From: lam@CS.ColoState.EDU (mark lam)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games
Subject: Re: Recent Harpoon releases
Keywords: Harpoon, Three-Sixty, Challenger Pak, Signature Edition, Designer seri
Date: 16 Oct 92 03:07:10 GMT
Article-I.D.: yuma.Oct16.030710.79000
Organization: Colorado State University, Computer Science Department

Various People Write:

In article <1992Oct14.003723.1@vmsb.is.csupomona.edu> tatakamoto@csupomona.edu writes:
>In article <1992Oct13.143038.16966@netcom.com>, hchong@netcom.com (Hoi Chong) writes:
>> From article <1992Oct13.124814.22752@athena.cs.uga.edu>, by jfriday@helena.stat.uga.edu (Paul Stacy):
>>> With all the talk about the recnet 1.3 release and a supposed repair for
>>> it I've become rather confused on the whole issue.
>>> 
>>> I bought the Challenger Pak last summer and hope to get the Indian
>>> Ocean/
>>> Persian Gulf disk today (still looking for The Mediterranean disk).  I
>>> now see that a locak store has the designer series program.
>>> 
>>> I am trying to find out what this new release is all about and is it
>>> worth it.  I'm seeing a lot of complaints about it..
>> 
>> I believe the Challenger Pak contains the version 1.3.  Please check before
>> adding to more confusion (if 1.3 not there, than I am confused).
>
>     The Challenger Pak the original poster is referring to came in a big
>black box and I believe contained version 1.21 or thereabouts.  It also
>contained a Harpoon Battlebook (title is probably wrong, but it was a
>strategy guide).

Correct.

>     Now there's the Signature Edition which comes in a similarly-sized
>blue box with gold trim.  This contains version 1.3 of Harpoon, but no
>book.  I'm sorry I don't know what scenarios and editors are contained
>in either set.

Almost correct.  The Signature Edition comes with version 1.31 of Harpoon.
This update to 1.3 adds a command line switch that allows the user to allocate
more master handles to the game session (at the expense of using more RAM.)

>     To add to the confusion there's the Designer Series which comes in
>a smaller blue box.  I believe this is considered an "add-on".  It
>contains a version 1.3 *patch*.  You still need the full Harpoon program
>from elsewhere to use this.  Again, I don't know what scenarios and
>editors are contained here.  Perhaps someone else can sort out that aspect
>of it.

The Harpoon Designers Series (aka HDS) contains Harpoon 1.3, which will only
work if you have a previous version of Harpoon.  I wouldn't call it a patch;
it's more than a bug fix.  A better comparison would be the Operation: Fighting
Tiger update to Falcon 3.0.  HDS will also give you a new BattleSet using map
data from your existing BattleSets (in other words, if you GIUK and NACV, you'll
get two new BattleSets.  If you have GIUK, NACV, MEDC and IOPG, you'll get
four new BattleSets.)  These new BattleSets come with 12 scenarios apiece, and
totally new databases (really handy for those of us who fool around with the
Scenario Editor.)  These BattleSets are named HDS1 through HDS4, and the idea
behind them is to allow the user to go back to the original four theaters and
find out how new weapons systems and strategys work.  Many new countries are
added (in HDS1, the update for GIUK, you can use German, Dutch, French, Polish,
and Swedish bases, among others.)

Coming soon (real soon, hopefully!) is Harpoon 1.32.  1.32 contains the command
line switch I mentioned above, plus bug fixes for 1.3.  I believe that people
who registered their copy of 1.3 will get 1.32 via mail, but you should call
Three-Sixty to confirm this.

Hope this clears up the issue some.

-- 
Mark R. Lam                       InterNet Address: lam@mozart.cs.colostate.edu 
Colorado State University                           lam@lamar.colostate.edu 
Fort Collins, Colorado