PUZZLE15

Section: Games and Demos (6)
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NAME

puzzle15 - simulate a well known toy with many variations

SYNOPSIS

puzzle15 [<width[x<height>]] [movemethod] [cursormethod] [facemethod]

DESCRIPTION

Puzzle15 simulates a game that is available in many toy shops. This computerized version is crt-oriented and offers fewer possibilities for cheating.
When invoked without arguments puzzle15 presents a 4 by 4 grid with 15 numbered tiles and one empty square. The tiles are not ordered in sequence. The tiles adjacent to the empty square can exchange places with the empty square. This is done by indicating the direction that the empty square is to move with the vi(1) cursor keys (k for up, j for down, h for left and l for right).
The intention of the game is to rearrange the tiles in their ``natural'' sequence.

The program keeps track of the time and the number of moves used. This makes it possible to arrange competitions where time, or the number of moves used determines the winner.

The program ends when the tiles are arranged in sequence, or when you type your interrupt character (usually ctrl-C or break). On computers that lack good support for keyboard interrupts a key can be selected that will terminate the program. (This is a compile-time option.)

VARIATIONS

The look and feel of the program can be altered by specifying different dimensions for the array, the way that the tile to move is selected (movemethod), the keys that specify where the cursor is to go (cursormethod) and the faces that are shown on the tiles (facemethod).

DIMENSIONS

The dimensions of the board can be varied within the limits of your terminal screen. To obtain a square array a single numeric argument is required. Puzzle15 3 presents a 3x3 array with 8 numbered tiles. With numbered tiles it is not possible to extend the array beyond 10 by 10, because only two digits are used to identify each tile.

To obtain a non-square array an argument that consists of a number, the character 'x' and another number must be supplied. Puzzle15 6x3 presents a grid that is 6 columns wide and 3 rows high with 17 numbered tiles.

MOVEMETHODS

The default movemethod is to indicate the direction that the empty (blank) field is to move. This is called moveblank. There are two other methods that can be selected by an argument on the command line.
Movetile tells puzzle15 that you want to indicate the direction that an adjacent tile is to be moved. This is equivalent to reversal of the directions of the cursor keys.
Selecttile tells puzzle15 that you want to indicate the new position of the empty field by moving the cursor to that position and then typing a <space>, or <return> (or whatever you like). In this way you can move several tiles in one blow.

CURSORMETHODS

The default way to move the cursor or the empty field is to use the vi(1) cursor keys.
On some computers it is possible to specify arrowkeys, which tells puzzle15 to use the arrow keys of your terminal to specify a move.
If you specify numberkeys on the command line, puzzle15 will use '8' for up, '2' for down, '4' for left and '6' for right. this corresponds to arrows on the numeric key pad of most personal computers.
Another way to specify where the empty field is to go is obtained by specifying facekeys on the command line. In this mode you move the empty field to a new position by typing the character(s) shown on the tile that currently occupies that position. Facekeys implies use of the movemethod selecttile. If the facekeys cursormethod is used with numbered tiles, some tile numbers are shown with leading zero. To select such a tile a leading zero is required. Tiles that are labeled with a single digit can be selected with that digit, or with a leading zero followed by that digit.
Finally you can specify your own cursor movement keys with keys <up><down><left><right> on the command line. <Up> is the key that you will use to move up, etc.

FACEMETHODS

The default way that puzzle15 uses to identify the tiles is to number them. If you prefer tiles that are marked with letters you must specify alphafaces on the command line. Puzzle15 will now use the lower-case letters a..z to identify the tiles.
Similarly, if you specify numberalphafaces puzzle15 will use the digits 0..9 followed by the lower-case letters a..z to identify the tiles.
Alphanumberfaces selects the lower-case letters a..z followed by the digits 0..9.
Finally, you can specify the characters to use on the command line with faces <facecharacters>. The order in <facecharacters> will be used to determine when the tiles are ordered.

EXAMPLES

puzzle15 faces '1234567890qwertyuiopasdfghjkl;zxcvbnm,.' 10x4
creates a 10 by 4 array filled with the symbols of a typewriter keyboard. The position to achieve is the ordering of the keys on the typewriter. Quoting is necessary to prevent the shell from treating the ``;'' as a special character. By adding the option facekeys the program turns into a tough typing tutor, especially if you decide not to take your eyes off the screen.

DIAGNOSTICS

An unknown keyword or an illegal combination of keywords on the command line generates a complete list of possible keywords and restrictions on their combinations.
If you type an undefined key during the game, the program lists the keys that are valid.
On startup fatal diagnostics from the curses screen handling package are possible if your terminal is ill-defined.
If the program detects an internal error a diagnostic starting with the letters aargh: is printed. If you manage to get one of these, I like to know how you did it.

AUTHOR

P. Knoppers - knop@duteca.UUCP.
Paul Lew added arrow keys.
Bo Kullmar added the clock and the move counter.
Larry Hastings suggested the selecttile method.

COPYRIGHT

The puzzle15 program is protected by copyright (C) 1984, 1988, 1989 by P. Knoppers. Distribution of unmodified copies of the program with source is unrestricted. You are not allowed to distribute modified copies. This is to prevent uncontrolled spreading of a zillion different versions. You can mail suggestions for improvements to me. I may incorporate them in a future version.

This document was created by man2html, using the manual pages.
Time: 21:48:46 GMT, February 02, 2023