Copyright: ® G.M.McKay


Contents
Rummy From Special K Software

This is the help file for Rummy From Special K Software.   Click on one of the topics below to learn more about each.   Alternately, you can use the above search button to find a topic.

•	   Computer requirements

•	   Distribution

•	   The rules of different RUMMY games

•	   This game of Rummy From Special K

•	   Let's start playing

•	   Installing Rummy From Special K

•	   Run this game

•	   What version is this?

•	   Registration Incentives

•	   Print the Registration Form


 Author

Rummy

This game is a classic!    Please contact me if you need any help, or you have suggestions.

This program is © 2000-2002 G.M.McKay  All rights reserved.


Computer requirements (def.)
      Any 486, pentium or better IBM compatible computer will successfully run this game as long as it can run Windows 95 and has over 8 Mb of memory. It  will  use any sound driver that your Windows has fitted (ie. a sound card or PC speaker driver).   A mouse is required (as with all  Windows activities).  It works best if Windows has a standard screen resolution, such as 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, or 1280x1024.   However, it can accommodate any resolution.   You should have at least 256 colours in your Screen Color Palette.


Distribution

       This copyrighted game is distributed under the SHAREWARE system which depends upon your support for on-going development.   You are encouraged to freely copy and distribute this product unaltered to  friends,  business associates, bulletin boards and user groups.   HOWEVER THIS  PRODUCT IS NOT FREE!   You have an evaluation period of two weeks.  If you decide you do not like the game, simply pass the disk along to someone else.   If you are still using Rummy From Special K after two weeks  of  evaluation, you are obligated to send a minimum payment of $30.   If the future of low-cost quality software is to continue, we all must support this concept.   If you  cheat on this payment may you be constantly finessed.

       When you register, you get lots of goodies, as well as that warm fuzzy feeling that only comes from the knowledge that you are more saintly than the scum around you.   Click here to find out all about the goodies.

If you registered a previous version that gave you life time registrations (like this one does), simply setup this Shareware program on top of the previous one (ie into the same directory).  It will become registered.   DO NOT delete the previous version.


Playing the game

These options are available on the Main Menu Screen.   You can choose to view buttons for these options, or hotspots in the painting of Cezanne's The Card Players.   Click on one to learn more about it.

•	   start game

•	   choose game

•	   preferences

•	   register

•	   quit


Running it (def.)
       See elsewhere in this file for full details on installing this program (if you are reading this, then chances are that you have already installed it correctly).

       Once the program has been installed, running it is as easy as selecting the icon installed in the START button Programs group.   If  this is too easy, you can also start it by double clicking on RUMMY.EXE in the File Explorer (naturally you have to find the correct directory if you choose the hard way).


The game

       You can play cards by using the left mouse button to drag a card to where you want to play it.   For example drag the card to the Discard Pile, or the melding area to play it.   To make life a little easier, you only have to click once on the StockPile or the Upcard on the Discard Pile to pick it up.   You can also discard your own cards with the F1-F12 function keys and pick cards from the Stockpile with the S key and Discardpile with the D key. The options button shows you the following pop-up menu.

You can also see this menu by right mouse clicking anywhere on the card table.

       You can change the card options or your preferences at any time during a game by choosing the main menu item after the option button.   Note that if you change the rules or the game that you are playing, the program may not be able to continue with the current game, but it may have to start a new one.

       It also lets you Replay the cards played in that hand, shows a concise list of the cards in the  Discard Pile, or shows you the Score Card with the last 19 scores in your game to date.   These options are also available at the end of a hand, to let you review it.  When you review the cards played in that hand, you can control the speed at which the cards are displayed.   You also get to see everyone's cards at the end of the hand.

       To stop playing the game and return to Windows, return to the Main Menu, and press quit.


Keyboard keys

       You can play cards by clicking the left mouse button on the Discard Pile card or the Stockpile.   To move cards to the discard pile, or to melds, then drag the card to the required location (left click on the card and move the mouse to the required location - when you reach it, release the mouse button).

       You can also play the cards with the F1-F12 keys.   The S key chooses a card from the Stockpile, while the D key chooses a card from the Discardpile.


Option Button

Pressing the option button exposes a number of menu options.   You can also see these options by clicking with the right mouse button on any part of the screen.

The items in the menu are:

You can also see this menu by right mouse clicking anywhere on the card table.


Main Menu (def.)
Return to the main menu to change an option for playing, changing your setup preferences, or to exit.


Review Cards Played (def.)
Review the tricks played during this hand.   You can select the speed of showing the cards, or stop the review, or show previous cards.   The cards in your hand are not ordered when replaying.    This might be considered cheating.   You might be more comfortable just looking at the last six cards moved - choose the Last 6 Cards option.


Review Last 6 Cards Played (def.)
If you think that it is cheating to choose the option to look at all the cards played in the hand so far, you might be more comfortable looking at the last six only.   The last six card movements are played backwards, than forwards to their current positions.


Review Cards In Discard Pile (def.)
Some card games allow you to legally see the cards within the discard pile, while in other games, you might just want to take a peek when no one is looking.   This menu option shows you the cards.


Suggest A Meld (def.)
This option in the pop-up menu suggests which cards you are able to meld (or add to existing melds) at this time.   It usually presents the most efficient use of your cards.   It is only a suggestion, and you can meld which ever cards you want to at that time.


Review Score card (def.)
Review the Score Card.   This shows the scores in the last 15 hands played.   This will help you to see who won and lost and the points scores.


Do Not Sort Cards (def.)
You can choose to sort your cards in to a particular order, or not sort them at all.   Choose this option through the Preferences Menu or the pop up menu from the Options Button.


