Another fine #z80 machine is the Tiki-100, hailing from Norway and running an OS that was compatible with #cp/m 2.2, called TIKO. This one has a pixel-based display which is rendered by the character out BDOS calls, making it a little slow, but still a lot of fun to work with. The boot disks and emulator are all Norwegian which was a fun challenge. The testing process also uncovered that the emulator has a timer bug, so the timing is different to that on real hardware. In the end, it all worked rather well. I ended up using the one colour highlight available to simulate bold text, bringing my #Infocom #Inform #Z-machine interpreter #Vezza to yet another machine. Download the binary from https://gitlab.com/sijnstra1/vezza

From static timetables to living networks: how AI reshapes combined transport planning http://dlvr.it/TPrYvt #AI #artificialintelligence #combinedtransport #INFORM

From static timetables to living networks: how AI reshapes combined transport planning http://dlvr.it/TPrWr9 #AI #artificialintelligence #combinedtransport #INFORM

A paper on how to reuse interpreters to get inform v3/5 games on your Apple II:
https://www.kansasfest.org/wp-content/uploads/apple_ii_inform_paper.pdf

There's just a slight issue: the linked tool used to interleave v5 story files on floppy images can no longer be downloaded.
The original URL is http://3.buric.co/interlz5-001.zip, archive.org doesn't seem to have it.

Please, tell me that someone here has it...

#apple2 #infocom #inform #ZMachine

Staying informed through news articles provides a comprehensive understanding of various topics.

https://informationsite.in/

#InformationSite
#varioustopics #newsarticles #newsarticle #understanding #topics #stay #informed #inform #article #topic #news #followus

On top of my GDevelop jam success yesterday, it turns out that "A Normal Morning" also placed 8th in ECTOCOMP's La Petite Mort category!
https://damonwakes.itch.io/a-normal-morning
#InteractiveFiction #ECTOCOMP #Inform7 #Inform #parser #horror

Further to my previous post about Interactive Fiction and rules-based vs OO, I'm reading a paper by Graham Nelson about the design of Inform 7, and I think this quote puts it well:

« I concede that bundling properties together into object and class definitions, with inheritance from classes to instances, works well. My objection is rather to the doctrine that when components of a program interact, there is a clear server-client paradigm; that one component exists to serve the needs of another. The contents of a work of interactive fiction are typically not in such relationships. If facts concerning a tortoise must all be in one place, facts concerning an arrow all in another, how are the two to meet? It seems unnatural to have a tortoise-arrow protocol, establishing mutual obligations. Neither exists to serve the other. The tortoise also eats lettuce, meanders about garden locations and hibernates. The arrow also knocks a flower-pot off a wall. »

https://worrydream.com/refs/Nelson_G_2006_-_Natural_Language,_Semantic_Analysis_and_Interactive_Fiction.pdf

Previous post:
https://universeodon.com/@mathew/115494785636586062

#InteractiveFiction #Inform

I'm starting to appreciate Inform 7 more. I still find the syntax frustrating, but I think the programming model makes sense for the problem domain.

I used to think that Object Oriented Programming would be the natural methodology for interactive fiction, because after all you're modeling objects. However, I now realize that in a typical game you're only modeling one of any given kind of object. Even when you have multiple instances — keys, perhaps — you want each instance to behave differently, and sometimes interact with other objects in quite different ways. So being able to share functionality across instances by attaching it to a class isn’t such a big win.

D&D and its adventure modules are really just elaborate sets of rules that take effect when a given pattern is hit. "If the party attacks the orc, he will sound the alarm"; "Opening the chest causes a dart trap to trigger"; "Each round the Beholder does the following…" So a system based around rules (with functions to encapsulate and re-use code) feels quite natural for adventure games. (And if you want to define a class of objects that all share similar behavior, you can still do that.)

At this point I'm finishing up my second mini game, and going through all the documentation trying to learn better ways to do things before I start on something larger and more releasable.

#InteractiveFiction #Inform

Two more weeks to apply to our microgrants program! We've received a few applications already (wooo!) but there is room left, so shoot your shot!

Head over to https://blog.iftechfoundation.org/2025-10-12-2026-iftf-microgrant-applications-now-open.html, and ask us any lingering questions - we want to hear from you!

#InteractiveFiction #IF #Twine #ink #inform #GameDev #GameWriting #IndieDev

An interesting read:

"#Inform is a programming language for creating interactive fiction (in the classic Infocom-esque parser-based format)"

https://catn.decontextualize.com/inform7/

The IDE is available for Mac, Windows, and Linux.

Back to game coding, working on another chapter of my latest interactive fiction parser game. Coded probably the only door+keys combo in the game. Added a couple of "test X" shortcut commands. Love Inform, the natural language / object oriented / declarative programming language for IF parser games. #interactiveFiction #Inform #gameDev #game #IndieGame

#inform : without regular form

- French: informe

- German: informiert

- Portuguese: informar

- Spanish: informar

------------

Fill in missing translations @ https://wordofthehour.org/r/translations

I'm now realizing that Inform 7 is far more complicated than I thought. It's also about as annoying to write as I expected, sadly. I'm sure there are people who get on well with programming languages that try to look like English, but I'm very much not one of them. #inform

Today I submitted my largest ever entry to the annual Interactive Fiction Competition. 49,506 words according to the Inform interpreter, and 57,968 if you include all my comments in the code. It's been a truly monstrous amount of work - I'm planning to take at least a couple of days off before getting started on my entry for 2026.
#WhoWhackedJimmyPiñata? #IFComp #IFComp2025 #Inform #Inform7 #InteractiveFiction

More Than a System Upgrade: Why Terminal Innovation Starts with People http://dlvr.it/TMjh3g #INFORM #RailNews #Technology #RailFreight

I'm really quite happy with this. Characters now respond to "ask X about themselves" etc., but will distinguish between "himself" and "herself." It's a small detail, but I think it helps conversation feel more natural and avoids situations where a straightforward "ask" command with an existing response simply generates "There is no reply."
#IFComp #IFComp2025 #Inform #Inform7 #WhoWhackedJimmyPiñata?

More than a year since I first planned to do it, I've finally got my cover image for Who Whacked Jimmy Piñata?. I had to take it at night, both to get the lighting right, and because the neighbours would probably have had questions otherwise. You'll see why when the competition entries go live.
#IFComp #IFComp2025 #Inform #Inform7 #WhoWhackedJimmyPiñata?

I'm down to some real fine polishing for Who Whacked Jimmy Piñata?, my entry for IFComp 2025.
#IFComp #IFComp2025 #Inform #Inform7 #WhoWhackedJimmyPiñata?

I forgot to share anything for #ScreenshotSaturday yesterday, but it seems worth mentioning that #WhoWhackedJimmyPiñata? has now passed 45,000 words.
#Inform #Inform7 #InteractiveFiction #TextAdventure

I think I've written something like 3,000 words of Inform source code just today. Who Whacked Jimmy Piñata? is pretty much a novel-length work at this point.
#Inform #Inform7 #gamedev #InteractiveFiction #WhoWhackedJimmyPiñata #ScreenshotSaturday