NBA 97

                           NBA Live 97 Editor
                           ------------------
                          Version 1.2, 12/28/96
            Copyright (c) 1996 by TASsoft, All Rights Reserved
       Written by Tim Tschirner, timt@pool.informatik.rwth-aachen.de
Overview
--------
NBA Live 97 Editor for Windows lets you edit all the attributes of
the players that are originally featured in NBA Live 97 plus the ones
you created with the built-in create function of NBA Live 97.
This gives you the ability that the created players don't have to be
rookies any longer. Also, you can now assemble your own All-Star Teams,
since the editor can copy every player to one of the All-Star Teams.
Finally, you can create and apply patch files.
Inside this Archive, you'll find the following files:
NBA97ED.TXT   -  The file you're just reading
NBA97ED.EXE   -  NBA Live 97 Editor, 16-bit Version
                 (for use under Windows 3.x)
NBA97E32.EXE  -  NBA Live 97 Editor, 32-bit Version
                 (for use under Windows 95 and Windows NT)
PATCH13.ZIP   -  DOS-based program to create and apply patches
                 (for more info see PATCHER.TXT inside PATCH13.ZIP)
This program is Freeware, so spread it ;-) But, please, leave the
archives contact. Also, none of the included files may be changed
in any way. You can always find the latest version at my NBA Live 97
Web Page, which has the following URL:
       http://www.rvs.uni-bielefeld.de/~icsunder/timt/nba97.html
NOTE: If you open both an Executable AND a Roster File, you may receive
      a German Error Message when trying to edit a player who was in
      the original Free Agent Pool.
      This is not a serious error, but at the moment I recommend NOT to
      work with both an Exe and a Roster File.
      Please be patient, I will try to overcome this as soon as possible.
Installation
------------
To install, simply copy either NBAED97.EXE or NBA97E32.EXE (depending
on the Windows version you're using) to your NBA Live 97 directory (or
to any other directory of your choice), add a Link to it (or create
an icon in any Program Manager Group) and there you go.
When you start the Editor for the first time, you must specify a valid
NBA Live 97 Executable File and/or a valid NBA Live 97 Roster File
in order to start editing. If you like, you can work with only one
file, and you can change and deselect the work file(s) any time you
want to. The names of these files will be saved in the file NBA97ED.INI,
which will be created by both the 16-bit and 32-bit Version of the NBA
Live 97 Editor in your Windows directory. The reason why the 32-bit
version doesn't use the registry is because it only wastes time and
space.
Caution: You should make backup copies of the files you're editing.
-------- I don't take any risks and cannot be held responsible for
         any damage that might occur to your files and/or your
         system.
         Remember that you can always get a fresh copy of NBA97.EXE
         and NBAWIN.EXE from your NBA Live 97 CD, while you have to
         be extra careful with the ROSTER*.* files.
Removal
-------
If you ever want to remove the NBA Live 97 Editor (now why would you
want to do that anyway? :), simply delete NBA97ED.EXE (and/or
NBA97E32.EXE), NBA97ED.TXT and NBA97ED.INI, which you can find in your
Windows directory.
Usage
-----
If you're already familiar with my Editor for NBA Live 96, this
one should be no problem at all, since it implements the same
look and feel.
Otherwise, there's nothing much to say, since the NBA Live 97 Editor
should be pretty intuitive to use. Here are the basic techniques:
Selecting the work files
------------------------
 - to select the NBA Live 97 Executable File, click on the Select
   ExeFile Button or choose File..Executable..Select from the Menu
   and select a valid NBA Live 97 Executable File
 - to select the NBA Live 97 Roster File, click on the Select
   RosterFile Button or choose File..Roster..Select from the Menu
   and select a valid NBA Live 97 Roster File
Note: If you have selected both an Executable File and a Roster File
----- and later wish to edit only one file, click on the appropriate
      Deselect Button or choose File..Executable/Roster..Deselect
      from the Menu.