Sort Your Cars by Suits (def.)
You can choose to sort or order your cards so that all cards of the same suit are together.   If twos are counted as wild cards, then they are positioned with Jokers after Kings.   Choose this option through the Preferences Menu or the pop up menu from the Options Button.


Do Not Sort Cards (def.)
You can choose to sort or order your cards so that all cards of a particular value are together, eg all 4's are together.   If twos are counted as wild cards, then they are positioned with Jokers after Kings.   Choose this option through the Preferences Menu or the pop up menu from the Options Button.


Save Game (def.)
You can save your current game by clicking on the Save Game Item in the Pop up Menu.   This saves the current cards, and the scores saved on the score card.   It does not save the total wins recorded for each team.   You can select this item from the start of the dealing, right up to the last card being played.   You can use this feature to replay the hand you have just played with different cards played, or even different game rules!   Load this same hand with the Load Game menu item.   It will tell you if the saved game has such different rules to the current one, that it must change them.


Load Game (def.)
You can load the saved game by clicking on the Load Game Item in the Option Menu.   This will start the saved game from the start of the game.   The dealer is saved with the saved game.   It will tell you if the saved game has such different rules to the current one, that it must change them.


Abort Game (def.)
You can stop the current game, and start a new one by clicking on the Abort option on the pop-up menu.   This will be useful if the game reaches a stage where it is impossible to continue.


help (def.)
You can see this comprehensive help file if you choose the help option from the Main Menu, or by choosing it from the popup menu by right clicking the card table.


rules
General Rummy rules

Click on the links below to see the rules of specific games.   General Rummy rules are given below.   Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

•	Rummy

•	Gin Rummy

•	Oklahoma Gin

•	Michigan Rummy

•	Boathouse Rummy

•	Five Hundred Rummy - This is also called Pinochle Rummy

•	Round the Corner Rummy

•	High - Low Rummy

•	One Meld Rummy

•	Wild Card Rummy

•	Kaluki

Rummy (and its variations) is one of the best known games in the world.   This is because once you have mastered the basic rules, it is a simple matter to understand all of its variations.

The origin of the game has been attributed to two sources - a game called Coon-Can, which spread from Mexico to the South Western United States in the early 1900's, and a Spanish card game called Conquian popular in the late 1800's.   These games shared the same objectives as all Rummy games - to meld your cards in to groups of three or more cards of the same rank, or cards in sequence.

There is no bidding in Rummy, as there is in many other card games.   Each player plays against the others, not against a contract that they promised to make.   All suits are equal, with no suit being a Trump suit.   Jokers may be used, but they act as wild cards, substituting for other cards, rather than being superior in their own right.

Players

Rummy is played with between two and six players.   Many popular variations, such as Gin Rummy are most usually played with two players.   Four is the next most common number, and six is included in this software to allow for an even greater mental challenge.

All players typically play for themselves, rather than being in teams.   Teams are usually only played in Five Hundred Rummy.

The Cards

A normal playing card deck of 52 cards is used.   No cards are removed from the deck, but Jokers may also be used as wild cards.   In order to play with more than one opponent, more than one deck of cards can be used.   In this case, all decks are treated equally.   In some games two's can be nominated as wild cards as well as Jokers.

Aces are usually considered as low cards (to make Ace,2,3 melds), but some rules allow them to be melded around the corner to make Queen, King, Ace, 2 melds.

Dealing

The dealer may be the person who won the last game, or it may rotate around the card table in a clockwise direction.   The dealer deals a set number of cards to each player.

The word 'trump' is connected with the word 'triumph' and the trump suit can triumph over the other suits, so that the lowly Two of the trump suit can beat the Ace of another suit.   If a player specifies No Trumps it means that he does not want to have any suit as trumps. No Trumps is valued higher than all the other suits.

Stockpile & Discard Pile

There are two piles that you can pick cards up from.   One is a pile of cards which have not been seen yet - it is called the Stockpile, and is kept face down.   The other is called the Discard Pile - the top card is called the Upcard.   Most games only allow you to pickup the topcard of the Discard pile, however some games allow you to pick up one card from the Discard pile before deciding whether to take another card from the Discard pile or the Stockpile.   Other games like Five Hundred Rummy or Michigan Rummy allow you to pick up cards anywhere within the Discard pile, as long as you can meld the card you pick up, and you accept all the cards on top of that card.

Dealing

The dealer may be the person who won the last game, but more usually it rotates around the card table in a clockwise direction.   The dealer deals a set number of cards to each player.   In standard Rummy, ten cards are dealt to each player if there are two players, seven if there are three or four players, six cards with five or six players.

The Object Of The Game

The object of the game is to form your hand in to  sets.   These sets are called melds.   They are collections of three or more of a rank (in any suit), or three or more in the one suit with consecutive card value (eg Jack, ten, nine all of clubs).   Depending on the game variation, you may use wild cards to substitute for missing cards.   Some games, like standard Rummy allow you to make melds as soon as you have the cards, while others, like Gin Rummy only allow you to make melds at the end of the game.   You may also get rid of your cards by adding them to existing melds - either the ones that you put down, or the ones that the opposition put down.

Many games which make you to only meld at the end, rather than throughout the game, allow you to end the game without melding all your cards.   This is called knocking.   You can only knock when you will be left with 10 or less points in your hand.   Some games play that the first Upcard value determines the maximum points that you can meld at.   After you knock and put down your meld, the opposition players can form their melds as well.

If one player puts down every one of their cards at one time, they go Gin or Rummy.   When this happens, the opposition players cannot put their cards in to melds, even if they could form melds.   This is the penalty for holding on to the cards that they could put down.

The person who knocks first wins points by being paid the point value that the other players have in their hand.   Other variations allow points for the cards that you put down as melds, instead or as well as the oppositions' cards.   Games are continued until a designated number of points are achieved (usually 100 for two players).

