GET OFF THE FLOOR - POKE 32126,133 (when ERIC is sitting on the floor
outside the assembly hall or lying down, and it's too soon to be told to GET
ALONG NOW)
GET OFF THE FLOOR - POKE 32162,201 (when it's time to GET ALONG NOW)
To change the expulsion message MR WACKER delivers (at 60953) accordingly,
you will need to POKE the ASCII codes of the digits of the new lines limit into
addresses 60962-60966.
For example, to change the lines limit to 20000 and adjust the expulsion
message to match:
Normally the lesson clock (at 32739) counts down from 4096 (16*256) to 0, at
which point the bell rings. To make the lesson clock count down from N*256 to 0
instead:
If you are extending the lesson length, it's a good idea to also adjust the
time at which teachers will tell the kids to sit down. Normally this is 3072
(12*256); to change it to M*256 (M=N-4 is a good choice):
If, on the other hand, you are shortening the lesson, it's a good idea to also
adjust the time at which teachers will start giving lines to ERIC for being in
the wrong classroom. Normally this is 3072 (12*256); to change it to G*256
(G=N-4 is a good choice):
Now whenever 'L' (upper case) is pressed, the bell will ring and the next
lesson will begin (which could prove handy if ERIC is found playing truant, or
simply cannot wait any longer for playtime).
Always run
Normally 'q', 'a', 'o' and 'p' make ERIC walk, and 'Q', 'A', 'O' and 'P' make
him run. To make ERIC always run, regardless of whether SHIFT is held down:
However, this doesn't extend the 'hit zone' of the pellet (the portion of its
flight where it can hit something). To change the hit zone from the last 4
stages of its flight to the last M stages (M=N-6 is a good choice):
Before ERIC writes the bike combination on a blackboard, the bike is actually
hiding at x-coordinate 224. To change the bike's initial x-coordinate from 224
to X (so that it's visible from the start of the game):
Note that this means there will be no mice in the game.
Open the left study door
No one ever opens the left study door in Back to Skool, but that's only because
the character routing information leads everyone round it instead of through
it; there is support built in to the game for opening the door, but it is never
used. To bring the left study door into service, try the following POKEs, which
change the routing information for characters going from certain starting
points to the top floor of the boys' skool.
Modify the route for anyone on the top floor on the left side of the door and
going to the other side of the door (e.g. from the Yellow Room to the top-floor
window) so that they go through the door:
Modify the route for anyone on the top floor on the right side of the door and
going to the other side of the door (e.g. from the head's study to the Revision
Library) so that they go through the door:
Modify the route for anyone on the middle floor of the boys' skool near the
window and going to anywhere on the top floor to the left of the door so that
they first go up the stairs to the head's study:
Modify the route for anyone on the assembly hall stage going to anywhere on the
top floor to the left of the door so that they first go up the stairs towards
the middle-floor window:
But now when ERIC walks or rides the bike through the far left wall in the
boys' skool or the far right wall in the girls' skool, you lose sight of
him. To make the screen scroll however far left or right ERIC goes (and
therefore reveal the 'no man's land' between the two skools):
But this also reveals a limitation of the routine at 24880: the SRB is not
updated correctly when the leftmost column of the skool on screen is 232, 240
or 248. To fix this:
POKE 24893,47
POKE 24894,131
POKE 24896,0
POKE 24897,254
POKE 24899,63
POKE 24902,2
POKE 24904,47
Now you may notice that some of the little boys stop moving as ERIC approaches
the far left wall of the boys' skool. This is because the routine at 25296
does not move certain minor characters depending on which part of the play area
is visible.