							       

                        WHIST Card Game From Special K




                             release 3.19 - 2025

			                       created by G.McKAY





 COMPUTER REQUIREMENTS:

      Any 486, pentium or better IBM compatible computer will successfully 
run this game as long as it can run Windows, 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 preferable (as with 
all  Windows activities), but this is not a requirement.  It works best if 
Windows has a standard screen resolution, such as 640x480, 800x600, 
1024x768, or 1280x1024.   However, it can accommodate any resolution.




 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 "WHIST FROM SPECIAL K" after two weeks  of  evaluation, you are 
obligated to send a minimum payment of $40.   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 
feeling that only comes from the knowledge that you are more saintly than the 
scum around you.   Read the end of this file to find out about all 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.


RUNNING IT:

       See later 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 clicking
on the icon installed in your Windows START button Programs group.  If this
is too easy, you can also start it by double clicking on WHIST.EXE in the 
File Explorer (naturally you have to find the correct directory if you choose
the hard way).





LET'S PLAY:


       In keeping with the traditions of Shareware, the preliminary screen 
you see is a "nuisance screen", reminding you of the virtues and good Karma 
bestowed upon you by registering the program.   The delay time increase from 
10 seconds to 20 seconds after a month if you do not register.

       The first menu you see is the Main Menu which allows you to set the 
game rules, personal preferences (eg card table colour), view these 
instructions, and print out a registration form.



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

       You can move your mouse around the picture to find many other hoptspots 
which take you to other menu options to set up the game rules and your personal 
game preferences. 

       Press the "quit" button or hotspot to see what happens.




THE GAME:
 
       You can play cards by either clicking the left mouse button 
on the card, or by using the F1 - F12 and '+' function keys.

       To stop playing the game and return to Windows, press the Options button 
(or right mouse click on the background), choose 'Main Menu', and press "quit". 
The option button / right click also allows you to choose many other options 
during the game.

	







 RULES:

       There are two basic games of Whist played across the world.   These are the 
Standard Whist Game and the derivative game of Knock-Out Whist.   The games are 
similar to each other in being trick taking games, but differ in a number of 
important strategically important rules.   The individual rules are shown below.



Standard Whist Rules

The classic game of whist is a plain-trick game without bidding for 4 players in 
fixed partnerships. Although the rules are extremely simple there is enormous scope 
for scientific play, and in its heyday a large amount of literature about how to 
play Whist was written. 

Players

       There are normally four players in two fixed partnerships. Partners sit facing 
each other. The game is played clockwise. In this game you can choose non-partnered 
play, and a number of different players.   In partnerships, both partners play as a 
team and it does not matter who actually takes the tricks.

Cards
       A standard 52 card pack is used. The cards in each suit rank from highest to 
lowest: A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2. No Bowers, or Joker are used, and one card pack 
only is used.

Deal
       The cards are shuffled by the dealer who deals out the cards to each player.   
Usually 13 cards are dealt per player (ie a the whole pack), but a lower number of 
cards may be used (in this case the remaining cards are left in the pack, unseen.  
The final card dealt, which will belong to the dealer, is turned face up to indicate 
which suit is trumps. The turned trump remains face up on the table until it is 
dealer's turn to play to the first trick.   You can choose other ways of nominating 
the trumps in this game.

Play

      The player to the dealer's left leads to the first trick. Any card may be led. 
The other players, in clockwise order, each play a card on the trick.  All players 
must follow suit by playing a card of the same suit as the card led if they can - 
a player with no card of the suit led may play any other card. Playing a suit other 
than the led suit, when you have one of the led suit in your hand is called 
reneguing and is not allowed.   The trick is won by the highest trump in it - or if 
it contains no trump, by the highest card of the suit led. The winner of a trick 
leads to start the next trick.

Scoring

      When all 13 cards have been played, the side which won more tricks scores 1 
point for each trick they won in excess of 6 tricks (if less cards than 13 are dealt 
to each player, 1 point for each trick in excess of half the tricks is used).

      The partnership which first reaches 5 points wins the game. This will normally 
take several deals. 



Knock Out Whist Rules

     This game is commonly played in Britain, and is often called by the alternative 
name of Trumps.

Players
     Any number from two to four may play.   Each game consists of several hands, which 
each hand having one card less dealt than the previous hand.    This means that most 
commonly there are seven hands per game.   Each player plays for themselves, and 
there are no partnerships.

