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Zillions of GamesA computer program
. Game package for Windows that allows you to play nearly any abstract board game or puzzle in the world.[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Anthony Viens wrote on Wed, Nov 14, 2018 07:50 AM UTC:

I tried a few weeks ago and could not.  :-(

I was really looking forward to playing a few against the computer, too.
That said, I've been having a great time with game courier!


JT K wrote on Mon, Nov 12, 2018 05:56 PM UTC:

Has anyone been able to unlock Zillions of Games to the full version?  I didn't hear back from them when I e-mailed the support team.  Guess they haven't been keeping their URL up to date, regarding the unlock order/purchase online.  Unfortunate, as there are some newer variants I wanted to try on the full version.


JT K wrote on Fri, Oct 19, 2018 04:28 PM UTC:

Thanks for the advice.  I did actually e-mail them yesterday but have yet to hear back.  I'll have to see about getting a CD somehow.


🕸Fergus Duniho wrote on Fri, Oct 19, 2018 04:11 PM UTC:

The website is still around. I bought my unlock key many years ago, and I'm not in any position to answer your question. You should contact Zillions-of-Games directly about this. Even if you can't get an unlock key, you may be able to buy a used version of the software on CD.


JT K wrote on Fri, Oct 19, 2018 03:38 PM UTC:

I was trying to unlock the full version and purchase an unlock key online.  However, after the first screen and I click Next, it reads "URL not found" regardless of which browser I try.  Anyone know about this?  Is Zillions still around and working?


Turkhan wrote on Sun, Jun 8, 2008 08:15 AM UTC:Good ★★★★
What happened to the Zillions server? It seems to be down.

(zzo38) A. Black wrote on Sun, Nov 18, 2007 02:40 PM UTC:
Of course, there are good things about Zillions as well, but some things I don't like. Now I will tell you the thing I do like about it: I managed to make a modification of Senat game so that the Red player (usually the computer player) gets to choose the dice rolls, I played that game, and then I told my brother to play that game and he said 'O, they're just getting lucky'. But, when I said is not a good program I meant it is a good program, but it isn't a good program perfectly as well. But I still like to make a open-source one instead (to make it better). Even Hero Mesh I try to make open-source in PHP also.

Somebody wrote on Sun, Nov 18, 2007 05:24 AM UTC:
[This comment is hidden pending review. It will eventually be deleted or displayed.]

Zillions of GamesA computer program
. Game package for Windows that allows you to play nearly any abstract board game or puzzle in the world.[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Joe Joyce wrote on Sun, Nov 18, 2007 12:20 AM UTC:
Hey, A Black [or do you prefer 'zzo38'? :-) ], we're going to need some good programmers and some good software around here pretty soon, I suspect. Best of luck with your endeavors.

(zzo38) A. Black wrote on Sat, Nov 17, 2007 11:12 PM UTC:
Zillions of Games isn't a good program! (The company that sells it is just greedy and want to get paid more, and you can't do it with the keyboard anyways, you have to use mouse, even when you do not want to.) Maybe I (and even other people as well) should work on make a free/open-source (such as GNU GPL) version of Zillions that can read the same ZRF files, and if it is open-source then it can even be modified for any use, even to add more commands and to make a improvement as needed. I tried to make a tsume-shogi game but it doesn't do very well, it says it is stalemate even when it isn't and it doesn't make a good move, either. I want to make a new one in open-source so that it is better and can work on Linux as well, and is freedom also. Then the program can be less user-friendly and more useful in terms of adding the commands that is useful and not doing wrong thing with the program every time.

🕸Fergus Duniho wrote on Fri, Aug 5, 2005 05:27 PM UTC:
Zillions of Games 1.0 runs on Windows 95 and up, and Zillions of Games 2.0 runs on Windows 98 and up. If you have an old MS-DOS computer that doesn't run Windows, Zillions of Games won't run on your computer.

Christine Bagley-Jones wrote on Fri, Aug 5, 2005 09:53 AM UTC:
lol

Matthew Montchalin wrote on Fri, Aug 5, 2005 05:39 AM UTC:
Uh, what kind of PC is Zillions of Games supposed to run on, anyway?  Are
you sure it will run on mine?  Is it DOS compatible?  My PC is a used one
from 1988, worth maybe $10 to 20 bucks or so.

Greg Strong wrote on Thu, Aug 4, 2005 05:41 PM UTC:
But Zillions of Games runs on your computer, not from a website. There are no bandwitdh issues at all. Even if you use it to play against other people on the net, it is still not transmitting the graphics; just the moves.

Matthew Montchalin wrote on Thu, Aug 4, 2005 05:34 AM UTC:
I think it's a 'bandwidth' question.  Minimal graphics means maximum
throughput, whereas maximum graphics means minimal throughput, especially
for those of us who depend on Internet Service from an IP, and find
ourselves unpleasantly slowed down from the lag associated with a
webbrowsing reeling from complex graphics directives, GIF or JPEG
displays, and so on.