Selecting a player to edit
--------------------------
 - use the Navigation Buttons
   or
 - enter the player's Overall Number in the Advance-To field and click
   the Advance-To Button or press Return
   or
 - select the player's name from the Advance-To Combo Box
   or
 - select a team from the SelectTeam Combo Box and then select
   a player in that team from the SelectSlot Combo Box
Editing
-------
 - simply click in the field you want to edit and edit the value
   or select a new value from the Combo Boxes (where applicable)
Note: If you change the Status of the current player, saving is done
----- in the following ways, according to the files you opened:
      - if you're working with the Executable File only, the changes
        are saved in this file
      - if you're working with the Roster File only, the changes are
        saved to the player data in this file, not in the roster order
      - if you're working with both files, the changes are saved in
        the Roster File in the roster order only
Saving Changes
--------------
 - to save the changes you made, click on the Save Button
Making a player an All-Star
---------------------------
 - select the player you want to make an All-Star (see 'Selecting a
   player to edit' above)
 - select the the All-Star Team, then the Slot in the selected All-Star
   Team and hit the Make All-Star Button
Making a patch file
-------------------
 - to make a patch file, click on the Make Patch Button
   or choose Tools..Make Patch from the Menu
 - in the File Dialog, select the File you want to compare the
   currently opened NBA Live 97 Executable File with (in most
   cases the file to compare with will be NBA97.EXE)
 - in the next File Dialog, select or enter the name of the
   Patch File to create (if you don't enter a file extension, it
   will automatically be set to P97)
Applying a patch file
---------------------
 - to insert data from an already-made patch file, click on
   the Apply Patch button or choose Tools..Apply Patch from the Menu
 - select the Patch File in the File Open Dialog
Additional notes
----------------
I've tested this version of the NBA Live 97 Editor for quite some time
(yes, I'm using it myself ;-), but bugs are still likely to appear.
If you encounter some, or something doesn't appear to work as it should,
please let me know.
If you want to flame me real bad, keep in mind that this is Freeware
and that I spent quite some time programming it (and probably won't
get a single buck out of it :).
Also, if you think you found out what the Unknown Values are for, please
let me know as well.
My Internet E-mail address is:
        timt@pool.informatik.rwth-aachen.de
The latest version, along with loads of tools and other goodies
around NBA Live 97, can always be found at my NBA Live 97 Web Page:
       http://www.rvs.uni-bielefeld.de/~icsunder/timt/nba97.html
This is the official home of The NBA Live 97 Editor, but you should
also be able to find the latest version of The NBA Live 97 Editor at
the following NBA Live 97 Web Pages:
 - Stan Olson's NBA Live 97 Page:
   http://www.cu-online.com/~solso/nbalive97.html
 - Michael Banh's NBA Live 97 Page:
   http://pages.prodigy.com/livehome/live97.htm
 - Nathan Leong's NBA Live Net:
   http://www.ozemail.com.au/~nbalive/index.html
Version History
---------------
Version 1.0, 12/22/96
           - initial Release
Version 1.1, 12/23/96
           - fixed A Bug Which Lead To An Error When Trying
             To Choose A Player Via The SelectPlayer ComboBox
             While Only A Roster File Was Open
Version 1.2, 12/28/96
           - URL change of my NBA Live 97 Page
Acknowledgements
----------------
Thanks go out to:
 - John Nassar for providing me with the game
 - Brien Smith for developing the original patch routines together
   with Lutz, doing additional input, testing, suggesting some
   programming ideas and sharing some code with me
 - Lutz van Hasselt for developing the original patch routines
   together with Brien, adapting the Patch routines to Pascal and
   helping me with the file structure
 - Electronic Arts for creating an awesome game
Legal Bits
----------
This product is not affiliated with Electronic Arts and the NBA in any
way, it's 100% my own work. The patch routines used are courtesy of
Brien Smith and Lutz van Hasselt.
NBA Live 97, Electronic Arts and EA Sports are registered trademarks
of Electronic Arts, Inc.