SoliLuxe News
(most recent first)

July 27, 2013: Finally Facebooked!

Now you can keep track of us on Facebook. While not planning a massive presence, most of the "small news" will be coming that way in the future.

There is another reason for opening this channel of communication: In the upcoming version of SoliLuxe, it will be much easier to locate games using alternate names, thanks to the introduction of a text search function. This lets you find all games containing the search text either in its name (less useful) or description (very,very useful!).

This means that to help make SoliLuxe the definitive playable solitaire encyclopaedia, we need your contributions! Please use our new facebook page and let us know about alternate game names and other useful information that we can add to the game descriptions! Also, we will happily receive requests for games still missing in the collection...

Still reading? Well, use the facebook buttons above and get in touch!

June 22, 2013: Version 2.85 is out

What was meant to be a guick addition to the game turned into a mini-monster of an update with numerous new features, code enhancements and bug fixes which more or less cleared my "annoyances list" — at least for now. (The complete list of updates is in the "changelog.txt" file in the manuals folder, as usual.)

Some of the new stuff has already been mentioned in the "in-progress" posts below. The graphics have also received some additional attention, for example by the introduction of the "Oxygen" deck displayed in the screenshot above.

Another milestone has been reached with the game list now including 400 different games. Among the newcomers are games such as the previously conpicuously absent Braid and Napoleon. And if you're the type who can sometimes look for a certain card on the Tableau for ages without spotting it, the new fly-out card locator may come in very handy.

Users of the DeckMaker will also want to download the new and expanded DeckMaker Graphics Kit now available on the Updates and Extras page.

Users of the Multi-platform package should note that SoliLuxe now requires Java 7 to run, so it's really time to update your systems if it's not already been done!

May 31, 2013: The Science of Imperfection

We have added yet another possibility to make the SoliLuxe display more "lifelike" in the upcoming 2.85 version. In addition to aging your cards, you will also have the option of uneven card placements:

(Although they will still be more neatly placed than you ever could manage if playing by hand, I imagine.)

All new games are already scripted. However, due to some tweaks to improve player input responsiveness quite a lot of regression testing needs to be done before we can release. Hang in there!

May 20, 2013: Distressing news (but in a good way)

For the next version, we've gone to town in the graphics department with improvements to the DeckMaker and a new DeckMaker Graphics Kit.

One cool thing is a new "Age" slider in DeckMaker that allows you to instantly apply a patina to any deck of cards. Choose from four settings, "New", "Worn", "Old" or "Knackered":

I think it's really amazing how the whole atmosphere of the game changes when playing with the aged decks. I hope it won't be too long before you can judge for yourselves!

April 17, 2013: Small fix for DeckMaker uploaded

A (very) small patch for version 2.84 is available, fixing non-working image processing when making face cards in DeckMaker. Sorry 'bout that, but just head over to the Updates page and download the fix!

April 14, 2013: Version 2.84 is released!

Main highlights:

• Fly-out control panel for the music player in the main screen.

• Improved right-click function.

• Switch games from the Statistics tab.

• DeckMaker: Undo function.

• DeckMaker: Improved handling of transparent and semi-transparent images ("decals").

• 25 new games.

• Facelifts for the SoliLuxe Swedish Crest, SoliLuxe Egypt and Traditional decks.

The only remarkable thing about the collection of new games this time around is the number of three- and even four-deck versions of popular games that have managed to sneak in. (Mainly variations on the "40 Thieves" and "Freecell" themes.)

April 6, 2013: Version 2.84 in final test

This means you can look forward to seeing the following 25 games in SoliLuxe shortly:

Ali Baba
All in a Row
Belvedere
Big Cell
Brazilian Patience
Carre Napoleon
Cell 11
Corona
Crossroads
Dieppe
Double Freecell
Double Rail
Express
Famous Fifty
Final Battle
Floradora
Foothold
Gotham
Indian
Interchange
Interment
Junction
Lucky Piles
Triple Freecell
Unlimited

March 20, 2013: Version 2.84 is on its way...

The program enhancements slated for version 2.84 are already in place (although we frequently tend to come up with some new, hitherto unthought-of one at the very last minute!). Right now, what you can look forward to is a "fly-out" control panel for the music player on the main screen, an even smarter right-click function for moving cards around, and a way of instantly switching to playing another type of game from the Statistics tab.

All that remains is to add another bunch of games. We'll continue to do it in batches of 25 per version, for some arbitrary reason. (One or two additions to the Patience Definition Language always happens as a by-product of this, but don't expect anything radical.)

Oh, and we'll add another seasonally themed backdrop as well — it's become sort of a tradition by now!

December 21, 2012: 2.83 is out!

Merry Christmas! With this 350-game release, you will be able to play a new solitaire version every day next year. (Provided you take one major holiday off plus a fortnight's vacation, which we sincerely recommend!)

Despite the increase in content, the download packages are actually quite a bit smaller this time around. This is largely due to a batch resave of all game screenshots using a better compression method.

This version took a lot longer than expected, but that's because we did a lot more than we planned, too:

New Features and General Changes for All Users

• 25 new games.