Cards

     A 52-card pack is used, with four suits ranking from high to low 
A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2.

Deal

     A player is selected to deal, and deals seven cards to each player (more or less 
cards made be selected in this game).  The next of the undealt cards is turned face 
upwards to determine the trump suit. 

Play

     The player on the dealer's left leads the first trick.   Players must follow suit 
if they can, otherwise they may play any card.  Each trick is won by the highest 
trump in it; otherwise by the highest card of the suit led.  The winner of a trick 
leads to the next trick. 

     After the first hand, a second hand is dealt, by the next player in order around 
the table.   This time one less card is dealt to each player. The game continues like 
this, with one fewer card per player on each hand, until the final hand consists of 
one card each. 

     The winner of the most tricks on any one hand gets to choose the trump suit on the 
next hand (after looking at their cards).   If there is a tie for who took most tricks, 
one of the players involved in the tie is randomly selected.

     A player who takes no tricks at all in any one hand is knocked out, ie. is dealt 
no more cards and takes no further part in the game.    The player may resume in the 
next game (ie after a winner is declared in this game).   There is one exception to 
this rule.   The first player during the game who takes no tricks on a hand is not 
knocked out immediately but is awarded a "dog's life".  On the next hand, the player 
is dealt just the one card (regardless of how many are dealt to the other players).   
The player may decide to play the card on any trick at all.   During the hand, a player 
"on a dog's life" may either play their card or knock on the table to indicate that she 
wishes to keep it for a later trick.  If she is the player on the dealer's left, she may 
or may not choose to lead the card as the first trick, if not, the next player leads. 

     If two or more players take no tricks on the same deal, no one having previously 
used the dog's life, these players both get one dog's life each.   Apart from this 
case, there is only one dog's life available during the game. Players who take no 
tricks in later deals are eliminated immediately. 

     If a player on a dog's life manages to take a trick with the card, the player on 
her left leads the next trick, and the dog's life player is dealt a normal hand on 
the next deal, and treated like the other surviving players. If the dog's life player 
doesn't manage to win a trick, she is knocked out of the game, like anyone else who 
takes no tricks. 

Scoring

     There is no score kept as such.   The game is won by the winner of the one trick 
on the final hand. Or if all but one of the players are knocked out before this, the 
surviving player is the winner.   So the number of games won is recorded, but no score 
within the game.





INSTALLATION:

       WHIST 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 \WHIST FROM SPECIAL K 
directory -
 	WHIST.EXE  -  base program
	WHIST.CHM  -  Windows help fil
	WHIST.TXT  -  ASCII text help file
	REGO.FRM   -  user registration form
	SCORES.WHI -  game scores and set-up info
	*.CRD      -  data files

       In addition, it will make sure that you have some 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 WHIST.ZIP.   Before running the 
installation program you will need to decompress it.   Create a temporary 
directory, eg C:\MYTEMP, 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 WHIST game in a group called "Whist from Special K"
that it creates in the Programs group of the START button.

       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 3.13 
Mbytes.

	Very occasionally, a particular combination of computer and video 
card does not work well with "Whist from Special K" at different screen 
resolutions.  This shows up as the game not fitting on the screen properly.
The reason for this is probably a combination of the screen resolution
and the size of the fonts that you have chosen for Windows.   It may 
take up 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 in Windows by setting the "properties"
of the "Whist From Special K" shortcut.   You can change your screen resolution
and screen font via the Display icon in the Control Panel in Windows.



************************************************************
	If you have any problems with this program, whether installing 
it, or running it, please let me know.   You can contact me on
gmckay@specialksoftware.com 
************************************************************



VERSION 3.19:

       This version of Whist Card Game From Special K includes a number of 
options to support user suggestions.    It provides good support for non 
standard screen resolutions, and cards displays.  It has a save card 
function and supports right mouse clicking. It also has background textures. 
	   It has been optimized for Windows 11, 10, 8.1 and above, 
for PC and touch tablets.


 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 $40.   


Choose from the following:

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

	You can also choose to receive registered versions of 'Bridge Card 
Game From Special K', 'Rummy Card Game From Special K' 'Euchre Card Game 
From Special K', 'Canasta Card Game From Special K', 'Skat Card Game From 
Special K', or '500 Card Game From Special K' .

       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 also register on line by credit card by visiting my homepage at 
https://www.specialksoftware.com .

       Dealer enquires are welcome.  Corporate licenses are available.


