dopewars command line options
Once you have installed dopewars, you should
be able to run the binary just by typing
dopewars
(unless you have installed the binary in a directory which is not in your
path, in which case precede it with the path). Run without any options,
the dopewars binary runs as a dopewars client.
Command line options can be used to configure common aspects of dopewars.
More exhaustive configuration is possible by editing the dopewars
configuration files; note, however, that
command line options can be used to override some of these settings (also see
the -g option below).
For a brief description of the command line options, specify the option
-h with the command
dopewars -h
A list of all command line options is presented below. Please note that
most options have a "short" format (e.g. -p) and a "long" format
(e.g. --port). The "long" form is only available on systems that
have GNU getopt; this excludes the Windows version.
- -b, --no-color, --no-colour
- "Black and white". This tells the dopewars client (if that is what
you're running) not to use coloured text (by default, colour is used if the
terminal and curses support it).
- -n, --single-player
- If running the client, run in single-player mode. Don't try to connect
to any available dopewars servers.
- -a, --antique
- Puts the client into "antique" mode; dopewars is derived from the
earlier game for MS-DOS of the same name, which in turn was based on
"Drug Wars" by John E. Dell. "Antique" mode aims to follow the behaviour
of the MS-DOS dopewars closely, and consequently this entails single-player
mode also.
- -f file, --scorefile=file
- Specifies the path and name of the file used to store the dopewars
high scores in; this can alternatively be specified in the configuration file
with the HiScoreFile=file
option. (N.B. This option cannot be used to get dopewars to open a high
score file with privilege when running setuid/setgid; all privileges are
dropped by this point for security.)
- -o addr, --hostname=addr
- Gives the name of the machine running a dopewars server, in human
readable (e.g. "nowhere.com") or dotted quad (e.g. 127.0.0.1) form. When the
client is started, if not in single-player mode, it automatically attempts to
connect to this server for a multiplayer game. This can also be specified with
the Server=addr configuration file
option.
- -p port, --port=port
- Specifies the numeric port number which the server uses. This is usually
7902, but some servers may use other port numbers to avoid conflicts with
other services running on the machine. If you are running the dopewars client,
it will search for a server on this port; if you are running the server, it
will bind to this port and wait for connections from clients (the clients
must also be instructed to use this port, of course). This is equivalent to
setting the port number with the
Port=port configuration file
option.
- -s, --public-server
- Runs the dopewars server. This mediates
multiplayer games of dopewars, and keeps track of high scores. Any player
wishing to join the game hosted
by this server must connect to your machine using the dopewars client and the
port number which you have chosen, and can then interact with other players
who have done the same thing. By default, a dopewars server will report its
status to the metaserver, unless it is set
otherwise in the configuration
file.
- -S, --private-server
- Also runs a dopewars server, but in this case does not report its
status to the metaserver. This does not stop clients from connecting to your
server, of course (unless it is behind a firewall, or the
maximum number of clients is exceeded),
but it makes it harder to find. The connection to the
metaserver can also be disabled by adding
MetaServer.Active=FALSE to the
configuration files.
- -A, --admin
- Connects to a dopewars server running on this machine, and allows
server commands to be issued. Only the user
that originally started the server (or the superuser) is permitted to do
this. Only supported for the text-mode server on Unix systems.
- -g file, --config-file=file
- Instructs dopewars to read setup information from the
configuration file named by file.
This file is read immediately - i.e. at the point at which the -g option is
encountered - and so these settings will override any set in the default
configuration files or by previous command line options. Command line options
occurring after the -g option, or for that matter further -g options,
that change these same settings, will then override them.
- -r file, --pidfile=file
- Maintains a pid file with the specified name while the server is running.
The file is a one-line text file, containing the process ID of the dopewars
server process, and is deleted when the server quits.
- -c, --ai-player
- Runs a computerised player. This will connect to the specifed dopewars
server and join in the multiplayer game going on there. When the player
finishes the game (or is eliminated by the other players or the server) the
program finishes.
- -w, --windowed-client
- If running a dopewars client, then this forces the use of a graphical
user interface. Under Microsoft Windows, this is an "ordinary" window, while
under Unix, this uses GTK+. If a suitable environment is not present (e.g.
the binary was compiled without graphical support, or - in the case of GTK+ -
you are not running X) then dopewars will quit with an error. By default,
if neither -w or -t are specified, then a graphical user interface will be
used where available, falling back to a text-mode client in case of error.
- -t, --text-client
- When running a dopewars client, forces the use of a text-mode (curses
or console mode) interface, even if graphics are available.
- -P name, --player=name
- Sets the default player name.
- -C file, --convert=file
- Converts a high score file from an older version of dopewars to the format
used by the current version. The old high score file is replaced with a new
file, and a backup copy of the old file is made. This conversion process is
necessary since older versions of dopewars did not identify the high score
files properly, so they cannot be automatically converted. (Such automatic
conversion would also pose a security risk if the dopewars binary is running
setgid.)
- -u name, --plugin=name
- Uses the named plugin for sound output. Valid options are "none" (for
no sound) plus any name registered by plugins found on your system. (These
are currently "winmm" for the Windows multimedia system plugin, and "esd"
and "sdl" for Unix plugins using the ESound and SDL libraries.) If no such
option is given, the first valid sound plugin to be found is used.
- -h, --help
- Displays a brief description of the available command line options, and
contact details.
- -v, --version
- Displays the current dopewars version number, and then exits.
Last update: 02-06-2003
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