• On-screen help mouse-over zoom: When the on-screen help is displayed, moving the mouse over a help text will highlight and enlarge it.

• A new keyboard shortcut (key C) lets you change the music folder directly from the main screen.

• The deal of the first card to the Waste after a redeal is now automatic for some games (e.g. Klondike).

• New backdrops: "Iceland" and "Maggie".

• New splash screen.

Bugfixes

• Fixed bugs concerning the display of on-table "position card counters" for dynamic positions. (A combination not used for any factory games prior to this version).

• Fixed a bug permitting you to (in games like "Topsy_Turvy Queens" and "Locked Cards") drag face-down cards onto empty spaces in the Tableau.

• Fixed score display reset when switching to / between Memory type games.

• Improved visual appearance during redeals of types "flip_tableau" and "shuffle_tableau" with cards left in an on-screen stock.

• Fixed erroneous file name for "Double Bisley".

Fixes and Changes to Old Games and Documentation

• Fixed bug in "Alhambra": Cards could be moved from Reserve to empty Tableau.

• Fixed bug in "Colorado": Ace foundations were not checked for unique suits.

• Fixed bug in "Citadel": Only kings could be placed in empty Tableau spaces, not any rank.

• Fixed bug in "Solid Square": Foundation aces were not of each suit.

• Fixed the scoring for "Camelot".

• Fixed the scoring for "Double Or Quits".

• Fixed the scoring for "Egyptian Pyramid".

• Fixed the scoring for "Jubilee (Cadogan)".

• Fixed the scoring and winning conditions for "Eighteens".

• Fixed the build order and winning conditions in "La Belle Lucie (Player's Choice)".

• Fixed the winning conditions in "Adela".

• Hints enabled and autoplay disabled for "Spider", "Spider 2 Suits" and "Spider 1 Suit".

• Revised on-screen help texts, and added a new online manual page called "Solitaire Basics" to complement them.

The "New Global Rules"

Well, they're not really new at all, but a number of "bleeding obvious" things we no longer point out in every game-specific on-screen help. Just so you know. (These are also explained on the new "Solitaire Basics" page in the in-game manual.)

1. Cards that are face down are not free (that is, not available for play), so they can't be moved or be involved in builds. If there is an exception for a certain game, the on-screen instructions will say so.

2. Cards that are wholly or partially covered by other cards are not free (that is, not available for play), except as part of movable sequences or groups. If there is an exception for a certain game, the on-screen instructions will say so.

3. Movement of cards between Tableau positions is allowed whenever we state that you can build on the Tableau at all: If there is an exception for a certain game, the on-screen instructions will say so.

4. Movement of single free cards from the Tableau to the Foundations is always allowed. If there is an exception for a certain game, the on-screen instructions will say so.

5. Once cards have been placed on the Foundations you are not allowed to play them back to another part of the layout. If there is an exception for a certain game, the on-screen instructions will say so.

November 28, 2012: Excuse us while we...

OK, we've taken it upon ourselves to finish one more quite hefty task before the next release:

The on-screen help texts for every game are currently being revised in order to make them shorter, easier to read and above all more consistent.

This is in part achieved by NOT endlessly repeating some of the most basic rules in the instructions for each and every game, which is why we've also added a new page to the on-line manual titled "Solitaire Basics and General Rules".

Of course, this all means the next release has been moved forwards in time. Seems we'll probably have another "Winter Solstice Edition" this year!

November 19, 2012: Just for the heck of it...

We have a new splash screen next time around. Just because the old one is, er, old.

November 4, 2012: All done!

Just some more testing to do, then 2.83 is ready. The 25 new games this time around are:

32 Cards
Bath
Big Apple
Cat's Tail
Clink
Deep
Double Ring
Fan
Fascination Fan
Forest Glade
Kibitzer
New York
Quads
School
Scotch Patience
Snake
Toni
Troika
Twenty
Twilight Zone
Two Rings
Voracious
Wave
Well
Zeus

New games tend to be added in a very haphazard manner these days, and there is absolutely no lack of good candidates as of yet. The way things feel right now, I think we can probably continue this way of adding new games without any effort at all until we reach at least 500 or so!

The "+ 0.01" version stepping indicates there are no major functional updates this time around — we've had enough of those just recently, what with the statistics tab and all the mucking about to get the cross-platform compatibility right. (That said, the new on-screen instructions zoom function is neat and will be very useful to many people!)

September 28, 2012: Things I Didn't Plan To Do, But Did

I sort of had a substantial break from SoliLuxe development planned right about now, but when you get a good idea into your head it's hard to let go until you get to try it out in real life.

The latest such idea was triggered by our new MacBook Air, a device with a fair screen resolution but a tiny, 11-inch screen. After spending a short while trying to read the SoliLuxe on-screen help, a new "help auto-zoom" mode was born to assist in readability for anyone playing on a tiny screen (or in a small window). In the next version, you'll just have to move your mouse cursor over a help text and it will be instantly highlighted and enlarged — something that may well save you a trip to the optician!

