
Thanks for downloading Lydia's Heart! I hope you enjoy it. Lydia's Heart is a large, serious story (I'm reluctant to call it a game, but the word is probably unavoidable) written in the TADS 3 programming language. TADS 3 was created by Michael J. Roberts. For further information, visit
www.tads.org.
 
In this readme file:

1. Legal notice.
2. How to get started.
3. Suggestions for players.
4. How to report a bug.

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1. Legal notice.

Lydia's Heart is (c) 2007 by Jim Aikin. All rights reserved, including the right of electronic distribution. Lydia's Heart is freeware, which means you're free to use it and make copies for a few personal friends (upper limit -- four or five), provided that this readme file and all other accompanying materials are included with the copy. However, you're not allowed to post Lydia's Heart
on a website without permission from me, and you're not allowed to create adaptations or derivative
works (electronic or otherwise).

The graphic image with which the game opens (not viewable on some interpreter software, sad to say)
was created by Tim Simmons, and is (c) 2007 by Tim Simmons. Again, all rights to this image are
reserved, including the right of electronic distribution.

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2. How to get started.

If you've downloaded the Windows .exe version, all you need to do is park it in a convenient
location and double-click on it. There is no installer, and it won't clutter up your Start menu or your
Registry.

If you've downloaded the .t3 file, you'll need interpreter software in order to play the game.
Links to good interpreters for various computer operating systems are to be found at
www.tads.org/tads3.htm.

After installing the interpreter on your computer, you can use any of the standard methods (the File > Open box, etc.) to load the game.

After playing for a while, you need to SAVE your game. This is like putting a bookmark in a book. You do this by typing 'save' and then giving your computer a filename. When you want to continue at another time, you need to launch the interpreter, load LydiasHeart.t3, type the word 'restore' when you see the prompt, and direct the software to the game file you want to restore. (In someinterpreters, it may not be possible to load a saved game from the interpreter's own menu.)

A full set of instructions on how to play interactive fiction can be viewed at any time within Lydia's
Heart by using the command 'instructions'.

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3. Suggestions for players.

Lydia's Heart is a difficult game. Unless you're fiendishly clever, it's not likely that you'll finish it in one or two sessions. Two or three of the puzzles are timed, and if you don't accomplish certain
things within the time limit the game may become unwinnable. You may be given a fairly direct indication
within the story that you need to do something quickly because of a time limit -- or you may not.

If you have worked out a way to get a character away from a certain location in order to accomplish
something that you can't do while the character is present, be warned: The character will return
before too long. And the number of times you'll be able to get them to leave is strictly limited.
In every case you have more than enough opportunities to do what you need to do. But if they're
no longer willing to leave, the game may well be unwinnable. There is also a location that
you can get trapped in, with no way to leave without bringing the story to an abrupt and very unhappy
ending.
So I'd suggest that you save the game after accomplishing various tasks. You may want to use different
filenames, so as to be able to get back to a place where the game was still winnable.

In most circumstances, you'll be told what you did to bring about an unhappy ending, but there may be
one or two circumstancesin which you can die without being told in so many words what you did to cause
that to happen. Experienced IF players may want to think about whether they've been "on auto-pilot,"
doing what comes naturally without thinking about the dramatic situation.

In the current release (2.0.06) the password protection of the hint system has been shut off. You can access the hints at any time by typing 'hint'. The hints are context-sensitive, so you'll only see items that you can currently make use of. 

If you're having a problem in the course of the story, another option would be to ask the characters you meet about the object or situation you're struggling with. There are a number of characters in
Lydia's Heart, and one or another of them may offer useful information (either because they like you,
or because they're being careless and don't take you seriously).

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4. How to report a bug.

Lydia's Heart has been extensively tested prior to release. But as with any other computer software, the initial release is not likely to be free of bugs. If you spot anything that looks weird or nonsensical, please let me know about it so I can fix it!

Copy as much of the text as you can leading up to where the problem occurs, as this will help me pinpoint the cause. Many interpreters allow you to drag across text with the mouse and then use the
standard copy command. Paste the output into an email to me (midiguru23@sbcglobal.net), or copy it
into a text editor or word processor and send me an attached file.

I promise not to use your email address to send you spam, but when there's an updated release of the game, I'll let you know about it.

Problems that I'd like to know about include missing text, text with typos, objects that disappear or reappear for no reason, objects that are described in ways that don't make sense given your actions, dramatic situations that seem bizarre or nonsensical, and huge gouts of computer text (the dreaded
run-time error message).


