[game_preservation] hard copy of original Oregon Trail mainframe code?

[Devin Monnens]

By the way, Ahl even got the publication date of the Creative Computing
version wrong - he lists it as 1977!

http://computerscienceforkids.com/DavidAhlsSmallBasicComputerAdventuresChapter2WestwardHo.aspx

On Sun, Jan 30, 2011 at 10:38 PM, Devin Monnens <dmonnens at gmail.com> wrote:


> The short answer is there were three versions of the code. The first was

> from (December) 1971 and was played in the classroom. Rawitsch stated in an

> interview with me that he copied the code onto the MECC system in 1974. In

> 1976, Rawitsch modified the game using more accurate data as part of his

> graduate research, but the overall flow of the game reflects the original.

> This code was later published in Creative Computing in 1978. The 1973 date

> is incorrect and appears to be the result of a misquote in David Ahl's BASIC

> Computer Adventures book where he writes it as being made 1972-1973 (a lot

> of Ahl's information is actually incorrect though it was written to the best

> of his knowledge, so you should take whatever he writes with a grain of

> salt). Ahl republished the game there as Westward Ho! with revisions. The

> code from Creative Computing (with one correction - an added ") is below. I

> don't know which flavor of BASIC this runs in.

>

>

> http://deserthat.wordpress.com/2010/11/07/oregon-trail-ver-3-basic-3-1-1978/

>

> I'll e-mail Don to see if he knows what happened to the original printout,

> but my guess is it found its way into the MECC archives. Now if anyone knows

> what actually happened to the MECC computer program archives, I'd love to

> hear that! They had what must have been the largest collection of

> educational games at the time.

>

>

-- 
Devin Monnens
www.deserthat.com

The sleep of Reason produces monsters.
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