We've also started collecting new games to add to our database, a process that always serves up some unexpected surprises: Every once in a while you come across something that looks like a boring standard game on paper — but when you start to implement it, it suddenly reveals itself as going against the very ideas upon which the SoliLuxe patience definition language is based. Without much warning, what looks like a 5-minute copy/paste-job suddenly turns into a four-hour session figuring out how to get the job done with a minimal amount of changes, and the coding of 2 new special rules!

We just experienced this when coding "Twilight Zone", a rather inconspicious little game with only two small oddities: Firstly, it does not use the Stock and Waste the same way most games do, and secondly there is a really long chain of auto-filling of emptied spaces to be handled in order to stick to the original rules. Anyway, it's in there now, and seeing the cards occasionally whizz around the layout without any manual intervention gives quite a sense of accomplishment!

September 10, 2012: Switching to Java 7

A full version of 2.82 is now available on the front page. With this release, we officially recommend using Java 7 instead of Java 6 on all major platforms — Windows, Mac and Linux. The Windows installer version now comes bundled with a Java 7 runtime, whereas the previous ones used Java 6.

(Note that if you check the Java version in the About tab, you will see a version number beginning with "1.6..." or "1.7...". "1.6" means Java 6, and "1.7" Java 7. No-one remembers why this is any longer!)

Windows users who use the complete 2.82 installer: Once you have verified that 2.82 works OK, you can remove the /jre6 subfolder (if it's still there) and just keep the /jre7 one.

September 9, 2012: SoliLuxe 2.82 update available

The 2.82 maintenance update is available here. It includes the 2.81 update and you must have 2.80 installed to use it.

September 7, 2012: Crosschecking

A new maintenance update (2.82) will be coming shortly — not so much to fix any errors in the last biggie (2.80), but rather a continuation of our effort to adapt SoliLuxe for easier use on all major platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux), and also to "future-proof" it when the Java suppliers currently shift from Java 6 (1.6) to Java 7 (1.7).

One important piece of the puzzle was dealt with last night when I managed to "code around" a known OpenJDK 7 bug on Linux. This — together with 2.82 offering an easier way to switch between two alternative audio modes — means we now have SoliLuxe working on the standard versions of both Java 6 AND Java 7 for all major platforms (Windows, Linux/pulseaudio and Mac OS X). Of course, we can't guarantee smooth operation on every combination of hardware and OS version, but with 10 test environments going strong we're pretty pleased.

So bring on the future, we're ready for it now!

August 28, 2012: Is SoliLuxe safe?

There have been many security alerts related to Java in the past few months. Only today, another "security hole" was reported that affects most computers running Java 1.7 (a.k.a. Java 7).

In light of all this commotion, some of you may wonder if it's really safe to use SoliLuxe, which is after all a Java program. Luckily, the short answer is: Yes.

The real danger lies in using Java in connection with a web browser. An accidental "mis-surf" can bring you to a web page which is able to activate some harmful Java code that then infects you computer. To avoid this, you should simply disable Java for your web browser, if you have no particular need for it. This is usually done in the browser's internet settings or specific plug-in handler.

When it comes to running stand-alone Java programs from trusted sources, the danger is no greater than with any manually downloaded program, especially if they use their own private runtime like the SoliLuxe Windows version. The Java runtime comes with the program, and no other program is ever aware that this runtime even exists: They can make no use of it to infect you computer even if there IS a security hole in that Java version. So if you trust SoliLuxe and the site you downloaded it from, it doesn't put your computer in any more danger than it already was!

If you use a separately installed Java that is "visible" and available to other programs on your system, then once again it is important that you only install and use software from trusted sources. But this is not just a Java issue: Security holes appear and are patched regularly in operating system code and also in other runtime environments and helper programs like Flash, Adobe Reader, Silverlight and Microsoft .NET . The list, unfortunately, goes on. And on...

August 23, 2012: SoliLuxe 2.81 update available (though not needed for most users)

To put it bluntly, if SoliLuxe works for you at all — you don't need this update! Anyway, go here to read about it!

August 21, 2012: SoliLuxe 2.80 is released

The Latest, greatest SoliLuxe is finally here, with:

• OpenJDK compatibility under Linux/pulseaudio.
• 25 new games, including "The Last Monarch" and "Topsy-Turvy Queens".
• A new Statistics tab in the Options window, and more advanced game history and statistics to go with it.
• A sync-to-network function for records and statistics.
• An updated clock, now also showing "elapsed game time".
• A new programmable on-screen card counter for any card position on screen.
• Better graphics performance.
• Music player and theme settings now also available for unregistered users.

August 19, 2012: "Endurance Testing"

It is not at all unlikely that the final compiling and packaging of 2.80 has, in fact, already been done — but let's give it another couple of days...

Currently conducting "endurance tests" in Linux to see if it seems reliable enough in this environment: Below is a screenshot of it running in Ubuntu 12.04 LTS, in windowed/maximized mode to make room for Ubuntu's top menu bar and left hand side launcher!

August 10, 2012: Status report... and an "Easter egg"

Hello all,

nothing much new to report — we've done another round of statistics testing. Now that you get a much better overview of the statistics data in the new version, we've found a number of cases where the statistics could get mucked up in the earlier versions. This means we've hade to add some safeguards in the conversion process from the old data format to the new, trying NOT to include ridiculous earlier "all-time records" that came about because of errors in the code. Hopefully we've dealt with that part now, fixed the bugs for the future, and are now in the process of polishing the 25 new games that will be part of 2.80.

