Playing Windows Games
Windows XP Starter Edition provides several games to play, available from the Start menu. Review basic strategies and tips, and the object of these games here.
Playing Solitaire
The object of Solitaire is to use all the cards in the deck to complete the four suit stacks on the top row in order of rank, from lowest (ace) to highest (king). During play, move the cards in the lower row in descending order with red and black cards alternating. You win by moving all cards to the top row.
To open Solitaire
- Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Games, and then click Solitaire.
To play Solitaire
- In Solitaire, click the Game menu, and then click Deal.
- Double-click any aces on the seven stacks to move them to the spaces at the upper right of the screen. As you build the cards on the aces in ascending order, double-click to place.
- Build the lower cards in row stacks, alternating red and black suits and in descending order.
- When you have made all available plays on the board, click the deck at the top left to begin turning over cards.
To change game options
- In Solitaire, click the Game menu, and then click Options.
- Select the Timed game check box for a greater challenge.
- Select the Status bar check box to display the score and time played.
- Select the Outline dragging check box for the outline of a card (rather than the actual card itself) to appear while you drag the card to a new location.
- To change the design of deck, click the Game menu, click Deck, and then make your selection.
- Select whether to draw one or three cards at a time. These options are scored slightly differently.
To select a scoring system
- In Solitaire, click the Game menu, and then click Options.
- Under Scoring, click one of the following options:
- If you move a card to a suit stack, you get 10 points.
- If you move a card from the deck to a row stack, you get 5 points.
- If you turn over a card in a row stack, you get 5 points.
- If you move a card from a suit stack back to a row stack, you lose 15 points.
- If you are playing with the Draw Three option, you lose 20 points every time you go through the deck after the third time.
- If you are playing with the Draw One option, you lose 100 points every time you go through the deck after the first time.
- For timed games only, you lose 2 points every 10 seconds of play, and you receive bonus points at the end of the game. The shorter the game, the larger the bonus.
- You start the game with a debt of 52 dollars, which represents your wager.
- You win 5 dollars for every card you play on a suit stack.
- The object of the game is to earn more money than you wagered.
- If you are playing with the Draw Three option, you can only go through the deck three times.
- If you are playing with the Draw One option, you can only go through the deck once.
Playing FreeCell
The object of FreeCell is to move all the cards to the home cells, using the free cells as placeholders. To win, make four stacks of cards on the home cells, one for each suit, stacked in order of rank, from lowest (ace) to highest (king).
To open FreeCell
- Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Games, and then click FreeCell.
To play FreeCell
- In FreeCell, click the Game menu, and then click New Game.
The game area consists of four home cells, four free cells, and a deck of cards that is dealt face up in eight columns at the beginning of the game.
- To move a card, click on it, and then click where you want to move the card.
- When moving cards to columns, cards must be moved in order from highest (king) to lowest (ace), alternating suit colors.
- When moving cards to home cells, cards must be moved in order from lowest (ace) to highest (king), same suit.
- A card from the bottom of a column can move to a free cell, the bottom of another column, or a home cell.
- A card from a free cell can move to the bottom of a column, or to a home cell.
To change game options
- In FreeCell, click the Game menu, and then click Options.
- Click Display messages on illegal moves to display a message when a move is not allowed.
- Click Quick play to turn animation on or off.
- Click Double click moves card to free cell to move a card to a free cell when it is double-clicked.
Strategies and tips
- Before you make your first move, look for trouble spots, such as aces, hidden at the tops of columns or low-numbered cards stacked behind higher-numbered cards.
- Try to keep your free cells unoccupied as much as possible. Empty columns are also valuable.
- Reveal a partially hidden card by right-clicking it.
- When you have two or more cards in sequence at the bottom of a column, move the entire sequence to a different column if there are enough free cells open. To move the sequence, click the bottom card of the sequence you want to move, and then click the column to which you want to move it.
- You can quickly move a card to a free cell by double-clicking the card.
- At the end of each move, FreeCell transfers unneeded cards to home cells. A card is unneeded when no lower-rank cards of the opposite color remain in the playing area.
- When only one legal move remains, the title bar flashes as a warning.
Playing Minesweeper
The object of Minesweeper is to locate all the mines as quickly as possible without uncovering any of them. If you uncover a mine, you lose the game.
To open Minesweeper
- Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Games, and then click Minesweeper.
To play Minesweeper
- In Minesweeper, click the Game menu, and then click New.
- To start the timer, click any square on the playing field.
- Uncover a square by clicking it. If you uncover a mine, you lose the game
- If a number appears on a square, it indicates how many mines are in the eight squares that surround the numbered one.