Now, I don't speak for zz038, but I do think it's wonderful that
Zillions of Games exists; it is wonderful that it can play so many games.

It's just that, speaking for myself, I prefer minimal graphics to
maximum
graphics.  Internet seems to run faster the leaner you make it.

(zzo38) A. Black wrote on Thu, Aug 4, 2005 03:45 AM UTC:
If the algorithms, information, and programming manual were public on site
somewhere I could find, anyone could program their own program to emulate
Zillions. I would use it, even if it cost some money to use. Maybe if they
don't want all lose money, they could make a license to say 'You can't
distribute programs that use this algorithms because is patented', but I
disagree with the fact that you can patent computer programs anyway.

Tony Quintanilla wrote on Wed, Aug 3, 2005 09:13 PM UTC:
It seems to me that the whole idea of Zillions of Games was to create a program that has some intelligence, that is able to play a large and growing number of perfect information games with the same engine, and that is suited for a broad market. They succeeded. A side benefit is that by using simple, text-based rules files, new games can be programmed by the dedicated user. I fail to see why nice graphics, which appeal to the 'broad market' (including me), and 'user friendly' interaction is a problem. These features just make using the program more enjoyable. Surely computing power is no longer an issue? Zillions was not designed primarily for programmers, but for people that play games. Again, its programmability is a side benefit -- and a great benefit. Cost? Well, it's not cheap, but it's a fair price for what you get. In fact, I wonder if the market is already saturated, because improvements seem to have stopped. That's too bad.

Greg Strong wrote on Wed, Aug 3, 2005 08:57 PM UTC:
Why is less graphical better than more graphical?

Matthew Montchalin wrote on Wed, Aug 3, 2005 08:21 PM UTC:
Speaking for myself, I have yet to try out 'Zillions of Games' but if there were a truly minimal graphics version available (using ASCII graphics, for instance), I might give it a shot.

🕸Fergus Duniho wrote on Wed, Aug 3, 2005 11:18 AM UTC:
You would like it to be less user-friendly and less graphical? Are you being serious?

Christine Bagley-Jones wrote on Wed, Aug 3, 2005 06:11 AM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
brilliant program :))

(zzo38) A. Black wrote on Wed, Aug 3, 2005 03:43 AM UTC:Poor ★
I don't like this program all that much, I would like it if it were cost less, less user-friendly, less graphical, and more programmable. One thing I would like is to be able to use a ActiveX object in Visual Basic to send and receive moves.

Javier wrote on Wed, Dec 11, 2002 05:45 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
A demo of version 2 of Zillions is now available.

Peter Hatch wrote on Wed, Sep 4, 2002 03:57 AM UTC:Good ★★★★
It appears that if you duplicate moves to increase value it then takes longer to calculate moves, as it generates the duplicate moves and checks their value each time through. Using the second move type doesn't seem to have this problem, so I think it is a better method.

M. Howe wrote on Fri, Aug 16, 2002 03:03 PM UTC:
I have the time to post it, now.  I'd also like to point out that the
method is probably more Peter Aronson's and Jeff Mallett's than mine
(except I think for the unlinked squares method), since I would not found
it if I had not discussed my concerns with them.

In the game definition section, put in (turn order (White real-move)
(Black real-move))

Then, in each piece's definition, put in
(moves
   (move-type real-move)
   (leap2 n ne)
etc., putting in what definitions you normally would for that piece. 
Then, still in the same moves section put in
   (move-type pseudo-move)
   (add add add)
the more 'add's you put in, the greater the inflated piece value.  And
because they are pseudo-moves and not real-moves, they will never actually
be generated.  If a single 'add' inflates the value too much, you can put
in duplicates of the moves used to define the piece.

In fact, if you stick to using only duplicates of the piece's definition,
you don't need the two move-types at all.  In my orthochess zrf, for
example, I have added a single extra (leap2 n ne) to the move section of
the knight so that Zillions now values it as almost worth a bishop.   I
use the two move-types in my highly unorthodox variant because I often
need to put in long strings of 'add's to adjust piece values by huge
amounts and it's easier than duplicating long strings of piece moves.

You should not put in any moves that are not either simple 'add's or
duplicates of the piece's move, though, even if you are using the two
move-types, because of a bug I found and that was confirmed by Jeff. 
Zillions will look at the pseudo-move definitions when determining check,
even though the pieces can not actual make those moves because of the
turn-order.

Another method you can try is to create an extra file on your board and
then unlink the squares.  In your board def macro, add a /z to the files
string and then unlink the squares with (unlink z1 z2 z3 z4 z5 z6 z7 z8). 
Now in your pseudo-move section, you can put in things like (z1 add) or if
that adds too much value you can try (z1 (if empty? add)) which seems to
add less value than a simple add.  Experiment.  And with the unlinked
squares method you don't have to worry about the check bug since the king
can never be on z1 because it would take a pseudo-move to get there and a
pseudo-move will never be generated.  This method might give you more
flexibility because you don't have to stick to simple 'add's or duplicate
moves.

I hope those who read this can make use of it.

Regards,
Mike

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