And here's the Easter egg: I don't think we've ever mentioned it, but registered users can get an updated deck of cards with the American-style "classic" face cards (also used in the "Traditional 2" deck) simply by opening the DeckMaker tool and immediately saving the default template as a new deck! (I recommend using "Classic" as the deck name, but you can call it whatever you like, of course.)

July 24, 2012: ...And the Winners Are...

Here's the list of the 25 new games in SoliLuxe 2.80, if anyone's interested!

July 12, 2012: n'Sync

Well, things are moving along at a slower pace than expected (although not particularly badly). A protesting right arm and shoulder plus the nature of the new features are the main culprits. Things have to really "settle down" before a public release, and having to test stuff by first building up data in an old release before testing upgrading and converting that installation to the new version takes its time.

Also, there's been a tiny addition to the new statistics feature that has proven almost as complex as the rest of the new stuff put together: A sync-to-network option for records and statistics. It's not a "global community highscore feature", but just a means of backing up your stats and also sharing them amongst your devices plus those of your family and friends.

I currently test it using a Dropbox account. This will probably prove the ideal way of using it, since by using Dropbox the actual network file transfer will take place in the background, and not affect your loading or game-switching times very much at all.

June 29, 2012: SoliLuxe 2.80 will work with OpenJDK 6 runtime (at least in Ubuntu Linux 12.04)

It's been a long time since a new SoliLuxe version was properly tested and tweaked for anything but Windows 7, but something enticed me to install the latest version of Ubuntu/Linux to see what's what these days.

Many things have happened in Ubuntu lately when it comes to Java support and "Java politics": Oracle who bought SUN and thereby also SUN Java has revoked the license to distribute the SUN Java Runtime Environment (JRE) in Ubuntu and other Linux software repositories. That makes it very difficult for anyone but real experts to use anything but the freely available OpenJDK alternative in Ubuntu and similar Linux distributions.

Now, a couple of years ago OpenJDK was quite unusable for running SoliLuxe because of some dreadful graphics problems. I'm happy to report things look much better these days: So much so that I felt it worthwhile to tweak SoliLuxe to make it run properly using OpenJDK 6 in Ubuntu this time around.

After some modifications to the SoliLuxe window management and sound systems, it seems we have now overcome all major obstacles. Thus, you can look forward to an easier-to-use SoliLuxe for Linux from now on, thanks to OpenJDK compatibility!

June 10, 2012: Version 2.80 progress report

As you can see from the image above, SoliLuxe finally has a proper statistics display!

We stuck to the plan of making it a "game history" screen rather than a place where you can spend countless hours endlessly combining various uninteresting numbers and turn them every which way you like. There are also some pretty nifty features to compare what two different players have been up to — and what you need to achieve to be a SoliLuxe multiplayer conquering hero!

Since registered users get a bit of extra "oomph" from the new screen in that respect, a couple of features previously only available to the paying crowd will be opened up for general use instead: The music player and also the "Set theme..." buttons in the Games tab. This makes the interface a bit cleaner and easier to explain, as all registered user functions are now located on three initially disabled tabs: "Players", "Scores/Series", and "Tools".

We are done with new functions for the next version now, but there is still some more testing of the statistics bit to do, and we must also add more new games. This means we will miss the "summer solstice release" we were hoping for, but some time during the summer it will all be ready. Patience!

May 16, 2012: Lies, damned lies, and...

Lately, we have spent some time prepping for a new "Advanced Statistics" tab in the next version of SoliLuxe.

Since most self-respecting solitaire programs seem to have some such feature, you may well ask why it is not included in SoliLuxe already. Well, truth be told we have simply not considered it all that important (or interesting, for that matter).

While not technically too difficult, the real work is deciding what to include and what to leave out: For example, statistics about "time spent" is quite a complex issue. Including this when deciding the all-time record for a game makes perfect sense, but measuring the average time spent is another matter altogether. Such a measurement would imply you never leave the screen and walk a way leaving a game unattended for a long time, since just one such action would severely mess up the time statistics — unless you only measure "effective time" according to user input. But then, in some games the player benefits immensely by just sitting still and examining the situation before making a move, which in turn would require a command to black out the screen while pausing... I could go on. All in all, too much bother for very little gain, we think!

Generally speaking, our advanced statistics will focus very much on comparisons between players, encouraging "head-to-head combat" as much as possible. This means the main benefit will be for registered installs where you can define multiple players. Still, single users will be able to use the statistics tab to see the progress over time for a certain game, keep track of the total number of different games tried/experienced, and so on.

May 8, 2012: A-hunting for performance we go

Today I managed to improve on my SoliLuxe fullscreen performance. By applying some long overdue tweaks to the game engine, it has now gone from "quite choppy" to "almost fluid". Hopefully, many desktop users playing at maximum resolution (1680 by 1050 pixels) will experience the same enhancements once version 2.80 comes their way — especially those running the same class of older, multi-core computer as I!

