                  Common Questions and Problems With BassDuel

The following represents the most common questions and problems
encountered with BassDuel. Before calling or writing  us, please
read the instruction manual thoroughly. The instructions are
contained in a file on your disk called BDUEL.DOC. We have found
that many questions can be answered right there.

[1] PROBLEM: "I can't manually scroll to another section  of the lake".
SOLUTION:  First, make sure the NUM LOCK is not set on your keyboard. Then,
           be sure you are using the NUMERIC KEYPAD ARROWS, not the separate
           cursor control arrows on 101 key enhanced keyboards. Remember to
           press the SHIFT key while you press the arrow keys. If that won't
           work, try using the 2,4,6, & 8 keys in the top row of your MAIN
           KEYBOARD (NOT the "F" keys!). Do not use the SHIFT key when using
           this method.
[2] PROBLEM: "Sometimes 'garbage' appears when I try to scroll the
              screen or select a rod or bait".
SOLUTION: BassDuel needs lots of FREE memory. Just because your computer has
          640k or more of memory doesn't mean it's all free for BassDuel to
          use. We have found that memory resident programs (TSR'S) are one of
          the main causes of this problem. Programs like RAM DISKS, PRINTER
          BUFFERS, KEYBOARD ENHANCERS and MENU programs should not be loaded
          before running BassDuel. These programs occupy memory space even
          when not running, thus making it unavailable to BassDuel.

          Another occasional cause of this problem is lack of sufficient
          memory on your EGA card. Many of the older EGA cards only had 64k
          or 128k of video memory. They should have 256k to properly run
          BassDuel.
[3] PROBLEM: "The program tries to start, but then stops."
SOLUTION: One of the main causes of this problem is too many open files. DOS
          only allows 15 open files per process. Check your CONFIG.SYS file to
          be sure it contains the following two lines:

                                  FILES=20
                                  BUFFERS=20

           BassDuel tries to open several files when it starts. It then
           assumes they were open for its use. If in fact they were NOT
           opened, the program may hang waiting for them to be available. The
           two lines described above will help prevent this from happening.
[4] PROBLEM: "I cannot save a game to the disk."
SOLUTION: Many people try to save games (to be played later) on the original
          distribution diskette. A saved game uses about 63k of disk space,
          and the distribution  diskette must have at least that much free if
          you expect to save a game.

          Sometimes, people have a clock or some other interrupt driven
          program running at the same time they're running BassDuel. Since
          these programs use interrupts, they can 'steal' time from BassDuel.
          If one of these programs decides to 'steal' its time while BassDuel
          is  writing to the disk, the resultant file may be damaged. This is
          because DOS itself is inherently non-reentrant, and BassDuel uses
          DOS facilities to write to the disk. See #3 above as well.
[5] PROBLEM: "I cannot restore a saved game."
SOLUTION: See #3 and #4 above. Also, make sure ALL files that are supplied on
          your BassDuel distribution disk are in the same directory as
          BASSDUEL.EXE.
[6] PROBLEM: "BassDuel does not always save my record catches properly!"
SOLUTION: See #3 above. Also, some people thought they were clever, and tried
          to edit the BIGF.TXT and/or the BIGS.TXT files. Don't try it! One
          misplaced space or deleted/added line can mess the files up beyond
          repair.
[7] PROBLEM: "I get a RUNTIME ERROR 002 then the program stops!"
SOLUTION: This means that BassDuel cannot open a file it needs. This can
          happen if you do not have all the files that are supplied on the
          original distribution diskette in the same directory as the main
          program, BASSDUEL.EXE. It can also happen if you are missing a
          file altogether. Also, refer to item 3, above.
[8] PROBLEM: "I get a runtime ERROR 004 then the program stops!"
SOLUTION: This means that access to a file needed by BassDuel has been denied
          by DOS. Make sure there is no write-protect tab on your diskette,
          and see item 3 above.
[9] PROBLEM: "I have an IBM PS-2. The program reports that it detects a VGA
          card then stops, hanging up my machine".
SOLUTION: Some models of PS-2 computers have the MCGA video mode. This mode
          (320 x 200 x 256 colors) is a subset of the VGA specification. These
          computers report VGA when queried by BassDuel. BassDuel then assumes
          that since a VGA card was detected, that it should use the maximum
          screen resolution it can, which is 640 x 350, 16 colors. BassDuel
          requires a true VGA or EGA video system to run.
[10] QUESTION: "I have a VGA card in my machine, yet the program seems to run
                in 16 color EGA mode. Why, and how do I make it utilize the
                256 colors of my VGA?"
ANSWER: See item 9, above. BassDuel runs in the EGA mode of your VGA card. It
        does not support true VGA (640 x 480 x 16 colors) at this time.
[11] QUESTION: "I have a Tandy machine that supports 16 color CGA mode. Is
                there a way I can run BassDuel in this mode?
ANSWER: No, at least not at this time. BassDuel requires EGA or VGA to run.
