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Q: How do I uninstall SoliLuxe? What does installing it do to my system?
Absolutely all files that has to do with SoliLuxe is kept in the main SoliLuxe folder;
It does not write anything to the Windows registry, nor does it spread temp and settings
files around all over the place. This is the reason it is extremely portable (and also
why you should make sure the person playing always has write privileges on the installation
folder).
The Windows easy-install version comes with its own uninstaller, which appears in the Start menu.
This uninstaller deletes all original installation files (including itself!), but it leaves all
altered settings, history and statistics files intact. If you want to delete these
files too, just delete the installation folder manually.
For the multi-platform
version, just delete the installation folder and all traces of SoliLuxe disappear. If you want to do a fresh
install but keep your settings and statistics etc., just delete everything but the
/settings subfolder, and install a new copy to the same main folder.
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Q: What are the minimum hardware requirements?
A ca. 2009, single-core budget laptop PC will run the
game and music player glitch-free, if the system does not do
much else simultaneously. However, a dual-core processor is definitely
recommended: Anti-virus programs and other background tasks have a habit of
bogging down the computers in an amazingly amazing fashion these days...
(Tip: If you suffer from poor graphics performance and choppy animations, there is no better
way to improve speed than to reduce the SoliLuxe window size.)
The Options window requires a minimum screen height of 768 pixels to be seen
fully, although from version 2.50 it is fully functional even on screens
as small as 600 pixels high.
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Q: I have registered, but the player name still says "Guest" when I play?
The registration name has nothing to do with SoliLuxe player names (except that registering the program enables
you to create the players):
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Open the Options window.
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Click the "Players" tab and add yourself as a new SoliLuxe player.
(See the in-game help for more info.)
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Exit SoliLuxe and start it again. A login screen now appears, where
you can select your player name.
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Q: What are the shareware restrictions?
Apart from not being able to use some of the functions available in the
Options window, there are none. There are no time restrictions, nor any
limitations to the number of games you can play or the types of games.
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Q: Are updates free?
For those purchasing a registration code for SoliLuxe 2, all version 2 updates
will be free no matter how long version 2 will be around. The minimum time for
free version upgrades will be 2 years from purchase, which means you will also
get version 3 or even 4 without paying anything if they appear within 2 years.
(But most likely, all that will happen is version 2 updates for a very long time.)
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Q: What operating systems does SoliLuxe support?
Since SoliLuxe is a Java application, it theoretically runs anywhere where you can
install a full-featured Java SE 6 runtime environment (JRE).
However, we only test on a single platform, and that platform is Windows 7 64-bit
(with a 32-bit Java runtime). Also, the main distribution is in the form of a Windows
installer with an integrated JRE so no further installation is required to run the
program in Windows.
There is also a multi-platform archive available for download, which requires some separate
tinkering with the Java JRE installation and SoliLuxe start scripts to get it up and running.
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Q: What about support?
The program is sold on an as-is basis regardless of which OS you run it on. We expect
you to have tested the unregistered version on your system to your satisfaction before
buying!
If the program runs but you find logical errors in games or program behaviour, please
let us know at support@soliluxe.pethu.se .
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Q: Can I program any solitaire I like in SoliLuxe?
No, not by a long shot. There are myriads of oddball rules for solitaire games,
and the only ones currently implemented in the SoliLuxe programming language are
the ones actually used in the factory-preset games. (This may change in the
future if we receive specific user requests, but no promises!) The flip side of
the coin is that there are no inaccessible, hard-coded game rules either — all
rules used by the factory solitaires can also be used when programming your own
solitaires.
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Q: The game is widescreen, so why are there still black borders on either side
of my widescreen display?
If there was only one widescreen standard, it wouldn't be computing as we know
(and love/hate) it! There are two main widescreen formats: The "computer" format
which has an aspect ratio of 16:10, and a "TV" format which is 16:9. SoliLuxe uses
the 16:10 ratio. More and more computers have started using
16:9, which is exactly equivalent to a standard widescreen TV. Thus, on a 16:9
screen SoliLuxe will not use the left and right edges fully.
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Q: What's that stupid text window that opens "behind" SoliLuxe?
Depending on the OS you are running on — and the method used to start SoliLuxe —
a "console window" may open in the background. This allows SoliLuxe to print various
messages about what it is doing that may come in handy in the event of a crash. If
SoliLuxe completely stops responding to input, it can be worthwhile to read the last
message that has appeared in the console window: It may point to a missing file,
or it may report a system error.
This console window has an additional advantage: If SoliLuxe should stop working
completely, you can switch (Windows: alt+Tab) to the console and close it, which
will shut down SoliLuxe too.
On Windows installations where the game is started with a menu or desktop shortcut,
you can easily make the console window "go away": Right-click the shortcut and select
"Properties". In the "Run:" drop-down list amongst the properties, select "Minimized".
This will make the console window start in minimized mode, while the actual
game screens will behave normally.
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Q: What's SPRAWL?
The About tab in the Options window contains information about something called a
"SPRAWL library".
SPRAWL stands for "SPRite And Windowing Language", and is our proprietary Java 2D
games engine. It manages all graphics, animations, sounds, window scaling and so on.
In fact, SoliLuxe began life as nothing more than a testbed for SPRAWL, but turned
out so good it's a pity not to share it with the world.
More SPRAWL-based games are likely to appear over time - watch a space close to this
one! - but the SPRAWL engine itself will remain in-house and not for sale.
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Q: What's OGG Vorbis?
OGG Vorbis is a compressed audio file format much like MP3. Unlike MP3, OGG Vorbis
is a free format (not owned by any company).
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