March 20, 2012: SoliLuxe 2.70 released

Version 2.70 is here, just about 40% bigger and 40% snappier than its predecessor.

There are two new game lists for use with the filter in the Games tab, which helps you examine all the new stuff: "Games added in version 2.70" and "Best of 2.70".

Major enhancements include:

• 85 new games.

• Solvable puzzles for Mahjong solitaires.

• Unlimited redo.

• Graphics engine enhancements: Revised animation scheme allowing for more fluid player/program interaction ( = less "lockups" waiting for animations to finish).

• Additions and improvements to the Patience Definition Language, and improved Patience Definition Guide.

• A new deck of cards ("Nordic Flora").

March 6, 2012: SoliLuxe 2.70 to be released on March 20th (The "Spring Equinox 2012 Edition")

Since the previous version was released in conjunction with the winter solstice, it seems right that the upcoming version marks another turning point in the calendar! We might even be seeing a pattern for future releases here...

In order to further celebrate the long awaited coming of spring in these parts, the final addition to the next release is a new deck of cards featuring select specimens from the Nordic flora:

Hang in there, only 2 more weeks to go!

February 8, 2012: Further Version 2.70 Progress Report...

...and we're done, more or less. The game counter now reads '300'! Of those, 20 are mahjong solitaire layouts.

As far as changes go, we found the time to include yet another biggie: All game animations and event timings have been revised searching for speed improvements, and the number of times the game now actually blocks new player input due to "already doing something else" has been more or less cut in half. This further reduces any annoynessness (yes, it's a word, I just invented it) still left in the player interface.

Sadly, all these big under-the-hood alterations mean we now have to perform a complete regression test. In layman's terms, this means we get to play all 300 games all over again (yay!) to make sure we haven't broken something crucial in the process. This will take some time, sorry 'about that!

January 21, 2012: Version 2.70 Progress Report

Things are chugging along nicely here at Solitaire HQ. 72 new games in place, 13 more to go!

In addition to the additions mentioned below (January 4), we have still more changes to the game engine coming in the next version:

• The existing unlimited undo capability has been complemented with a long overdue unlimited redo function: You can now "scrub" back and forth through the list of game moves using the left and right mouse buttons on the Undo button in the menu area, or keyboard keys "Z" and "X". (This was mainly brought on by the new "solvable mahjong" feature.)
  
  
• A new tag has been added to the Patience Definition Language. Among other things it contains functions that allow "dynamic positions" to be created and removed during the course of a game, making for more flexible game coding and less need for future very specialized game rules.

Although not much remains to be done (probably), there is still a heck of a lot of new stuff to test before this version is declared fit for public consumption. So expect it to be a month or so before it finally appears!

January 20, 2012: The Internet At War: "Casualties" even here!

I doubt many of you will be unaware of the SOPA/PIPA controversy, and the current massive protests against preposterous and ultimately unlawful attempts to regulate the use of the internet.

Things took another turn yesterday as MegaUpload sites were shut down. As it happens, we used MegaUpload to store and distribute the SoliLuxe installation files, using a very conventient premium, paid-for MegaUpload service that allows you hassle-free, high-speed, high-volume download of selected files. Files which are not copyrighted, and which WE created for free distribution.

Sure, I have no doubt much if not most of the space on these sites is used for storage and distribution of copyrighted material — just as any and all similar file-hosting sites may be (and surely are) partially used for these purposes. But that's not the point.

The complete intellectual meltdown that is required in making distribution technology (both infrastructure and physical media) responsible for delivered content is just as mind-boggling now as is has been for the past 20-30 years whenever these discussions pop up. As usual, only copyright organisations/lawyers and general out-of-control control freaks are able to conjure up these ideas.

So: Will you shut down DropBox next, because this service is able to distribute files containing the copyrighted material of others? I use DropBox to store perfectly legal files for synchronization purposes. At what percentage of illegality on behalf of other users will you deny me that possibility too?

By the way, the telephone network: Surely the time has come to kill that as well, seeing as how terrorists and other criminals can use it to conspire to commit crimes?

If you can't draw the line, stop fiddling with the pen!

January 4, 2012: A preview of 2.70

More (Many, MANY More) Games
200 supported games is an OK number. 300 is better. Yes, after a slow and deliberate game selection process so far, we've now opened the floodgates and are pouring in new games and game versions at an alarming rate. Version 2.70 will contain 300 games. That's an increase of 85 games since last time, and we've already finished 50 of them. (We've put a games counter at the top of this page to keep you updated.)

That said, we do still come across quite a few fun AND original games in our research. In order to help you cope with the influx of new material, we will provide special game lists highlighting the (in our opinion) best and most original of the new games in upcoming SoliLuxe versions.

Quicker Starts
We have changed the startup process of SoliLuxe to make the speed more or less independent of the number of games included, even on low end machines. So now there's no reason not to keep going with the additions...

Solvable Mahjong puzzles
We've worked hard on an algorithm that allows the creation of solvable puzzles for Mahjong solitaire. (You will be able to switch this feature on and off in the settings.) Not to make the tile-picking too easy, we've even trained the program to deliberately set "traps" in the tile placements where possible, while still providing at least one possible solution. This new way of creating Mahjong puzzles really adds a whole new dimension to playing Mahjong solitaire in SoliLuxe.