Playing

Each player takes a card from either the Stockpile or the Discard Pile.   After making any melds that he may wish, he discards a card to the Discard Pile.

When going out by knocking, or discarding all of one's cards, rule variants allow for having to have a card to discard at the end of the game, or being able to throw out the last card on a meld.

If the Stockpile is used up, the Discard pile may be turned upside down (without shuffling it) and used as the Stockpile.   The person who picks the last Stockpile card has the option of picking the first card of the new Stockpile instead.

Scoring

As mentioned, you can get points from the cards that opposition players have left in their hand after you go out (or sometimes the points from melds made).   Court cards (Jack, Queen, King) are usually worth 10 points.   Aces are usually counted as low, being worth 1 point, although they may be counted as 11 or 15 points - choose the options from the Detailed Rules screen within the Choose a Game screen.   Other cards are counted at their value, eg a 7 of any suit is worth 7 points.

Specific Rules of Games Available in Rummy From Special K

The general rules explained above are modified in the many games derived from the Rummy family.   This makes the Rummy family one of the few groups of games in which players have a wide choice of rules without having to learn new strategies.

The games supported by Rummy from Special K are :

Rummy

Gin Rummy

Oklahoma Gin

Michigan Rummy

Boathouse Rummy

Five Hundred Rummy - This is also called Pinochle Rummy

Round the Corner Rummy

High - Low Rummy

One Meld Rummy

Wild Card Rummy

Kaluki

   Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.


Rules Summary Table

Rules of Rummy Card Games

                   	Rummy     	 Gin      	Oklahoma  	Michigan

                   	          	Rummy     	  Gin     	 Rummy

No. of Players     	  -       	  2       	  2       	  -

No. of Packs       	  1       	  1       	  1       	  1

No. of Cards/player	10, 7 or 6	  10      	  10      	10, 7 or 6

Knock & Meld       	meld any  	10 points 	1st upcard	meld any

                   	time until	to remain 	determines	time until

                   	no cards  	before    	points    	no cards

                   	          	knocking  	to remain

                   	          	& melding 	in hand

Must discard at    	 no       	 yes      	 yes      	 no

end of hand

Wild Cards         	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

Wild Cards points  	  -       	  -       	  -       	  -

Swap card for Wild 	  -       	  -       	  -       	  -

Cards in melds

Wild cards are     	  -       	  -       	  -       	  -

worth the points

that they replace

Ace Melding        	 Low      	 Low      	 Low      	High or Low

Aces worth         	1 point   	1 point   	1 point   	15 points

Pick up which cards	 Only     	 Only     	 Only     	any card

from Discard Pile? 	Upcard    	Upcard    	Upcard

Is the last card   	 yes      	 yes      	 yes      	 yes

dealt to Upcard

If picking up some 	  -       	  -       	  -       	 yes

of the discard pile

you need to meld

the Upcard?

Must meld the      	 no       	 no       	 no       	 yes

picked up card?

Person who         	player    	player    	player    	player

plays first        	left of   	left of   	left of   	left of

                   	dealer    	dealer    	dealer    	dealer

Next Player        	rotates   	winner    	winner    	rotates

to deal            	around    	deals     	deals     	around

                   	the table 	          	          	the table

get points from    	opposition	opposition	opposition	opposition

                   	remaining 	remaining 	remaining 	remaining

                   	cards     	cards -   	cards -   	cards &

                   	          	your      	your      	everyone

                   	          	cards +   	cards +   	gets

                   	          	knock &   	knock &   	their

                   	          	undercut  	undercut  	meld

                   	          	points    	points    	points

Extra points at    	  -       	100 Points	100 Points	  -

end of the game    	          	+ 25 for  	+ 25 for

                   	          	each extra	each extra

                   	          	hand won  	hand won

2x points for Rummy	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

spades double      	 no       	 no       	 yes      	 no

cards 2-9 are      	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

worth 5 points

Score for game     	100       	100       	150       	500

Meld sequences     	both      	both      	both      	both

or series

Rules of Rummy Card Games

                   	Boat      	 500 &    	Round     	High-Low

                   	House     	Pinoche   	 the      	 Rummy

                   	Rummy     	 Rummy    	Corner

No. of Players     	  -       	  -       	  -       	  -

No. of Packs       	  1       	  1       	  1       	  1

No. of Cards/player	10, 7 or 6	10, 7 or 6	10, 7 or 6	10, 7 or 6

Knock & Meld       	0 points  	meld any  	meld any  	meld any

                   	to remain 	time until	time until	time until

                   	before    	no cards  	no cards  	no cards

                   	knocking

                   	& melding

Must discard at    	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

end of hand

Wild Cards         	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

Wild Cards points  	  -       	  -       	  -       	  -

Swap card for Wild 	  -       	  -       	  -       	  -

Cards in melds

Wild cards are     	  -       	 15       	  -       	  -

worth the points

that they replace

Ace Melding        	  Run     	 High     	  Run     	 High

                   	Around    	Or Low    	Around    	Or Low

Aces worth         	11 point  	15 points 	11 points 	11 points

Pick up which cards	Upcard +  	any card  	 Only     	 Only

from Discard Pile? 	another   	          	Upcard    	Upcard

                   	card

Is the last card   	 yes      	 yes      	 yes      	 yes

dealt to Upcard

If picking up some 	  -       	 yes      	  -       	  -

of the discard pile

you need to meld

the Upcard?

Must meld the      	 no       	 yes      	 no       	 no

picked up card?

