Introduction
El Gato's Chopshop is a free, "lean and mean" car designer meant to be used with Activision's I76 Nitro Pack.
Statistics are intended to reflect the most recent data from the official AVA Nitro Pack Pricelist (version 5.0, revised 03/08/1998 as of this writing) and from the game itself.
There is good reason to believe the program can not do anything harmful under normal (and even questionable) operating conditions.
If possible, post comments to the Public Forum so everyone can be instantly aware... or email dyad(@)129.137.80.78.
Sorry but we won't explain "HOW TO HACK I76 NITRO", nor do we have helpful source code, nor should this program help make hacked cars. While we think hacking is great in it's own right, we can only hope the learning curve (which is not very steep anyway) keeps the most immature players from wrecking everyone else's fun.
Enjoy! El Gato
Technical
Chopshop requires a Windows 9x compatible operating system and very little else. This shouldn't be a problem, considering the game platform. The program is fairly self-contained, registers no "file associations", and does not "install" or require a special "uninstall" (manual removal is all that's necessary). This HTML documentation (the "Chopshop.html" file) can also be viewed in the About dialog, so it is required to have that name, and be in the program folder.
When run, the program looks for the "Chopshop.ini" settings file (and creates it if it doesn't exist). It is plain ASCII text and can be edited (e.g. with Notepad) if necessary. The settings include the location of the Nitro addon directory, which must be a full pathname (e.g., "d:\games\I'76 Nitro\addon"). When it can't find this directory (e.g.: the first time it is run), it will let you select a directory of your choice (but it must contain a file -- any file). If you find and select "nitro.exe", the program automatically uses the "I'76 Nitro\addon" directory.
Instructions
Chopshop is simple and has a quick, easy, standard interface and should fit into a 640*480 display area (and also has a resizeable frame).
The program normally loads and saves cars in ".csc" files. The Open and Save commands call the usual "Open" and "Save As..." dialog boxes, respectively. These dialogs remember (via the settings file) where you last accessed ".csc" files. Using these dialogs, the ".csc" extension will be automatically appended to filenames typed without one. When saving, Chopshop will get confirmation before overwriting existing files.
Other ways of opening car files (which do not automatically add file extensions):
Drag and drop a file into a Chopshop window (replaces current car). The program will attempt to load it regardless of it's extension.
Drag and drop a file onto a Chopshop program/shortcut icon.
Associate the ".csc" file type with the Chopshop program and launch the ".csc" files from the shell.
Run the program with the name of the car file as the first command-line argument. Use the full file name here, e.g.: "chopshop mycar.csc".
The Chopshop Name box drops down to show the names of other variants of that model (if you have no model selected, you will be shown all the names).
Chopshop saves its own car format (in the ".csc" files) with or without components as you desire.
The up/down arrow keys can also be used to change armor/chassis amounts if you are focused on the number or it's spin control.
The horizontal arrows at the bottom of the armor/chassis panel transfer 1 point between corresponding armor and chassis values. For example, clicking the right arrow will transfer 1 point each from front, left, right, and rear sides of armor to the front, left, right, and rear sides of chassis (if possible).
Keyboard "hotkeys" are indicated on the buttons and may be used with ALT pressed.
F1 shows the About dialog (which shows this documentation, hopefully).
ESC exits the program.
Future Features
Export to VCF (already in beta testing, works fairly well, please be patient)
Last Rampage paint job is actually black with white stripe, not blue/yellow.
Changed car file extension from ".acf" to ".csc" to avoid an obvious conflict (sorry!) 1.90 beta
New file format with all I76 Nitro car data (armor, chassis, paint, tires).
Several new controls for tweaking the new data.
Improved & streamlined code for smaller size and faster execution.
This new HTML documentation.
Fixed "ENTER exits" bug.
Made Name box show all the cars if no model is chosen.
Settings file ("Chopshop.ini" when created).
F1 for help!
New documentation/browser controls in the About dialog.
New layout.
New documentation.
Thanks to
I76 and I82 teams and testers; all Chopshop beta testers; Los Bastardos (www.i76.com/lb); Mr. Asesino; Ax-L, The AVA (www.auto-vigilante.com); All'ya Cali3 riders; Monty Python (bet you didn't expect that!); Kids in the Hall (check out the "Brain Candy" movie); Game lovers and coders everywhere....
License and Standard Disclaimer
Use of this software is subject to these terms and conditions:
This free software is in the public domain and cannot be commercially exploited (used or supplied in a way in which the receiver pays more than the cost of the media and shipping) without the prior handwritten consent of the author. Free distribution is encouraged.
The author makes no warranty, express or implied, as to the functionality or fitness of this software in any way, not barring any alleged warranties, and can NOT be held liable for any incidental or consequential damages caused or allegedly caused by the software. This software is provided "as is".
All trademarks and copyrights are the legal property of their respectful owners and any misrepresentation is unintentional.
