, the board will be displayed using text-mode character graphics. You can override the default selection of high-resolution display with the /T command-line switch, which forces text mode regardless of the display present. Running in text mode saves 4K of memory on systems with a CGA and 9K on systems with a VGA. On laptops with LCD displays, use the /R switch to reverse the display colors in the graphics mode. NEW GAME. When you start WAXMAN, it is ready for a new game. When a game is in progress, you can start a new game by pressing F2 and answering `Y' to the `New game?' prompt. PLAY. At the start of a new game, WAXMAN is in its `referee mode'. This means that it only keeps track of whose move it is, makes sure all entered moves are legal, announces check, checkmate or stalemate, but otherwise stays out of the way. This can be useful if you want to practice a particular opening line or to play over an entire game from a newspaper or chess magazine. WAXMAN remains passive until invited to play. To do that, press the F3 key (`Your move!'). WAXMAN will take the side whose move it is when F3 is pressed. For example, if you want to play White against WAXMAN as Black, make the first move and then press F3; if you want to play Black, press F3 immediately at the start of the game. To switch sides, simply press F3 again after WAXMAN made its move. To enter a move, point the cursor at the piece you want to move and press ENTER. Move the cursor to the destination square using the arrow keys and press ENTER again. For convenience, the center cursor key (5 on the numeric keypad) also acts as ENTER. If you change your mind halfway through entering the move, go back to the selected piece and press ENTER again to cancel the move. To castle, just enter the king move; the rook will be moved automatically. To capture en passant, enter the pawn move and the `victim' will disappear. When a pawn reaches the eighth rank, a queen will be displayed on the queening square. If you want the queen, press ENTER; if not, keep pressing F10 (`Alter board') until the right piece appears and then press ENTER. To take back a move, press F4. You can take back up to 20 moves. Note that F4 puts WAXMAN back in its referee mode to allow you to undo and re-enter multiple moves. To resume playing, use F3 again. PLAYING LEVEL. The level, or strength, of WAXMAN's play is controlled by the time limit - the amount of time in which it must complete a certain number of moves. The more time, the stronger its play. The possible settings are anywhere between one minute for all moves (fastest, weakest play) and ten hours for ten moves (slowest, strongest). One more setting, allotting ten hours for every single move, is available for solving chess problems. The default is ten minutes per game - fairly strong play on a fast machine. To set the limit, follow this procedure: 1. Press F9 to get the clock in the SET mode. The display will show the current limit: ALL moves in 0:10:00. 2. Press the UP and DOWN arrow keys to change the setting. UP always increases the time per move, either by adding time or by reducing the number of moves when time reaches the upper limit. DOWN acts in the opposite way, reducing time until it can go no lower, then raising the number of moves to make in that time. The following examples show how it works. To set the limit to one hour per game, press UP repeatedly until you see .................... ALL moves in 1:00:00. To set the limit to forty moves in two hours, do this: keep pressing UP until you see ... ALL moves in 9:59:59. press UP again ................... 100 moves in 9:59:59 press UP again .................... 90 moves in 9:59:59 keep pressing UP until ............ 40 moves in 9:59:59 press DOWN ........................ 40 moves in 9:45:00 press DOWN again .................. 40 moves in 9:30:00 keep pressing DOWN until .......... 40 moves in 2:00:00. 3. Press ENTER when done. The new time limit will take effect. Keep in mind that WAXMAN is not idle even when it is waiting for your move, and if you think long and hard, so does it. POSITION SETUP. To set up a position (for chess problems), start by pressing F2. (This key serves the dual purpose of clearing the board and setting up the pieces for a new game.) If there was a game in progress, answer `Y' to the `New game?' prompt. When in the initial position, press F2 again and the board will clear. The next step is setting up the pieces. To put a certain piece on a certain square, move the cursor to that square and press F10 repeatedly until the desired piece appears on the square. (F10 cycles through all the available pieces starting with the one most recently placed.) When the right piece appears, DO NOT PRESS ENTER. Simply move the cursor off the square and continue with the setup. (ENTER would be (mis-)taken for an indication that the setup is finished and that you are trying to enter a move.) Note that WAXMAN will not allow more than 16 pieces or more than one king per side. (Positions with no kings, or no pieces at all, will be allowed, though, for all they are worth.) If a King and a Rook are placed on their original squares, castling is assumed to be still possible (if otherwise legal). Once all the pieces are in place, start playing, or have WAXMAN make a move. A final note: it is ALWAYS WHITE'S MOVE from the initial position. If this is not what you want (a Black-to-move problem), set up the position with one White piece on the wrong square and then make the first move, moving the piece to its proper square. SOLVING MATE PUZZLES AND OTHER CHESS PROBLEMS. For solving chess problems, set up the problem position and set the time limit as high as it will go (problem mode). Then, have WAXMAN play the side whose move it is. It will think until it finds the solution. Sometimes a more-distant checkmate will be found first if it would result from a sequence of checks and forced replies, but WAXMAN will continue searching until the fastest possible checkmate is found. Set ANALYSIS ON to watch the progress of the search. ANALYSIS. The analysis is a display of what WAXMAN considers the most likely continuation of the game from the current position. The display shows a sequence of moves in algebraic notation and an assessment of the outcome. The F5 key toggles the analysis mode between ON and OFF. 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