Person who         	player    	player    	player    	player

plays first        	left of   	left of   	left of   	left of

                   	dealer    	dealer    	dealer    	dealer

Next Player        	rotates   	rotates   	rotates   	rotates

to deal            	around    	around    	around    	around

                   	the table 	the table 	the table 	the table

get points from    	opposition	all players	opposition	opposition

                   	remaining 	get meld  	remaining 	remaining

                   	cards     	points -  	cards     	cards &

                   	          	their

                   	          	remaining

                   	          	points

Extra points at    	  -       	  -       	  -       	  -

end of the game

2x points for Rummy	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

spades double      	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

cards 2-9 are      	 no       	 no       	 no       	 no

worth 5 points

Score for game     	100       	500       	100       	100

Meld sequences     	both      	both      	both      	both

or series

Rules of Rummy Card Games

                   	One Meld  	Wild Card 	Kaluki

                   	 Rummy    	 Rummy

No. of Players     	  -       	  -       	  -

No. of Packs       	  1       	  1       	  2

No. of Cards/player	10, 7 or 6	10, 7 or 6	15, 13 or 11

Knock & Meld       	0 points  	0 points  	meld any

                   	to remain 	to remain 	time until

                   	before    	no before 	no cards,

                   	knocking  	knocking  	first meld

                   	& melding 	& melding 	51 points.

Must discard at    	 no       	 no       	 yes

end of hand

Wild Cards         	 no       	 2's      	Jokers

Wild Cards points  	  -       	 25       	 25

Swap card for Wild 	  -       	 no       	 yes

Cards in melds

Wild cards are     	  -       	 no       	 yes

worth the points

that they replace

Ace Melding        	 Low      	 Low      	High or Low

Aces worth         	1 point   	1 point   	15 points

Pick up which cards	 Only     	 Only     	 Only

from Discard Pile? 	Upcard    	Upcard    	Upcard

Is the last card   	 yes      	 yes      	 yes

dealt to Upcard

If picking up some 	  -       	  -       	  -

of the discard pile

you need to meld

the Upcard?

Must meld the      	 no       	 no       	 yes

picked up card?

Person who         	player    	player    	player

plays first        	left of   	left of   	left of

                   	dealer    	dealer    	dealer

Next Player        	rotates   	rotates   	rotates

to deal            	around    	around    	around

                   	the table 	the table 	the table

get points from    	points    	points    	opposition

                   	from      	from      	remaining

                   	your melds	your melds	cards

                   	collected 	collected

                   	from every	from every

                   	player    	player

Extra points at    	  -       	  -       	  -

end of the game

2x points for Rummy	 no       	 no       	 no

spades double      	 no       	 no       	 no

cards 2-9 are      	 no       	 no       	 no

worth 5 points

Score for game     	100       	100       	100

Meld sequences     	both      	both      	both

or series


Rummy rules

The card game of Rummy is the basis for a myriad of other card games.   However, in its purest form it is also an excellent game.   The key general rules are give in the general rules section.

The game is usually ended when the first player scores 100 points or more.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Gin Rummy rules

Gin Rummy was invented in 1910 by a man called Elwood Baker.   He first presented it at the Knickerbocker Whist Club.   It was originally called poker gin, and is commonly known now by its shortened game of Gin.

This long time popular game is most usually played with two players and one pack of cards.   Wild cards are not included in the pack.

In Gin Rummy melds are only allowed at the end of the game.   Players are free to pick up the Upcard from the Discard pile whenever the card may be useful to them.   They may put down all their cards as melds (this is called going Gin, or they may put down most of their cards, as long as the point value of the cards left in their hand is ten or less.   This is called Knocking.   Press the Knock button when you are ready to Knock.

If a player goes Gin, all play ends and the melder is awarded the points remaining in the other players' hands (regardless of whether they may be melded or not).   If the player knocks, and has cards left in their hand, then other players may meld any cards that they can.  They can construct new melds, or add to existing melds (playing clockwise around the table).

The score bonus for knocking is awarded if the knocker has the lowest score after everyone has melded.    Other wise a bonus score is awarded to the person with the lowest score to pay for the insult of the other knocking (this is called undercutting).   In the event of a tie, the player who did not knock is awarded the points.   Both these scores are adjustable through the Details screen, but are most commonly 25 points.   These bonuses are doubled if a player goes Gin by melding all of their cards.   The person with the lowest remaining card score is also awarded the points value in their opponents hands less the points left in their own hand.

An option is that Aces may be played round the corner, ie as well as 3,2,A sequences, you can make Q,K,A and Q,K,A,2,3 sequences.   Choose the option in the Detailed Rules screen to choose this option.   In this case you may also want to set the Ace to be worth 15 points.

A game is won when an agreed score is reached (usually 100).   At this time the winner (ie the first person to reach 100) is awarded extra points to establish the margin won by.   The winner receives a 100 points bonus for winning, and receives 25 points for each hand he won, in excess of the hands the opposition won (this is easy to justify if there are only two players, but as this software allows more than two players, only the opposition on the winner's left is counted).   So for example, if he won 4 hands and the opposition player (I don't want to call him a loser) won 1 hand, then the winner gains 100 + (4-1) * 25 = 175 points.   If the opposition did not win any games, the winner gets a bonus of doubling the game and bonuses - this is called a shutout.

The winner of each hand deals.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Oklahoma Gin rules

The Oklahoma Gin game should not be confused with the variation of Canasta, also called Oklahoma.

This game demands that all melds are made at the end of the game.   But instead of needing ten points or less to meld (as in Gin Rummy), the first Upcard determines the maximum points needed to meld.   If it is a court card, then you need 10 points or less to meld, otherwise the points needed is determined by the face value of the card.

An interesting feature in this game is that if the first Upcard is a Spade, then all points for the hand are doubled.

