VASL User's Guide - Appendices

A. Internet ASL Resources

VASL.info - The official VASL site - Downloads, Boards and Overlay Archive, Scenario Setup Archives, FAQ's
ROAR ASL - Automated Scenario Record
ASL Errata - Errata for AH and non-AH scenarios

B. Working Offline

VASL can be a great analytical tool for planning out your next ASL game. Start VASL the way you normally do and do not connect to the server. Set up your scenarios and tweak your placements! No counters to pick up, no messes to clean. When you are ready for your face-to-face game, simply expand every stack and take a screen shot of the VASL window. Then print your screen capture! A very neat way to set up your games ahead of time. Windows users can easily print their VASL screens by pressing the Print Screen button above the Insert key on their keyboard. Then open any program that allows cutting and pasting (Paintbrush, even your word processor) and paste the image. Once pasted in, you can easily print the graphic. VASL users that use the program on other operating systems can use shareware screen capture programs to accomplish the same thing.

C. Postal VASL

Many thanks to Lars Thuring and Gary Milks!

On of the nicest features of VASL is how it enables users to quickly and efficiently play ASL via the mail (e-mail that is). VASL allows you to not only save the scenario as an attachable file, but it also keeps a Log File of each of the actions taken by the players, so you can step through the action move by move.

Preparing your E-Mail program

When you play VASL by email logfile exchange, a problem can crop up when your email program wraps long text lines onto the next line (i.e., the "word wrap" feature). VASL logfiles are solid blocks of text, and if an email application word wraps a logfile, VASL will report "Invalid savefile" when trying to load it.

Most email utilities allow you to turn off the word-wrap feature for individual mailings - in Eudora Pro, simply uncheck the "word wrap" icon that appears at the top of new message and any logfile attachments will not be word-wrapped.

In desperate situations, word-wrapped logfiles can be edited with a text editor - usually simply deleting the line breaks inserted by the mail program will repair it. Be sure there are also no linebreaks at the end of the file either!

File naming conventions

Some file naming convention between yourself and your opponent will be necessary... here is a suggestion: "[scenario#]-[turn #]-[side]-[phase] .vasl"

Side	A	Allies
	X	Axis

Phase	RPh	Rally Phase
	PFPh	Prep Fire
	MPh	Movement
	DFPh	Defensive Fire Phase
	AFPh	Advancing Fire Phase
	RtPh	Route Phase
	APh	Advance Phase
	CCPh	Close Combat Phase

Example: "AH17-3-A-PFph.vasl" or "CH45-2-X-Aph.vasl"

The Log File

Postal VASL is achieved through the mailing back and forth of a Log File. The Logging feature must be turned on to capture the moves. Create a logfile by selecting Begin Logfile from the File menu at the top of the VASL Control window. The current map position will be saved, and VASL will record all your moves, actions, and comments. They will be seen by your opponent as (s)he Steps through the log file. Hitting the Undo button will back you up to the last move, but your text comments will not be erased. When finished with your moves, select End Log from the File menu to save the moves into a file using the above naming system. Be sure you give the logfile a different name from the scenario savefile or you will overwrite the savefile.

Sending the Log File

After closing the log file, exit VASL and start your mail program. Create a message to your opponent and, if possible, attach the log file (as an attachment, there is less chance that the log file will be mangled by line wraps). If attachments are not possible, the log file can opened in a text editor (Notepad or SimpleText) and the contents pasted into the message body

Stepping through a Log File

Upon receiving a VASL log in email, save the attachment (or copy and paste the VASL log into your text editor and save it) into the subfolder for the scenario. Your opponent activates the logfile by choosing it after selecting File > Load Game. A logfile is technically just a savefile with moves tacked onto the end, so if the file contains moves the Step button will appear automatically. If the button does not appear, there are no moves recorded in that file.

Each time you hit the Step button, a single move or comment will be executed until the end of the file is reached. The Undo button takes you back to the last move. Step through your opponent's log file until you see something to which you wish to respond (a comment, an error, or a defensive first fire opportunity). Back up to the location where you wish to start logging (possibly several lines back where the target unit starts moving) and write a new logfile. As you now step through your opponent's logfile, his moves will be echoed into the logfile you are creating. Step down to show your opponent's comment/error/move, then enter your response. [Note: the reason for not writing your log immediately after loading your opponent's is to avoid copying your opponent's valid actions to your log file unnecessarily and thus to keep each log file to the minimum size possible.] If your response significantly changes the situation in the game, end the log and send the logfile to your opponent for any adjustments. Otherwise, enter the actions for your phase(s), end the log and exit VASL.

If playing or observing a live game on the server, a logfile may be opened to record the game as it progresses.

Honor System

Like all mail/email games, a version of the "On My Honor" rules will be used (see the FAQ). For instance, the players must agree not to step through the log file to determine the best defensive first fire opportunities before applying the shots. They must also agree to stop stepping through their opponent's MPh if a significant defensive action takes place. In other words, both players must agree to play the log file as it comes. So no peeking!

D. Etiquette

VASL is not just an interface for playing ASL over the Internet, its a social environment as well. Please remember to act accordingly.

Simple Rules

Be Polite
Do not start games you are not in a position to finish.
Don't kibitz or interfere in games that you are spectating in.
Provide rules help only if asked in games you are a spectator to. And avoid starting a rules fight in a game you are not a part of.
When in the Main Room, don't interrupt conversation by rolling dice. Also, don't move counters around on your map unless you have Auto-Report Moves turned off.
When watching other people play, you can expand and contract stacks without affecting the other's view. Needless to say, you should not otherwise manipulate the counters.

E. Acknowledgements

From Rodney Kinney:

Extreme thanks to Carl Fung for the counter artwork. Big thanks to Gordon, Molek, Tom Repetti, Bruce Mansfield and Carl Pfeiffer for the beautiful maps. Thanks to testers for their suggestions and enthusiasm. Thanks to Hasbro for not dragging me into court.

F. License

From Rodney Kinney:

You may not distribute VASL in exchange for any sort of fee without my explicit written consent. There is no charge for personal use of VASL. On the other hand, if this software isn't worth $10, then I don't know what is. Donations accepted by Rodney Kinney at 4053 149th Ave SE, Bellevue WA, 98006. Include your email address and I'll tell you how to disable the "friendly reminder." Also, read the license that comes with the Java Runtime Environment.

G. Troubleshooting

PROBLEM: VASL can't find my boards or overlays!

SOLUTION: Double-check the directory structure as described in the Installation section. Make sure your Boards directory is set correctly in the Preferences. Pay attention to upper vs. lower case. Your boards directory should only have the bdXX files. It should not contain any GIFs.

PROBLEM: Out of memory errors pop up when loading large scenarios.

SOLUTION: Set display to 256 colors.

PROBLEM: I have a different problem!

SOLUTION: Send email to Sam Tyson.

H. Contribute to VASL

VASL is not the result of a single person's effort, but has grown out of the cooperation of a large number of people over time. There are many niches, large and small, for anybody interested in contributing. The VASL Cooperative is a collection of people who contribute map artwork, counter artwork, scenario setups, web support, and/or Java programming. Or people just interested in an inside or advance view of what's happening with VASL.

Join the discussion at Gamesquad, Facebook, GitHub and/or Discord.

You may find talents or obsessions you never knew you had!