December 21, 2011: 2.61 patch 1 available

Read about it in the Updates section.

December 17, 2011: 2.61 Released

We bring you the "SoliLuxe christmas edition 2011". Not many changes under the hood, just a bunch of fun games. Remember that you can use the Filter function in the Games list tab to bring up a a list of the newly added games! (Seasonly misplaced, one of the new original games is called "Easter Egg" — but never mind!)

We've added icing to the cake with two new pretty-things as well. One is a definitely mood-inducing Christmas tree backdrop, and the other a beautifully illustrated mahjong tile set with bird motifs.

November 26, 2011: SoliLuxe Book of Rules Online

A compilation of all SoliLuxe game descriptions and help displays is now available online. Just click "Read the SoliLuxe book of solitaire rules HERE." in the page header.

(Be slightly aware: This version of the rule book includes some of the games not yet available, but coming in version 2.61!)

November 24, 2011: Santa Will Bring 2.61

Well, it's only one month to Christmas and we're busy preparing a sort of "Christmassy" edition of SoliLuxe.

There will be no major new functions, just a load of new content this time around: Original games, traditional games, mahjong games — and possibly some Xmas-related theme items as well!

An interesting note on the SoliLuxe content: For the first three years of the game development we have not had any other Solitaire computer game installed, nor played one more than once in a blue moon when the need to compare interpretations of game rules arose.

This has been a conscious decision in order to make SoliLuxe truly "its own". Also, most games in previous SoliLuxe versions have been sourced from traditional, printed Solitaire rule books, thus avoiding the trap of copying some simplified computer version of a game — possibly with little more than the name in common with the original.

This will change in the future, and we will now also peruse the contents of other computer solitaire collections in order to extend the list of SoliLuxe games. But even when using this method, we will seldom include any traditional game unless we can verify its rules using multiple sources.

September 10, 2011: 2.60 Released

SoliLuxe 2.60 has been released. (Download from the main page.)

Apart from more games and the other stuff mentioned in the preview below, you will notice that SoliLuxe has a slightly new look this time around: The quick-select button icons are all brand new and have a more consistent look, and new fonts are used for all texts on the main screens (including help texts) for two reasons: Better on-screen readability and support for more characters (especially useful for exotic player names - just make sure all characters you use are legal for file names on our system, since the player names are part of many of the file names in the /settings folder!).

For those of you who simply get annoyed by the intricate design of the normal mahjong tiles, we have added an alternative mahjong set sporting coloured Western letters of the alphabet. You select it from the Deck tab of the Options window when playing a Mahjong game, just like you would a deck of cards for the standard layouts.

This is probably the last significant update for the year — although we've said that (and been wrong!) before...

September 8, 2011: 2.60 Preview

Well, SoliLuxe 2.60 is all but finished — in fact, we've just been correcting spelling errors for quite some time now, while trying to win all of the new games with mixed results :)

2.60 will see SoliLuxe finally hit the semi-magical "200 supported games" mark, incorporating most games from some of the most classic solitaire rule books (including such games as Osmosis, Pendulum, Queen's/King's Audience, and St Helena.)

In addition, registered users get two new tools to play with: One of them is the least likely to be of use to the casual player, while the other happens to be the most likely to be used frequently!

IconMaker tool - mainly for game developers.

ListMaker tool - create any number of personal game lists.

August 4, 2011: 2.60 — Prettifications And Surfability

Version 2.60 is now beginning to take shape. The main focus is on making everything as graphically consistent as can be, and new developer tools to speed up the process of adding new games and managing the sheer volume of solitaire versions that has accumulated over the last few releases. Because we're not finished yet...

Users will have two new tools at their disposal in the Games tab when browsing the SoliLuxe contents: Game selection lists that can be loaded into the filter, and also hyperlinks between game descriptions — whenever a game is mentioned in one description, a click on the name will take you directly to the description for that game.

July 26, 2011: 2.50 Released

As minor overhauls go, this one is really as major as they come! Although many of the improvements are very subtle and only adds to a general feel of "solidity" to the game, there are also some great new features:

• Mahjong solitaire! (6 different layouts in this version, more to come.)
• Better graphics quality of scaled-down cards.
• New card highlighting for matching games and hints.

Also, the speed has been improved in many areas on most machines.

July 6, 2011: Mahjong Coming to SoliLuxe

In a surprise move (that, truth be told, surprised ourselves as well), SoliLuxe will be able to play Mahjong Solitaire as of the next version. And it's not some phoney 2D version either, but proper, glorious, isometric pseudo-3D! It's already passed testing and is raring to go...

Now, some would call this an excellent excuse to up the version number and charge you money, but the next update will still be called 2.50 and cost you nothing. That's the kind of guys we are.

Right now, the gnomes at the games workshop are testing their little heads off to check the 30 new games included in the next version (including half a dozen Mahjong layouts). Meanwhile, there's not much big stuff left to do in the programming department, so we take the time to iron out quite a few niggles that have irritated us about the game loading/switching and the options window. All in all, the next version looks set to be a whopper!