A game is won when an agreed score is reached (usually 100).   At this time the winner (ie the first person to reach 100) is awarded extra points to establish the margin won by.   The winner receives a 100 points bonus for winning, and receives 25 points for each hand he won, in excess of the hands the opposition won (this is easy to justify if there are only two players, but as this software allows more than two players, only the opposition on the winner's left is counted).   So for example, if he won 4 hands and the opposition player (I don't want to call him a loser) won 1 hand, then the winner gains 100 + (4-1) * 25 = 175 points.   If the opposition did not win any games, the winner gets a bonus of doubling the game and bonuses - this is called a shutout.

In all other respects Oklahoma Gin is the same as Gin Rummy.   Click Gin1 to see the Gin Rummy rules.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Boathouse Rummy rules

Boathouse Rummy has one key difference for the general Rummy rules.   It is one of the few games which allow you to increase the number of cards in your hand ( Five Hundred Rummy / Pinochle Rummy is another).   You may pick up the Upcard when it is your turn, but if you do, you must pick up another card, either from the Discard Pile or the Stockpile.   The maximum number of cards you can pick up in one turn is two, while the minimum is the standard one, if you pick it up from the Stockpile.   You only discard the one card, so each turn, you have the opportunity to increase the number of cards in your hand by one.

Melding is only allowed at the end of the hand, when all your cards must be melded.   When this happens the opposition do not get a chance to form their melds, and suffer by giving you the points value in their hand.   Obviously, if they have more cards in their hand than they started with, this means more points for you.

Click here to see the general rules for Rummy Games.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Five Hundred Rummy rules

 	Five Hundred Rummy is also known as Pinochle Rummy.   It is one of the most popular games in the Rummy family.   It differs significantly from other Rummy games in that you are not restricted to only picking up the top card in the Discard Pile.   You can pick up cards within the Discard Pile.   However, when you pick up a card, you also have to pick up all the cards above it.   As you only discard one card at the end of the round, you can finish up with more cards than you started with.   This feature is also used in  Michigan Rummy.   The scoring system (described below) is also very different to other Rummy games.

The Discard Pile is spread out so that the players can see the cards within it, as distinct from other games when only the top one is important.   When a card from this pile is picked up, it must be melded.   The cards above it picked up do not have to be melded immediately, but they may be.   Some people play that if the very top card is picked up, it does not have to be melded immediately, so this is included as an optional setting.

•	 You can meld at any time during your play, or add to opposition melds.

•	The Ace can be used as either high or low, but it cannot be used round the corner - ie cannot be used for Queen,King,Ace,2

•	 The Ace is worth 15 points, except when it is played as a low card (eg melding 3,2,Ace).

•	 Court cards are worth 10 points each, with other cards according to their spots.

•	 The game ends when a player has no cards left.   When this happens, the opposition players do not have an opportunity to meld any residual cards.

•	 Scores are awarded to every player, not just the one who gets rid of all her cards first.   Each player gets the score of the cards they played on melds (both their own melds, and the cards laid on opposition melds) less the score of the cards left in their hand.

•	 The score in each meld is recorded throughout each game, so that you can see your meld score.

•	 The game is usually played until one player has 500 points or more (hence the name).   If two players have over 500 points at the end of a hand, then the higher point player wins.

•	 Four players is the most common number of players in this game.

Click here to see the general rules for Rummy Games.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Pinochle Rummy

 - This is also called Five Hundred Rummy.   Click here for a full explanation.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Round the Corner Rummy rules

Round the Corner Rummy follows the same rules as general Rummy, with the addition that an Ace can be used as either high or low or both.   So, you can have a meld on the table which looks like this - 4,3,2,Ace,King,Queen.   It is called round the corner because the Ace can go round from high to low (or vice versa).   This is similar to High - Low Rummy which allows the Ace to be high or low, but not to run around the corner.

The Ace counts for 11 points.

In other respects, the general Rummy rules are followed.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


High - Low Rummy rules

High - Low Rummy follows the general Rummy rules, with the exception that the Ace may be used as either a high or low card.   So, you can make melds like 3,2,Ace and Ace,King,Queen.   It is not allowed to run around the corner, as in Round the Corner Rummy, so the meld 3,2,Ace,King,Queen is not allowed.

The Ace is worth 11 points, no matter how it is used.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Michigan Rummy rules

Like Five Hundred Rummy, Michigan Rummy allows you to pick up cards within the Discard Pile, not just the top Upcard.   So, when you take any card within the Discard Pile, you have to meld that card, and you also have to pick up all the cards above it.   You do not have to meld the cards above the one you chose, unless you want to, so they can remain in your hand.

•	You can make melds (or add to melds) at any time during your turn - you do not have to wait until the end of the game.

•	The Ace can be used as either high or low, but it cannot be used round the corner - ie cannot be used for Queen,King,Ace,2

•	The Ace is valued at 15, unless it is used as a low card in a meld (eg, 3,2,Ace), when it counts for 1.

•	At the end of the game, each player is awarded points equal to the points that they have melded (making new melds or adding to any existing one).

•	 The score in each meld is recorded throughout each game, so that you can see your meld score.

•	Whoever disposes of their whole hand is the winner and wins additional points equal to the cards left in the opponents' hands.

•	The game continues to 500 points.

Click here to see the general rules for Rummy Games.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


One Meld Rummy rules

As the name suggests, the fundamental difference between One Meld Rummy and basic Rummy is that you can only meld at the end of the game.   Play continues, picking up cards from the Discard Pile or the Stockpile as desired, and discarding cards to the Discard Pile until one player can meld all their cards at the one time (keeping one to discard at the end).   In this way it is similar to Gin Rummy if you need zero points in your hand to knock.

