Unicorn Quest Tips

Unicorn Quest is a DOS program. It runs on any machine which provides basic DOS support on a 286 or better processor and at least 512K of memory. It uses only ASCII graphics, and will work on any colour monitor supporting 25 rows of 80 characters.

If you are installing a new version, it is a good idea to delete the old version first.

If you have an 8086 computer (pre-286), write to Thelion and he may be able to supply you with a version of Unicorn Quest for your machine.

Here are some questions we have received about Unicorn Quest, together with Thelion's answers. If your question isn't answered here, or you want more information, write to Thelion.

I'm having trouble picking up a copy of Unicorn Quest from your site. Is there somewhere else I can get it?

Downloads don't work every time. Sometimes the network is busy. Unicorn Quest is a fairly large program, and about 75% to 80% of the downloads work correctly the first time. You may have to try again later. Or you can pick up the program (called uquest31.zip) from Garbo, or from Simtel.

I have an old version of DOS. Will I be able to run Unicorn Quest?

We haven't yet found a version of DOS that Unicorn Quest won't run on. Certainly if you can run any flavour of Windows, including 3.0, you can run Unicorn Quest.

Can I run Unicorn Quest on my Mac?

A test version of Unicorn Quest for Mac is now available, If you are willing to put up with a few glitches and help us find bugs, you're certainly welcome to download a copy of the Mac version.

How can I go back to exercise one, and start it again after I've done it once?

To return to a previous exercise, go to "Select Program Settings" on the main menu page. (You get there by using the arrow keys or pressing the "S" key.) Then press the "Enter" key.

In the Set Up box that pops up, use the arrow keys to go down to "Change exercise". Press "Enter". Then move to the exercise number you want to return to, and press "Enter" again. Press the "Esc" key to leave the box, and press "Y" when asked to confirm your choice.

Where can I get WinZip, JustZIPit, or pkunzip?

WinZip is available from:
http://www.winzip.com

JustZIPit (a simple, powerful, and free ZIP program) is available from:
http://free-backup.info

The pkzip and pkunzip programs are available as shareware from any large archive, such as Garbo or Coast-to-Coast. Or you can get them from the manufacturers, PKWARE, at:
http://www.pkware.com

In addition to the version for DOS, you can pick up a Windows version which also works fine for unzipping Unicorn Quest.

Remember to put unicorn.zip into a separate directory before unzipping it.

Unicorn Quest could not initialize

If you get this message when you try to run the program for the first time, it could be because you are installing a new version on top of an old one. Delete the file STUDENT.DAT, and the program should run properly.

Problem with Printing Certificates

Version 2.1 has a problem with printing certificates. The last line does not print correctly. To be able to print certificates when you finish a level, you must pick up a copy of Version 2.2.

We have downloaded the new version but are having problems retrieving the program from Windows 95. Help please !!

I don't have Windows 95, but here are some general instructions.

If you have WinZip or JustZIPit:

Unicorn Quest can be unzipped with WinZip or JustZIPit. If you have either of them installed, go to the Explorer, create a new directory (new folder) called Unicorn, and put unicorn.zip into the directory. Then double-click on unicorn.zip to unzip it, and double-click on unicorn.exe to play the game.

Or, if you have Pkunzip:

  1. Click on "start".
  2. Select "programs".
  3. Select "MS-DOS prompt" to get a DOS window.
  4. Enter "cd \ " to go to the top directory
  5. In the DOS window, type "md unicorn" and press [ENTER] to create a directory called Unicorn.
  6. Copy or move the unicorn.zip file to that directory. I'm afraid I can't give you specific instructions on how to do that, since I don't know where the file is located on your machine. You can use the Explorer to move the file, or use the "copy" or "move" command in the DOS window.
  7. In the DOS window, enter "cd \unicorn" to go to the unicorn directory.
  8. Enter "pkunzip unicorn" to unzip the file.
  9. Enter "unicorn" to start the program.

If you have a question that is not answered here, Thelion always likes to get mail!

- Read our mail about Unicorn Quest.
- Pick up Unicorn Quest at Thelion's shop.
- Back to the front gate.
- North to the theatres.
Page maintained by Thelion.