- To mark a square you suspect contains a mine, right-click it.
- If you are uncertain about a square, right-click it twice to mark it with a question mark (?). Later, you can either mark the square as a mine or remove the markings by right-clicking the square again once or twice.
- If you have marked all the mines around a numbered square, you can uncover the remaining squares around it by clicking the numbered square with the left and right mouse buttons simultaneously. If not all mines surrounding the numbered square have been marked, the remaining covered or unmarked squares will appear to be depressed (or flash) when the numbered square is clicked with both buttons simultaneously.
- Look for common patterns in numbers, which often indicate a corresponding pattern of mines. For example, the pattern 2-3-2 at the edge of a group of uncovered squares indicates a row of three mines next to the three numbers.
Playing Pinball
The object of the Space Cadet 3D Pinball game is to launch the ball and to earn as many points as possible by hitting bumpers, targets, and flags with that ball. Click the graphic to open a second window displaying the name and location of all table components.
The game is divided into nine levels of play, represented as ranks. The lowest rank is Cadet, and the highest rank is Fleet Admiral. Advancement to the next rank is achieved by selecting and completing a series of missions. As you advance in rank, new and more challenging missions become available to you. The higher the rank, the greater the point reward.
Regardless of your skill level, you start each game with three balls and the rank of Cadet, and you earn additional balls and rank advancement as you play.
To open Pinball
- Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Games, and then click Pinball.
To start a new game of Pinball
- In Pinball, click the Game menu, and then click New Game.
- To launch the ball, hold down the SPACEBAR and then release it. The longer the SPACEBAR is held, the more powerful the launch.
- To play the game full screen, on the Options menu, click Full Screen. To return to the smaller window, press F4.
To earn extra balls
- In Pinball, drop all three medal targets three times in a row to earn the level-three commendation, which awards an extra ball. When you have earned an extra ball, one of the extra ball lights located above the out lanes on each side of the table will be turned on.
- Drop any medal target when the purple medal light is turned on.
- Roll the ball down one of the out lanes when the extra ball light is turned on.
To increase your fuel supply
- Roll the ball over the fuel lights in the fuel chute.
- Send the ball down the bonus lane.
- Hit all the fuel targets in the upper-left corner of the table.
- Your available fuel supply is indicated by the number of fuel lights that are turned on in the fuel chute. When the last fuel light goes out, the current mission is terminated and the current game is over.
Playing Spider Solitaire
The object of Spider Solitaire is to remove all of the cards from the ten stacks at the top of the window in the fewest number of moves.
Spider Solitaire is played with two decks of cards. When you begin a new game, ten stacks of cards, each with one card facing up, are dealt. The remaining cards are placed in five stacks in the bottom-right corner of the window and are used when you deal a new row.
To remove cards from the ten stacks at the top of the window, move the cards from one column to another until you line up a suit of cards in order from king to ace. When you line up a complete suit, those cards are removed.
To open Spider Solitaire
- Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Games, and then click Spider Solitaire.
To play Spider Solitaire
- In Spider Solitaire, click the Game menu, and then click New Game.
- To move a card, drag the card from one stack to another. You can move cards according to these rules:
- You can move a card from the bottom of a stack to an empty stack.
- You can move a card from the bottom of a stack to a card with the next highest value, regardless of suit or color.
- You can move a set of cards all of the same suit, and in order, as if they were one card.
- When you are ready to deal a new row of cards, click Deal, or click a stack of cards in the lower-right corner of the window.
There must be at least one card in each stack before you can deal a new row of cards.
- To see the legal moves you can make, on the Game menu, click Show An Available Move. You can also click the score box at the bottom of the page.
Scoring in Spider Solitaire
You begin each game of Spider Solitaire with 500 points. You can increase or decrease your score based on these rules:
- Each time you move a card, you lose one point.
- Each time you click the Game menu, and then click Undo, you lose one point.
- Each time you line up an entire suit in order from king to ace, the suit is removed from the playing area, and you get 100 points.
Strategies and tips
Before dealing a new row of cards:
- Remove cards from the ten stacks at the top of the window by arranging them in matching suits in order from king to ace.
- Create stacks of matching suits.
- Create stacks with nonmatching suits to turn over more cards.
- Move cards to empty stacks to turn over more cards.
- On the Game menu, click Show An Available Move to see if there are any legal moves left to make. You can also click the score box at the bottom of the page.
If you still have new rows to deal, avoid creating several empty stacks. Each stack must contain at least one card before you can deal a new row. Therefore, you will have to move cards into the empty stacks before clicking Deal.
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