Inform Programming Language Index

"Inform" is a compiler of Infocom-format story files. It was written and uploaded by Graham Nelson, <nelson@vax.ox.ac.uk>
Current version:

compiler: 5.5 Release 1502, July 3rd 1995

library: 5/11, July 3rd 1995.

General notes

• Notes on Inform

  Basic general notes about the compiler and the structure of the archive directory in GMD.

• Release notes

  Notes about what's new in this version.

Executables

• Inform 5.5 (02aug95) for the Acorn Archimedes

  Written by Graham Nelson.

• Inform 5.4 release 1405/a (18jan95) for the Amiga 68030

  Optimized for the 68030 CPU. Compiled by snail. Also available is a description file.

• Inform 5.5 release 1502 for the Amiga

  Compiled for a vanilla 68000 (ie. is not optimized for 68020+ CPUs), by Werther 'Mircko' Pirani. Also available is a description file.

• Inform 5.5 for the Apple //GS

  Version 1.0b4, written for use with the GNO/ME environment, by Evan Day.

• Inform 5.4 v1405 for the Atari ST.

• Inform 5.5 PowerPC Macs Interface Version 2.12

  By Robert A. Pelak.

• Inform 5.5 68K Macs Interface Version 2.12

  By Robert A. Pelak.

• Inform 5.4 for the Macintosh MPW

  Ported by Brad Jones.

• Inform 5.5 v1502 for 386+ with DOS

  Ported by Bob Nowell.

• Inform 5.5 v1502 for generic PC with DOS

  Ported by Bob Nowell.

• Inform 5.5 for OS/2

  Ported by John W. Kennedy. Unpack with OS/2's builti n UNPACK utility. Works with either OS/2 2.x or Wrap 3.0

• Inform 5.5 v1502 for Windows NT & 95.

  Ported by Wolfgang Strobl.

Source code

• asm.c

  The Inform assembler.

• express.c

  The expression evaluator.

• files.c

  File handling, memory, command-line memory settings, and fatal errors.

• header.h

  Common definitions

• inform.c

  Top level of Inform: main, switches, top level parser.

• inputs.c

  Input routines, preprocessor, non-fatal errors.

• symbols.c

  The symbols table.

• tables.c

  Maintains tables of variables and constructs the tables part of the story file.

• zcode.c

  Z-opcodes, text translation and abbreviation routines.

Library files

• changes.txt

  Modification history of the Inform library.

• grammar.h

  Grammar table for the standard verbs library.

• parser.h

  The core of the Inform library and the parser.

• verblib.h

  A library of standard verb routines.

Manuals

• Language Specification (Tex format)

• Technical Manual (Tex format)

• Designer's Manual (plain text)

• Designer's Manual (Postscript format)

• Designer's Manual (Tex format)

• Designer's Manual (DVI format)

• Designer's Manual (Hypertext format)

• Debugging Format Used in Inform 5.4 onwards

• General manuals (WFW 6.0 format)

Contains the following documents:

The Craft of Adventure, Second Addition.

The Inform Technical Manual for Revision 5.4 (v1405), last updated 18jan95.

The Specification of the Z-Machine and Inform Assembly Language.

Examples

Compiled versions of these games, as well as other games which are not supplied with source code, can be found in the Infocom Games Index.

Also, source code for full Inform games can be found in the Source Games Index.

• Arrays

  A tiny game to test the array facilities introduced by Inform 5.5, by Graham Nelson.

• Cafe Inform

  Or "Informa Cola: An Additive-Free Interactive Example", by Graham Nelson. A Drinks machine demonstrating the 'parse_name' routine.

• Carousel

  An Interactive Snippet from Zork II, by Dave Lebling and Marc Blank (1981). The Carousel Room from Zork II, by Graham Nelson. How to stop an event by setting a routine to NULL.

• Compass Rose

  Written by Joachim Bauhann and Gareth Rees. Puts a compass rose on the status line, showing the exits from a room.

• form.h

  Release 5 by Torbjoern Andersson. A Bureaucracy-style form. Contains documentation and an example using the form (Inform source code and compiled game).

• Goldskull

  Mike Roberts' TADS example goldskul.t (contained in the TADS pacakge) ported to Inform by John Holder <jholder@nmsu.edu> and Gareth Rees.
  For TADS users who want to learn Inform.

• Goldskull Zex

  An example of an Inform game which uses the styled text facilities of the Macintosh ZeX interpreter (see the ZIP Interpreter Index), by Greg Ewing.

• Hellow: a non-interactive demonstration

  Written by Graham Nelson. Accompanied by it's compiled V3 story file.

• Listless

  A Useless Utility for Programmers, by Robert M. Dickau; release 1 / serial number 950914. An interactive demonstration of the effects of the style bits inside the WriteListFrom function. Type HELP for instructions.
  Also available as a precompiled gamefile.

• A Nasal Twinge: An Interactive Aroma

  A short demonstration of "add-to-scope" (new in library 5/6), written by Graham Nelson.

• Robots - Another Abuse of the Z-Machine

  A Nostalgic Diversion by Torbjorn Anderson, release 5 / serial number 951120.

• A Scenic View

  Written by Richard Barnett. A demonstration of object-less scenary descriptions, or how to manufacture non-objects that respond to the 'examine' verb. See the Contributions section for includable headers created from release 1 of this example by JoeMason.

• Shakespearean Insult Generator

  Version 1.0, by Tim Middleton.

• Shell: the interactive game skeleton

  Written by Graham Nelson. Accompanied by it's compiled V3 story file.

• Through the Looking Glass

  An Interactive Tutorial by Gareth Rees and Doug Atkinson. Release 1 / Serial number 951029. Also available are the game files which accompany the tutorial.

• Z-Life

  An Inform implementation of Conway's Game of Life. Release 3 / serial number 960121 by Julian Arnold.

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Tools

• Debug file printer

  C source code of a small utility to print out Inform debugging files from Inform release 5.4 or later, by Graham Nelson.

• Debugging format

  Description of the Inform debugging information format.

• InfoClues

  C source code of a small utility to convert UHS-format hint files to an Inform include file which runs an "Invisiclues"-style menu of hints, by Graham Nelson. The program description is contained seperately.

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More Information

• Inform Programming Page

  Contains more detailed information about Inform, as well as more examples and descriptions of the language.

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Paul Gilbert | s9406702@yallara.cs.rmit.edu.au