Mahjong (Turtle - the original Mahjong Solitaire layout)

Mahjong (Gizah)

July 6, 2011: Back! (After the flooding of Copenhagen...)

In case you were worried we'd packed up for good, rest assured we're alive and well: The absence of our website for four days was due to a "once-in-500-years" deluge in Copenhagen, flooding the server halls of our web provider. They have now moved to a new location, and everything seems to be working fine again.

June 24, 2011: A 2.50 Preview

Prepare for some more fun later this summer with another games-packed edition of SoliLuxe. Yes, we won't stop at 150 games but soldier on as long as there's something worthwhile to add: 15 new games have already been prepared for the next version, and we're nowhere near finished yet! Here's two of the more picturesque ones to whet you appetite:

Crescent

Archway

(Also, you'll be pleased to hear that a new "favourites" function will make it easier to keep track of all the games you enjoy the most!)

June 14, 2011: Another award!

Recognition is always nice... Softsea.com has awarded SoliLuxe a 5 star rating! (Links are on the front page.)

June 14, 2011: Full Speed Ahead

I have just converted the standard MegaUpload download links on the front page to high-speed direct links — no more waiting around on the MegaUpload site to get hold of the latest version, at least for now! (If this leads to serious leeching problems, I may have to reconsider... but for now, I've paid for 1 terabyte (TB) of download traffic, which I hope should be enough for quite a while!)

June 10, 2011: Ooops 2... (even smaller bug in British Square!!)

Too many new games at once, surely the niggles will start to rear their ugly heads...

The score display has been placed off-screen in British Square by mistake. This is how to fix it:

1. Locate the file "British Square.xml" in the /rules subfolder and open it in any text editor.
   
   
2. Near the top of the file, correct the display_x and display_y values in the <scoring> tag so that the line reads:

   <scoring scoring_type="cards_placed" scoring_positions="foundation" max_points="104" display_x="1.37" display_y="1.5" />

3. Save the file. All done!

(Naturally, this fix will be part of the next SoliLuxe update as well.)

June 9, 2011: Ooops... (small bug in Stag Party)

Just discovered a small bug in one of the new 2.40 games, "Stag Party": The game lets you redeal twice, but there should be no redeals. Since I copied the rules for "Babette" and used them as the basis for this game, that type of error is all too easy to make!

As it happens, errors like this are also easily fixed thanks to the SoliLuxe patience definition language. If you'd like a little exercise, here's how to do it:

1. Locate the file "Stag Party.xml" in the /rules subfolder and open it in any text editor.
   
   
2. Near the top of the file, delete the first few attributes in the line starting with:

   <deal_options n_redeals="2" ... 

   so that what remains reads as follows:

   <deal_options deal_stock_on_initial="yes" round_robin_stock_deal="yes" />

3. Save the file. All done!

(Naturally, this fix will be part of the next SoliLuxe update as well.)

June 7, 2011: SoliLuxe 2.40

SoliLuxe 2.40 is here! This time, the update is pretty much all about new games — no less than 20 of them, in fact, which means the grand total is now 150.

To handle this abundance of games, there is a new filter function available in the Games tab of the Options window. A special filter mode makes the game list show only the new factory games, which should come in especially useful this time around...

Some of the new games are quite unlike any games previously in SoliLuxe — "Gaps" and "Grand Duchess" are just two examples of games employing new game rules.

The final new feature is a new music player song playlist display for registered users, providing a better overview and using ID information tags to display "Artist - Song name - Length", rather than just the file names. Enjoy!

February 27, 2011: SoliLuxe 2.30

SoliLuxe 2.30 has been released. Not much to add about it — read below!

February 20, 2011: Coming Attractions (2.30)

Currently, SoliLuxe 2.30 is on my workbench undergoing rigorous tests, so you can expect it to be along shortly. It takes care of several little niggles I've had with how the Games and Series tabs of the Options window behave.

Looking at the update list, not much seems to have been done — but since most of it concerns statistics and series management, I have to play a large number of test games in multiple player mode as well single player mode and also in series mode, single-game mode... the number of permutations is quite high!

February 7, 2011: An Award!

SoliLuxe has received the "Famous Software Award", as seen/linked on the front page.

According to the famouswhy.com site,

Sounds fair enough to me, except maybe for the "leadership" part. "Underdog" would be closer to the mark as far as SoliLuxe is concerned, I'm afraid! :)

January 28, 2011: DeckMaker graphics kit 1.00

Some examples of cards made entirely with DeckMaker and the graphics kit.

Since the DeckMaker handles transparent images, it was a logical idea to develop a kit of "decals" for deckmaker to produce a wide variety of cards — and now the first version of it is available on the Updates & Extras page. See the included readme file in the download for details!

January 28, 2011: SoliLuxe 2.21.

This is a small update mainly to get the DeckMaker to treat the new DeckMaker graphics kit nicely.

However, I also took the opportunity to include some some new solitaires and a new deal rule that featured in the games I learned in my childhood home — the "wrap-around" multi-card deal. In games where you deal multiple cards (usually three) at a time from stock to waste, this can make winning considerably easier because the chances you get access to all cards in the stock are greatly increased. I have therefore provided extra versions of the SoliLuxe solitaires that currently use the "deal by threes" rule — Klondike, Canfield and Peek.

