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/*
* @(#)instructions.txt 1.5 01/06/20 16:18:06
*
* Copyright (c) 1996-2001 Sun Microsystems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
*
* Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
* modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
* are met:
*
* - Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
* notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
*
* - Redistribution in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
* notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in
* the documentation and/or other materials provided with the
* distribution.
*
* Neither the name of Sun Microsystems, Inc. or the names of
* contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived
* from this software without specific prior written permission.
*
* This software is provided "AS IS," without a warranty of any
* kind. ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED CONDITIONS, REPRESENTATIONS AND
* WARRANTIES, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY,
* FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT, ARE HEREBY
* EXCLUDED. SUN AND ITS LICENSORS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES
* SUFFERED BY LICENSEE AS A RESULT OF USING, MODIFYING OR
* DISTRIBUTING THE SOFTWARE OR ITS DERIVATIVES. IN NO EVENT WILL SUN
* OR ITS LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOST REVENUE, PROFIT OR DATA, OR
* FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INCIDENTAL OR
* PUNITIVE DAMAGES, HOWEVER CAUSED AND REGARDLESS OF THE THEORY OF
* LIABILITY, ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE SOFTWARE,
* EVEN IF SUN HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
*
* You acknowledge that Software is not designed,licensed or intended
* for use in the design, construction, operation or maintenance of
* any nuclear facility.
*/
Four By Four
Description:
A three dimensional game of tic-tac-toe on a 4x4x4 cube.
Object:
Be the first to score four in a row.
Instructions:
1. It's you versus the computer.
2. There are five skill levels. Press the "Skill Level" button to select your level
of play. The program defaults to the hardest level. Changing the skill level in
the middle of a game will force the start of a new game.
3. The screen on the left is a 3D window. A mouse drag in this window will rotate the
view to any desired position.
4. The screen on the right is a 2D window which displays all 18 faces that exist in the
4x4x4 array.
5. Click on any of the small gray spheres (in either the 2D or 3D window) to select a position.
6. Positions owned by you will be marked in red. Positions owned by the computer will be
marked in blue.
7. Click the "Undo Move" button to take back a move.
8. Clicking on any of words "Face X" in the 2D window will cause that particular face to highlight
in the 3D window. Clicking the word again will un-highlight the face.
9. The final score is based on skill level, number of moves, and time. Select the button
"High Scores" to see a list of the top 20 scores. There is no penalty for using the
undo button.
10. Good luck.
General Strategy:
1. There are a 64 positions from which to choose. In total, there are 72 possible winning
combinations.
2. The outer four corners and the inner "core" of eight have the most winning combinations,
7 each, and should perhaps be chosen first.
3. Use the 2D window to keep an eye on all the faces.
4. The computer plays well at the highest skill level (the default). There are, however,
faults in it's logic that can be exploited. Thus the human player can win even at the
highest skill level. In the beginning, however, you may want to start at the lower skill
levels and work your way up.
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