Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack Alpha Full Install June 6, 2001 This install requires that you have the Linux Alpha Centauri CD mounted. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 System Requirements 2 Installation 3 Playing The Game 4 Using the Editor 5 Troubleshooting 6 Contacting Loki Software, Inc. ----------------------- (1) SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS ----------------------- Linux capable computer, Alpha processor Linux kernel version 2.2.x 32 MB RAM 4x CD-ROM drive Video card capable of 800x600 resolution XFree86 version 3.2 or newer at 8 or 16 bpp. /dev/dsp sound device for audio (the Enlightenment Sound Daemon is supported as well). 30 MB free hard disk space, 200 MB recommended ------------------ (2) INSTALLATION ------------------ Mount the Planetary Pack CD and run the install archive script: e.g. Log in as root: mount /mnt/cdrom sh smac-install-alpha.run If you haven't already installed the Loki Update Tool or Loki Uninstall Tool, the installer will prompt you to install these before installing the main product. -------------------- (3) PLAYING THE GAME -------------------- A quick introduction to playing the game is included in QuickStart.txt The manuals for both games are available in PDF format in the files "Alpha_Centauri_Manual.pdf" and "Alien_Crossfire_Manual.pdf" in the installation directory. The best viewer for this is the Adobe Acrobat reader, available at: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/ Run 'smacpack' to start the game. The first time you run the game it will create a .loki/smac directory in your home directory. Saved games, temporary files, and preferences will be stored here. The following arguments may be given to Alpha Centauri: [-h | --help] Display this help message [-v | --version] Display the game version [-f | --fullscreen] Run the game fullscreen [-w | --windowed] Run the game in a window [-s | --nosound] Do not access the soundcard [-c | --nocdrom] Do not access the CD-ROM Use Alt-Enter to toggle fullscreen mode. Use Ctrl-G to toggle mouse grabbing. Use Ctrl-Z to iconify the game when it is run in a window. The Print Screen key will save the current screen to the ~/.loki/smac directory. If the Print Screen, Pause, or Alt-# keys are not working, make sure your window manager is not overriding them. String widgets have standard UNIX keybindings. Ctrl-A - Move to beginning of line Ctrl-E - Move to end of line Ctrl-B - Move backwards Ctrl-F - Move forwards Ctrl-U - Erase line Ctrl-D - Delete character Ctrl-C - Copy to X clipboard Ctrl-V - Paste from X clipboard -------------------- (4) USING THE EDITOR -------------------- * Activate the editor either through the menus or by pressing Ctrl-K. * Click on the 'T' button at the bottom center of the screen to bring up the terrain palette. Click on an icon in the terrain palette to select that terrain object * Hold down the control key and click the left mouse button to place a terrain object. Hold down the control key and click the right mouse button to remove that terrain object. * Hold down the shift key while left clicking and dragging the mouse over the map to "paint" with a terrain object. Hold down the shift key while right clicking and dragging the mouse over the map to "erase" that terrain object. * Deactivate the editor by pressing Ctrl-K and save your map/scenario. ------------------- (5) TROUBLESHOOTING ------------------- The following are some of the more common problems you might have, and recommended solutions: A) There is no game sound. First, check all your connections between your speakers and your computer. Make sure your speakers are turned on and receiving power. Make sure the volume is not turned down all the way. You can change sound and music volume in the 'Game Options' window. If none of the above suggestions works, try producing sound in another program. If that does not work, make sure you have the sound driver enabled in your kernel. Finally, go to http://www.opensound.com/ to see whether a commercial driver is available for your sound card. ---------------------------------- (6) CONTACTING LOKI SOFTWARE, INC. ---------------------------------- For information about this and other products, visit our website at: http://www.lokigames.com/ Technical support is available from Loki Software, Inc. at: FAQ: http://faqs.lokigames.com/ Website: http://fenris.lokigames.com/ Email: support@lokigames.com Phone: 1-714-508-2140 Telephone support is available between 9 A.M. and 5 P.M. PST You can also communicate with other Alpha Centauri enthusiasts at: Usenet: news://news.lokigames.com/loki.games.smac