Rather than collecting points based on the residual cards in the opponents hands, the knocker collects the points value of their melds (own their cards added to other melds), from each opponent (so their meld value is multiplied by the number of opponents).   This changes the playing logic considerably.   Rather than wanting to have small cards in your hand, you want to have large cards in your hand.

Click here to see the general rules for Rummy Games.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Wild Card Rummy rules

This game is very similar to One Meld Rummy.

•	 You can only meld at the end of the game, when you meld all your cards.

•	 You can pick up a card from the top of the Discard Pile whenever it may be useful to you.

•	 Deuces (two's) are wild, and are worth 25 points.

•	 After melding, you get the hand score value of each of your opponents.

You may like to add some Jokers to the pack to be extra wild cards.

Click here to see the general rules for Rummy Games.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Kaluki rules

To play Kaluki you use most of the rules in general Rummy.   Add in the following extra rule changes:

•	 Two packs are used, plus two Jokers per pack as wild cards.

•	 Fifteen cards are dealt to each player if there are two, three, or four players, thirteen for five players, and eleven cards for six players.

•	 Aces can either be played as high (eg. Queen,King,Ace) or low (eg. 3,2,Ace), but cannot be played round the corner, (eg. Queen,King,Ace,2,3).

•	 Aces count as 15 points.

•	 A player cannot meld, or add to melds, until the first meld will yield at least 51 points.   These points may come from new melds, or additions to existing melds.

•	 A player can only take the Upcard from the Discard Pile, but cannot take it until after making the first meld.   The exception to this is if the meld will help to create the first meld, in this case it is legal to pick it up.   After making the first meld, the Upcard can be taken at any time.

•	 Jokers are wild cards and may substitute for any card.   Any Joker used in a meld assumes the points of the card it replaces.

•	 Any player may replace a wild card in a meld with the card it replaces and move the wild card to their own hand.   This applies to melds that the player created, or that the opposition created.   Sometimes it is ambiguous which card the Joker represents.   The person adding to the meld is always given the benefit of the doubt in these cases.

•	 Jokers count for 25 points (unless they are melds, when they take the point value of the card that they replace).

•	 The player who goes out collects all the points remaining in the opponents' hands.

Click here to see the general rules for Rummy Games.

Click here to see a summary table of the rules of each game in the Rummy family.

Remember that you can customise the number of players and rules if the default settings are not the way that you are used to playing the game.


Installing It

       RUMMY is distributed in a form which makes installation easy for you.    Like all Windows programs, its installation is more complex than DOS programs, but the SETUP.EXE utility takes care of all this for you.    This way, it can ensure that you have the correct Windows System files that it needs to run properly, without you having to do any work.

       After installation, you should have these files in the \Program Files\Rummy From Special K directory -

 	RUMMY.EXE -  base program

RUMMY.HLP -  Windows help file

RUMMY.TXT -  ASCII text help file

 	REGO.FRM   -  user registration form

SCORES.RUM -  game scores and set-up info

GAME.RUM - saved game

*.CRD      -  data files.

       In addition, it will make sure that you have Windows system files in your \WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory.

       If you received this software from a Bulletin Board or the Internet, it will be compressed into the one file, eg RUMMY.ZIP.   Before running the installation program you will need to decompress it.   Create a temporary directory, eg C:, and decompress all the files into it.   The software is now ready to install, as if you had bought it on a floppy disk.  Now run the SETUP.EXE program.   The easiest way of doing this is choose RUN from Windows START button, and type in the drive, directory, and SETUP.EXE name. Alternatively, you can run it from the File Explorer.   If you have Winzip installed, you just have to open the .ZIP file and run the SETUP.EXE file.

       The installation program prompts you to enter the directory name in which to store the files.   The installation program does NOT interfere with any of your standard set-up eg, AUTOEXEC.BAT, CONFIG.SYS, *.INI,  path.   It places the icon to start the RUMMY game in a group called "Rummy From special K" that it creates in the Programs group on the START button.   If you want, you can easily move this icon to a different group (by the usual method of dragging and dropping).

       If  you created a temporary directory, eg C:\MYTEMP,  you can  now remove it.

       The total space that this program takes up on disk is about 3.8 Mbytes.

       If you run RUMMY and find that it does not fill the whole screen, the answer is probably the screen resolution that you have chosen for Windows.   You can change this via the Display icon in the Control Panel.   It works best with standard resolutions, such as 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, or 1280x1024.   However it supports most other resolutions.  If it does not fill the whole screen, you can force it to use another - click here to find out more.

Windows 95 also lets you uninstall this program (not that you would ever want to!).


uninstall

If for some strange reason you wanted to remove this program from your computer, you can do this with these steps - Start Menu button, Settings, Control Panel, Add/Remove Programs.   It is often a good idea to remove the existing program if a disk corruption has occurred, and you need to re-install the program.   Removing all existing files makes sure that the setup program does not bypass an existing file that is actually corrupted.   An alternative is to re-install it to a different directory.

Remember, if you want to install a new shareware version over a previous Registered For Life version, so that the new copy becomes registered, you must not uninstall the original copy.


This Version (def.)
VERSION 2.8

      This version is ver 2.8 of  RUMMY FROM SPECIAL K.

This program plays the most popular forms of the enduringly popular card games of Rummy. Use Windows 95 to achieve the realistic atmosphere of a Rummy game.

You can choose from different playing rules, styles of play, scoring techniques, different numbers of partners.    This includes Gin Rummy and Five Hundred or Pinochle Rummy.  It has animation, and supports various screen resolutions and sound cards.   Background textures are now available, and a number of bug fixes have been made, including melds with wild cards.

It comes complete with this help file which contains both rules and playing tips for the various games.  So, it is ideal for expert and beginner alike.


