Computer Assistance Programs

On this page, you will find a few game assistance programs.  The first program is written in Visual Basic 6.0, and should run under Windows.  It's in zip format -- just unzip it to get the .exe file.

fow.zip -- This program does the dice rolling for the hit and hit resolution processes in "Fire on the Waters".

The programs below were written to be run under Qbasic, a version of BASIC, running in DOS, that Microsoft shipped with most versions of Windows up through Windows 3.11.  The programs can also be printed out as Word documents, for anyone interested in transcribing them into other languages.  None are complex, although they could all be made more elegant in more skilled hands than mine.  They are available in downloadable zip files.

tfspot.zip -- This is the most complicated program.  It's an attempt to provide for air, surface and submarine spotting, course plotting and weather, with unit locations being computed from move to move rather than re-entered each move.  It works to a 4 hour scale.  This is a work in progress.  Here is a Word document with an outline of play using the program: TFSpot Rules .

formspot.zip -- This is similar in mechanics to tfspot, but for surface ships only and with a tactical flavor.  Locations and formation lengths are to be entered in inches, speeds in inches per turn.  Spotting modifiers are meant (a la Fire on the Waters) to reflect an adjustment in inches to the range at which the formation would be visible.

hexmast.zip -- Another search program.  Players enter the location of their task forces and their searches each turn.  The program announces whether a search spots a task force.

roller.zip -- The simplest program of the lot -- it simply rolls as many 6 sided dice as you tell it to, and displays the result.  Handy for game like Surface Action or Togo, which require a fair amount of dice rolling.