HP-48 BlackJack Ron Dippold (C)1990 Ron Dippold and Freezesoft I am on the HP BBS (1-503-750-4448) as icefalcon if you have any questions or comments. Introduction When you show your HP-48 to some awed and impressed Casio user, the utility programs are really impressive only if the guy knowshow hard it should normally be to do what your HP-48 does effortlessly. In addition, everyone gets the urge now and then to do something other than manipulate equations... And that's where all those slick HP-48 graphics demos come from. Unfortunately, there don't seem to be that many games, except those for the HP-28, and those certainly don't stress your HP-48's capabilites. Maybe because writing a good game is so time-consuming... BlackJack 48 We wrote a howitzer battle, Defender, and Tetris for the HP-28, but this is our first release for the HP-48. It's a simple card game, BlackJack 48. It uses the full graphics capabilities of the HP-48, including background pictures... We spent quite a bit of time on graphics and getting it to look professional. This is took a while to write, which is why we have the: Shareware Fee This game is shareware. You do not have to pay to download it from someone or somewhere and take a look at it and play it for a while. However, if you do decide to keep the program, you need to send your name, address, and $5 to: Ron Dippold c/o Freezesoft 8318 Counterpane Lane Juneau, Alaska 99801 This is the same as buying a program in the store except you get to "test drive" it first. And it is just as illegal to keep a copy without paying for it as it is to copy commercial software from someone else. We suggest you try it out for a few days to a week, and if you don't like it, wipe it out. If you like it and decide to keep it in your calculator or back it up to your PC, send the registration fee. We expect to be releasing many more software titles for the HP-48 in the future, and in many cases we will stipulate that paying for any of them will constitute valid payment on the rest, so you also buying into future software. For instance, we plan to introduce poker fairly soon, and this will be covered by the blackjack fee. How much new software we produce depends on the response. License Freezesoft grants full rights to copy and transfer BlackJack 48, including uploading to bulletin board services, copying to personal computers, and transfering from calulator to calculator, under the following conditions: 1) This file MUST be included with the program if possible. 2) Neither the program nor this file may be modified. 3) You may not charge money for this program. It must be given freely. You may recover your shipping and handling costs, but that is it. Any copies or backups of BlackJack 48 that you possess must be deleted within one week of the time you first recieve BlackJack 48, unless you pay the shareware fee. Bulletin board systems may make the program available for downloading for unlimited time without payment. The Instructions! In case you do not know how to play BlackJack, or if you have forgotten, which is more likely, here is a rehash of the rules, as BlackJack 48 uses them: * A standard 52-card deck of cards is used. More can be used, but one is typical. * The goal is to get as close to 21 as you can without going over it. * Cards 2 thru T (10) are worth their own value. Jack, Queens, and Kings are worth 10 points. * Aces are worth either one point OR eleven points, your choice. * The player (you) places a bet. * Two cards are dealt to you face up. Two cards are dealt to the dealer, one face up. * If the dealer has a "BlackJack," which is an Ace and any card worth 10 points, the dealer _immediately_ wins. * If you have a"BlackJack, you win, and also win 50% more of your bet as a bonus, so a $20 dollar bet would win $30 on BlackJack. * If the dealer _and_ the player have a BlackJack, it it a tie, or a "push" and you get your bet back. * You then have the following options: - Hit : Get another card from the deck. If your card total exceeds 21, you have "Busted," and you lose. You can Hit as many times as you want. - Stand : Stay with your cards - Double : Double your bet and get ONLY one more card. If your card total exceeds 21, you have Busted, and you lose your doubled bet. * If you Stand or Double (and haven't exceeded 21), the dealer then gets to hit or stand. The rules are _very_ simple for the dealer: - If his cards total less than 17, he _has_ to hit. - If his cards total 17 or more, he _has_ to stand. * If the dealer exceeds 21, he has Busted, and you win. * If he stands at less than 21, it is then a simple matter of who has the highest total. If you have more points, you win. If he has more points then you win. If you both have the same, it is a Push, and no one wins. Variations There are many variations of BlackJack. Some casinos use 6 decks. Some only allow Doubling on the first two cards. Some say the dealer does not have to stand on 17 if one of his cards is an Ace. There is a variation in which you win if you get 5 cards without going over 21. We have just implemented a fairly standard version. There are two things in particular that need explaining: * Some casinos offer "Insurance," if the dealer is showing an Ace. You pay an extra amount of cash, and if the dealer does have a BlackJack, you don't lose. It sounds good, but in reality it is just another ploy by the casinos to soak you of more money. Odds are you are going to lose more money on the insurance than you will save when the dealer actually does have BlackJack. * Another variation states that if your two bottom cards are the same, such as an eight of spades and eight of diamonds, you may split your hand into two hands. A card is dealt out to each of the hands so that they each have two cards. Your bet is the same for both hands, so you have effectively doubled your bet. Each hand is played separately. This is not implemented, because we don't really have the room to show both hands. If one of the split hands is a pair, you can split again, and the screen is only SO big! Running BlackJack 48 After you transfer the BJCK directory to your HP, choose VAR and hit BJCK to get you into the BlackJack 48 directory. The first two programs in the directory, called ABOUT and PLAY are the only ones you need to know about. All the rest are called by these two programs. ABOUT Run this to see a little title screen for the game and run the game. PLAY After you are sick of the ABOUT screen, you can just run PLAY to go straight to the game. Betting The first screen/menu you will see is a nice background and some information. The top box should say "You have: $1000" or whatever your current total is. You will be asked to place your bet. The bottom box contains the current amount of your bet. Use the keys labeled -10, +10, -50, and +50 to add or subtract 10 or 50 dollars from your bet. Choose the key labeled BET to play the hand. * The maximum bet is $500 * You can't bet more than you have. Playing Two cards are dealt to you and two cards to the dealer. One of his cards will be face down. If you or he has a BlackJack, the hand is over. Otherwise you have the following choices: HIT: Get another card. If you go over 21 you lose. DBL: Double your bet and get only one more card. If you go over 21 you lose. STAND: Stand with the cards you have. It is the dealer's turn. The dealer will then hit or stand. If he goes over 21, you win. Otherwise, whoever has the highest card total wins. OK / QUIT Once you have won or lost a hand, you will get an OK / QUIT menu. If you choose QUIT, you will be shown your final total and the game is ended. If you choose OK, you will be returned to the betting menu except for two special occasions: * If you have no money left, the game is over. * If you have $10,000, you have broken the bank, and you win. Game over! Technical Info This program sets some flags and system variables. It turns off the clock, so it doesn't show up in the upper right corner over the picture. It sets the screen dimensions to 131 * 64 (one full screen). It also uses many user flags. It saves all flags when it first runs, and it restores them when it quits. It leaves the picture size at 131 * 64.