Another new game is completely DeckMaker-related — the Memory (6 x 5 Landscape) version. Unless you make a new picture deck of cards with the motifs rotated to landscape format, it won't be of much use to you!

Finally, I've tried my hardest to recall the rules for one of the half a dozen or so solitaires I learned as a child. For lack of a proper name, I've called it "Sides" in SoliLuxe, because it is very similar to a single-deck version of "Four Corners" — but the the corner-like tableau spaces are placed at either side of the foundations in this one!

January 15, 2011: SoliLuxe 2.20.

I believe this will be the last major update in the "big push" from version 1 to version 2. Expect updates to arrive at a more sensible pace from now on (unless I've done something extraordinarily stupid in 2.20, which requires an urgent fix!).

Most things about this release you can read in the post from January 12th below.

In anticipation of the CNET release, I've also put the Windows installer on MegaUpload this time.

January 12, 2011: Coming attractions — "fine sandpaper mode".

After having "Really Big Things" on my plate constantly lately, I'm now taking some time off from big headaches and instead mainly amuse myself fixing several small annoyances that have been bugging me for quite some time. It's a bit like temporarily switching the sledgehammer for a piece of fine sandpaper!

Where only the initial deal could be sped up before, I finally made SoliLuxe capable of delivering "instant redeals" during a game . Some games benefit more than others, a noteable favourite of mine being "La Belle Lucie" where you have to go through several huge redeals in each game round.

Another new feature that should have been in place a long time ago is the possibility to change the user interface of the Options window (and related windows) to look more like the operating system you run SoliLuxe on. Unless I run into some unexpected problem, the "System Look and Feel" setting will be the default from now on: You will be able to get the old look back by simply unchecking a checkbox on the Settings tab.

You now get visual feedback whenever you use keyboard shortcuts to handle the music player, so no more guessing whether you hit the right key or not — another Good Thing.

Some new list selection windows popped up in 2.12 already, making selections of "stuff" much easier than using a complete "file open" dialog box to manually browse for files.

I've made some internal improvements to the DeckMaker which makes it much easier to add new deck styles. There will be at least two (or possibly more) deck styles in the next update to celebrate this... Also, you can now change to a new deck style without erasing the previously loaded deck.

Uncharacteristically for SoliLuxe, there may also be some sort of graphic novelty or embellishment coming up for the gameplay animations next time around — let's see what I come up with tonight!

January 9, 2011: "Nature" deck updated.

See the Updates and Extras section.

January 9, 2011: 2.12 update is out!

2.12 is available here. See the post below for changes included...

January 8, 2011: On towards 2.12...

The updates are coming pretty thick and fast these days, mainly thanks to the new graphics tools that put new demands on the program... and introduce a bug or two in the process, of course.

2.12 will be mainly about improved image quality, especially in the cards produced by DeckMaker. I took a long, hard look at what the built-in Java image scaling functions were capable of, and found them lacking. So now, a third-party library has been put to use for higher quality image scaling.

While testing away, I also found a bug — now fixed — that means card corners in DeckMaker will become more jaggied the more times you save a deck in the same DeckMaker session (a.k.a. "gradual loss of alpha transparency"). The simple work-around for now is: Just save once per SoliLuxe session. (The good news here is that Deckmaker stability is excellent, so not much chance of losing your work even if sessions become quite long!)

Now that the tools for adding stuff are in place, we need help to remove them again! In 2.12 there are "Delete" buttons on the Deck, Table and Menu tabs to get rid of unwanted items. As a bonus, the graphic preview list code has been revised (as in "done right"!) and some memory-stealing problems in that area removed. Plus, when you create a new DeckMaker deck it becomes immediately visible in the Deck tab for selection.

All newly created items are now added at the bottom of their respective lists — which is a "feature" that came about because it's the easiest way of coding, but also makes it easy to locate them. (When you restart SoliLuxe, all items will become alphabetically sorted in the lists as usual.)

The 2.12 update should be with us soon on the Updates and Extras page. Check back frequently!

Januray 7, 2011: Web site redesign.

The web site has undergone a massive redesign over the past weeks. The result: Much more information presented in a better way, I hope.

Also, I have moved everything from the forums over to the main website. This includes the updates and extras downloads, which are much more accessible this way. However, I took the opportunity to do some severe house-cleaning, so only stuff relevant to version 2.10 and above will be available in the updates section.

Note that the links to the main (full install) downloads will continue to appear on the front page. The "Updates and extras" page will be just that!

January 7, 2011: 2.11 Update Out

This update is somewhere between a major and a minor update: It's a major update for users of BackdropMaker and DeckMaker, and a minor update for everyone else.

Firstly, it fixes a crashing bug in BackdropMaker. Secondly, DeckMaker now has several deck templates to choose from. Thirdly, the image quality of the decks generated by DeckMaker will be very much better in most cases thanks to a change of image scaling algorithm. The same algorithm is also applied when scaling cards and menu buttons to fit the playing area, so everyone benefits there (even though the improvement is not as apparent on that level).