Pay real money so you can gamble virtual money on a virtual casino's digital simulation of a real casino's electro-mechanical simulation of a horse race? Baudrillard must have been spinning in his Matrix pod.
In version 1.1, the only release so far preserved, TEXT resource 600 ("Horse Racing Help") lacks a corresponding styl resource to provide formatting information. This causes the program to abort when "Horse Racing" is selected from the "Help..." submenu:
Below is the text that should have been displayed, with formatting inferred from the other help screens.
Horse Racing Rules
Horse racing is a computerized version of the mechanical derby found in some casinos. The object of the game is to win money by betting on which two horses finish in the first and second positions.
Playing the Game
At first glance, the number of boxes on the screen might be a little overwhelming. Don't worry; it's very simple to operate once you understand what the numbers mean. There are five horses, numbered 1 (on the top) through number 5 (on the bottom).
It is helpful to think of the boxes across the bottom of the screen as ten columns instead of four rows. Each column consists of 3 boxes and one button.
The topmost yellow boxes (just below the track) contain two numbers, the numbers of first and second place horses. Think of each of these ten boxes as a possible outcome of the next race. For example, the box labeled "2-4" represents horses 2 and 4 finishing in first and second place. It doesn't matter which of the two actually finishes first; only that those two horses are ahead of horses 1, 3, and 5.
The row of yellow boxes below that, usually numbers between 2 and 200, represent the odds for each of the winning combinations in row 1. The higher the odds are, the less likely that combination will win and the larger the payoff if it does. These odds change after every race.
The black boxes in row 3 show how much money (in dollars) the current player has bet on each combination. These boxes do not reflect money bet by other players. The current player is the one whose picture is highlighted and whose name and stats appear in four boxes at the top of the window. To see how much money a different player has bet, click on the desired player's picture.
The green "Bet" buttons along the bottom of the screen are what you click to bet on each winning combination. The numbers in the black boxes change to reflect the cash you just plunked down.
Once all the players have finished betting, you may start the race. Clicking "Run Entire Race" will animate the horses as they head for the finish line. Clicking "Show Finish Only" skips the drama and shows only the end results of the race. When you are finished looking at the results (and counting your money, if you were lucky), click "Get ready for the next race" to send the horses back to the starting line and begin a new round of betting.
Betting
The denomination must be set before any bets are down. The maximum bet on any horse combination is $500. As with other games in Vegas, option-click to subtract from your bet. Click the portrait of the player who wishes to bet. Set the desired denomination using the "Bet denomination" item in the Options menu. Then use the buttons at the bottom of the screen to put money down on the horses. A player without enough money to make a particular bet will not be permitted to place bets. (We left loan sharking out of the program.)
Keyboard Shortcuts
Note: Don't hold down the command key. Just type the character.
1: Make player 1 the current player
2: Make player 2 the current player
3: Make player 3 the current player
4: Make player 4 the current player
n: Start the next race
r: Run entire race
s: Show the finish only
Derby Options Menu
Bet Denomination
Changes the denomination of the current player's bets. No changes will take effect if the current player has already placed bets. This option only affects the current player.
Bet Maximum
Makes the current player bet the maximum number of money ($500) with a single click. This option only affects the current player.
Sound
This option toggles the sound on and off. The sound setting is shared by all games and is saved in the preferences file.
