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-ext adventures, otherwise known collectively as interactive fiction (IF),
-were highly popular computer games during the 1980s. As technology evolved
-they faded from the market, unable to compete with increasingly
-sophisticated graphical games; however, IF was far from dead. The Internet
-grew, and Usenet discussion forums offered a focal point for fans of the
-genre. By developing IF programming tools and systems, organising contests
-and writing tutorials and reviews, these enthusiasts have led a revival
-responsible for many notable works, including some whose quality arguably
-surpasses that of the best commercial titles of the 1980s.
+|T|\ext adventures, otherwise known collectively as interactive fiction
+(IF), were highly popular computer games during the 1980s. As
+technology evolved they faded from the market, unable to compete with
+increasingly sophisticated graphical games; however, IF was far from
+dead. The Internet grew, and Usenet discussion forums offered a focal
+point for fans of the genre. By developing IF programming tools and
+systems, organising contests and writing tutorials and reviews, these
+enthusiasts have led a revival responsible for many notable works,
+including some whose quality arguably surpasses that of the best
+commercial titles of the 1980s.
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-lmost as rarely as an alchemist producing gold from base metal, the
+|A|\lmost as rarely as an alchemist producing gold from base metal, the
compilation process turns your source file into a story file (though the
more usual outcome is a reproachful explanation of why -- *again* --
that hasn't happened). The magic is performed by the compiler program,
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-obody understands the phrase *errare humanum est* quite in the same way
-as a programmer does. Computers are highly efficient machines capable of
-wondrous calculations, but they lack imagination and insist that every
-single item thrown at them must be presented according to certain rules
-previously defined. You can't negotiate with a computer; you either bow
-in submission or bite the dust.
+|N|\obody understands the phrase *errare humanum est* quite in the same
+way as a programmer does. Computers are highly efficient machines
+capable of wondrous calculations, but they lack imagination and insist
+that every single item thrown at them must be presented according to
+certain rules previously defined. You can't negotiate with a computer;
+you either bow in submission or bite the dust.
Inform behaves no differently. If you make a typing or syntax mistake,
the compiler will send you back to revise your work. "It was just a
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-ust a few final words to round things off. All that remains are the
+|J|\ust a few final words to round things off. All that remains are the
appendices, with terse but comprehensive summaries of the Inform
language and its IF library, plus the source code and run-time
transcripts of the games we have developed here. Our "labor and sweat"
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-t would, I think, be immodest to compare myself to Charles
+|I|\t would, I think, be immodest to compare myself to Charles
Bourbaki (1816--97), French hero of the Crimean War and renowned
strategist, a man offered nothing less as a reward than the throne of
Greece (he declined). It may be in order, though, to say a few words