Registering your Shareware

 REGISTRATION :

       If you are still enjoying this game after two weeks you should support the  Shareware concept and register your copy by sending a minimum donation of $30, plus for $3 handling I will send you, via email, a registered copy of the latest version of RUMMY From Special K.   Make this $6 handling instead of $3 if you want to receive your programs slower via postal mail, rather than email.   For an extra $3 each you can have registered copies of four other card games - 500, Bridge , Canasta, Whist, and Euchre.

Choose from the following:

- the latest, updated registered version or Rummy (with even better card playing skills).

- if you want it, for a small extra cost I will include a copy of  Euchre Card Game From Special K,  Bridge Card Game From Special K,  Canasta Card Game From Special K   or  500 Card Game For Windows 95.   The card game of 500 is not as widely played as Bridge, but it deserves to be, being very popular in Australia, USA, Canada, and New Zealand.

       An additional incentive is that you can register this version and have registered versions for life!   With this registered version you receive a key.   Download any future shareware version from the Internet, or any other source, and you can turn it into a registered version!

       Yet another incentive to register is that the registered copy does not make you endure the initial "nuisance" screen when you run it.

       You can register by posting the registration form and a check to me, and choose to receive your registered version by mail, or receive it quicker by email (and pay $3.00 less).

       You can also register on line by credit card by visiting my homepage at  http://www.specialksoftware.com or  http://home.dezzanet.net.au/gmckay .

       Dealer enquires are welcome.  Corporate licenses are available.

see registration form


Start the game (def.)
    Obviously, you press the Start button on the menu to start the game.   You can access this Main Menu at any time during a game, and return to the same game.


Nuisance Screen (def.)
The initial screen in the unregistered version is a nuisance (or nag) screen which is designed to encourage people to fulfil their obligations to pay for the program that they are using.   This screen does not appear in the registered version.   The screen has a time delay to allow people to read it.   The length of this time delay increases with the number of times the program has been run.   Obviously people who keep using the unregistered copy for months are very slow at reading the information and need all the help they can get!


Preference Options

i) If you have installed a sound driver in your Windows, you can choose the level of sound you want.   The Full Sound option makes congratulatory noises at every opportunity, while Part Sound is somewhat more discrete.  Rummy From Special K supports all sound cards that your Windows is set up for.

ii) You can also set the volume of the sound.   Note that there are many sound volume controls, which all have an influence.   This is the control which you can see by double clicking on the icon in the system tray.   You can only set this volume if you have chosen the Full Sound, or Part Sound options.

iii) When you adjust the colour of the card table, the colour of the background changes instantaneously.   This helps you to choose the colour that you really want.   Remember that if you decide on a dark colour, any black writing will be difficult to read.

       Remember also that Windows can be customised to view different numbers of colours (through the Display icon in the Control Panel).   Many people choose not to show millions of individual colours, but stick to  256.   You should run at least 256 colours for this game, but the more the merrier.   When an application, like Rummy, tries to show a colour which is not identical to an exact colour that your Windows is set up to show, then Windows will dither it.   This means that over the background, it will show a series of dots and crosses to approximate the colour that you chose.   You will quickly find that Windows dithering does not help readability.   If you do not find a card table colour you like, you can always set up Windows to show more colours (and less dithering).

       If you do not like the colour you have chosen - change it to another.

Rather than show a plain coloured background, you can also choose to show a texture (ie. a pattern) on the background.   The textures available range from random patterns to objects.

iv) You can give names to the buddies that you are playing with, or simply leave them as Player 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5, or West, North & East etc.   You will only see the names, and scores, of the number of players that you have chosen to play with.

v)  You can display tool tips or not.   These show the name of cards and options.   These are extremely useful when the cards are stacked close together, making them hard to see.   So, I would suggest displaying tool tips at all times.

vi) You can choose to show the score card at the end of every hand or not.   This is often useful, but does slow down the display slightly.

vii) In the Main Menu, rather than selecting the various options from the hotspots on the painting, you can choose to use simple push buttons.   Some people may prefer this.

viii) You can slow down or quicken the game by adjusting the length of time for which the cards are displayed during a hand.

ix) Similarly, you can adjust the speed at which the cards move.   So if you have a slow computer, or are simply in a hurry to get the cards played, you can set this to a fast speed.

x) The number of wins each team have made are recorded.  Press the reset button to set this count back to zero.

xi) You can choose not the change the order of the cards in your hand, as cards are picked up or discarded.   Or you can choose to sort by suit, or by card value (depending on whether you are most keen to look for melds of a series or a sequence), and you can choose to sort low to high or high to low.   The card just picked up is always placed at the right of your hand, so that it is clear which card it is.


Tool Tips (def.)
Tool Tips help you by giving more information about the object that the mouse is pointing to.      These are extremely useful when the cards are stacked close together, making them hard to see.    They can be turned on or off by the Preferences option on the Main Menu.


Help Option (def.)
       Help instructions can be read from the text file RUMMY.TXT, or from the help menu button.   Use the hypertext to move to different topics.   You may also want to search for your topic with the Search button.


Register Option (def.)
       If you have read this far, you know that this enjoyable program is NOT free, but is being distributed as SHAREWARE.   This means that if you continue to use it past a short evaluation period, you must register it.   This option helps you to print out the registration form.   If there is a problem printing through Windows, the form is stored in a file called REGO.FRM in your \Program Files\Rummy From Special K  directory.   You can print this out manually.

 	You can also use this help file to print it - click here.


Quit Option (def.)
       Press the quit button to see what happens.


Registration Form

   Click here to print out this form.

You can also print the file REGO.FRM manually.

To see details of the incentives to register, click here.

____________________________________________________________

                RUMMY FROM SPECIAL K SOFTWARE

Name:___________________________________ Date:___/___/___

Address:_____________________________________________________

City:   _______________________  State: _____  Code: ________

Country:_______________________

Email (write very clearly): ______________________________

Version:  _2.8_             Windows ver:  ______________

My Copy From:_____________________(if the Internet what site)

Floppy:  _1.44MB_     Do you have a CD ROM (Yes/No):   ______

Which Rummy game do you Play most?  _____________________

registered latest version of RUMMY......$---- ($30)

Postage & handling......................$---- ($3 for email or $6 for post)

options:

registered 500 CARD GAME FOR WINDOWS 95.$---- ($3 if required)

registered EUCHRE FROM SPECIAL K........$---- ($3 if required)

registered BRIDGE FROM SPECIAL K........$---- ($3 if required)

registered CANASTA  FROM SPECIAL K......$---- ($3 if required)

registered WHIST  FROM SPECIAL K........$---- ($3 if required)

                                 total  $---- (at least $33 or $36)

Send registered version by email or post:  ________

I will be grateful for any suggestions, comments, or information on problems with the game you may have.

____________________________________________________________

SEND THE FORM TO:

      R.McKAY

       29 Melissa St.

        Strathmore

         Victoria , 3041

          Australia

Make checks payable to L.R.McKay.

You can confirm the postal addess at the Internet sites below.

If you want to register on the Internet and pay by credit card, you can at  my home page at http://www.specialksoftware.com  or  http://home.dezzanet.net.au/gmckay (these have a slightly different payment deal).

 ph 03-9379-7696

 fax 03-9311-9141

 gmckay@dezzanet.net.au

 Garry.McKay@akzonobel.com.au


Screen Resolution (def.)
The screen resolution is a measure of how wide and high the screen is.   This resolution is measured in pixels.   It is set in the Display Icon in the Control Panel in Windows 95.   Rummy works best with the standard 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024 resolutions, but will scale itself to fit with other resolutions.

Very occasionally, a particular combination of computer and video card does not work well with Rummy at different screen resolutions.   This shows up as the game not fitting on the screen properly.   It may takeup only part of the screen, or only part of the game may be displayed on the screen.   You can fix this by forcing the software to display a particular resolution by including on the command line /RESOLUTION500x400.   Adjust the numbers to make the game suit your screen.   The command line is set by the properties of the Rummy shortcut.


Shareware (def.)
Shareware (also known as user supported software and other names) is a concept not understood by everyone.  The authors of Shareware retain all rights to the software under the copyright laws while still allowing free distribution.  This gives the user the chance to freely obtain and try out software to see if it fits his needs.  Shareware should not be confused with Public Domain software.

 If you continue to use Shareware after trying it out, you are expected to register your use with the author and pay a registration fee.   Only by paying for the Shareware you use do you enable the Shareware author to continue to support his software and create new programs.  Considering that the Shareware registration fees are almost always far less than the purchase price of comparable commercial software it's obvious that Shareware is a good deal for everyone.

  There are real advantages to you in the Shareware system.  You get to try out software to make sure it is compatible with your hardware and that it is  a good deal before you "buy" it with your registration. The author saves the expense of advertising, packaging and distribution and passes the savings on to you.  Plus, most Shareware authors are much more accessible than commercial software sources so that your questions and suggestions are likely to be responded to.


Choose Game Button

Press the Choose Game Button (or hotspot) from the main menu to select which game you want to play from the Rummy family.   You can press the Help button (or hotspot) to find out more about each game.

You can then customise the exact rules that you want to play by, by pressing the Details button.    This will give you a long list of items you can customise if the default game is not exactly as you play it in your part of the world.   Use the scroll bar to move through the long list.   You can also set the number of players and packs used on this screen.

As this software caters for so many games within the Rummy family, and as the games are enjoyed in so many different countries, it is inevitable that many people will disagree with what is given as the default rules for the given games.   Do not despair!   The detailed menu will allow you to customise the game to your exact specification.   Once you have set your options, do not change the default game again, or your options will be changed to the default options for the game you choose.


Details Button (def.)
The Details Button allows you to customise the details of the game you have chosen to play.   Enter this screen by pressing the Details button in the Choose Game screen.    You can press the Help button to find out more about each game and the default rules.   For detailed information about each item, position the mouse over the item and the tooltip will provide a more lengthy description.

This screen gives you a long list of items you can customise if the default game is not exactly as you play it in your part of the world.   Use the scroll bar to move through the long list.   You can also set the number of players and packs used on this screen.

As this software caters for so many games within the Rummy family, and as the games are enjoyed in so many different countries, it is inevitable that many people will disagree with what is given as the default rules for the given games.   Do not despair!   The detailed menu will allow you to customise the game to your exact specification.   Once you have set your options, do not change the default game again, or your options will be changed to the default options for the game you choose.


Upcard (def.)
The Upcard is the card at the top of the Discard Pile.   Most Rummy games allow you to pick up the Upcard, but not other cards within the Discard Pile.   There are some notable exceptions to this, such as Five Hundred Rummy and Michigan Rummy.


Discard Pile (def.)
The Discard Pile is the pile of cards which are placed on the table face upwards.   You add cards to this pile when you discard, and you can take cards from this pile, as well as the Stockpile.   The card on top of the Discard Pile is called the Upcard.

Most Rummy games allow you to pick up the Upcard, but not other cards within the Discard Pile.   There are some notable exceptions to this, such as Five Hundred Rummy and Michigan Rummy.


Stockpile (def.)
The Stockpile is the pile of cards remaining in the pack (or packs) after cards have been dealt to each player.   It is placed face down on the card table.   When players do not wish to, or cannot, take a card from the Discard Pile, they take pot luck by taking a card from the Stockpile.