textfiles/apple/DOCUMENTATION/president.elect

[> President Elect Softdocs by The Archer <]

Thanx  to [> The Penguin - Jay of A.P.P.L.E. - The Duplicator - Doctor
Amoeba

[> These docs are written for any use you [the consumer] see fit <]


Now on to the docs


[> Introduction <]

President  Elect  is  a  comprehensive  simulation   of   presidential
compaigning  from  labor day to the election night. Game functions are
rooted as closely as possible to real life; to campaign  players  must
plan  and  execute  strategies  to  their  own  choosing  success is a
campaign is a function of these strategies thje inherent strengths and
weaknesses  of  the  candidates,  chance  events,   anc   pre-campaign
situtation. 

[> The Set-Up <]

The first question asked is: 

1] Start a New Game

2] Continue Old Game

3] Demo of Graphics

4] Computer Demo of Game

If you have selected a new game, you must construct your own scenario.
The  importance  of  this  segment  cannot  be  overstressed,  as  the
variables you enter have a direct and powerful influence on the course
of the  game.  To  construct  a  scenario,  answer  each  question  as
requested  on  the screen and refer to the game manual when necessary.
Following are a few notes on setting up a scenario

1] Election years are different in two ways.  First,  the  numbevr  of
popular  and  electoral votes conform to history, adjusted in the case
of popular votes by likely voter turnout. Ex. Florida had 10 electoral
votes in 1960 now it has 23 in 1984, due to population shifts. Second,
each state is biased to a different degree for one party  or  another.
Ex.  Massachusetts  is  more  liberal than Utah. The bias changes from
election to elcetion. 

2] Historical scenarios are just that - the historical candidates  anc
con-  ditions  are  entered automatically. A historical scenario gives
you the ability to change conditions anc candidates, even to the point
of constructing a fictitious candidate. This allows  YOU  to  run  for
president. 

3]  Candidates  can  be selected irrespective to their party to actual
time  frame,  however  unrealistic  Goeogre  McGovern  running  as   a
Republican in 1894 may seem. 

4]  How the Sate of the Union affects the campaign depends upon who is
the incumbent, how the state of the union was when the incumbent party
took office, and how good or bad current conditions are. 

The computer can manage all, some , or none  of  thje  candidates.  It
will make the game decsions a humna must w/o cheating. If you want all
the candidates to be run by the computer, then you can run the game on
"Autopilot".  The  campaigning segment will take 45-60 minutes w/o any
player input required. You regain control when  the  election  returns
begin. 

[> The Game <]

The  campaign  is  nine  weeks [turns] long. Each week players receive
poll that shows thje national popular vote with a 2% error margin  [on
rare occasions the error may be greater]. The individual states have a
4%  margin of error. For a state to be considered likely to vote for a
candidate the polls must show the candidate leading by over 4%. For  a
state  to  be  considered  solidly  in  support  of  a  candidate thje
candidate must  be  leading  be  over  8%.  During  the  campaign  the
candidates  try  to improve their positions through the expenditure of
campaign funds on overhead, advertising, campaign stops,  and  foreign
travel

[Overhead]
Overhead  is  unaviodal, for major candidates overhead starts are $500
units a week and increases by $100 units each week. It does  not  con-
tribute  directly  to  swaying  votes,  but  is essential is running a
campaign.  Overhead is variable for Third-Party-Candidates. 

[Advertising]
There are  three  kinds  of  advertising,  each  serving  a  different
purpose. 

1] National advertising covers the entire nation. Dollar-for-dollar it
sways  the  most  net  voets;however, it is not focused and is not the
most effective way to swing particular states. 

2] Regional advertising is more effective in swaying states , but only
in the area chosen. 

3] Individual state advertising is excellent for swaying large  states
where  the  voting  is  close,  but  it is a very expensive way to but
votes. To select a state, enter its two-letter postal  code  shown  on
the map. 

[Campaign Stops]
Each  candidate  may  make  appearances  in  the states/regions of his
choice. Costs are incurred when entering a  region,  when  entering  a
given  state,  and  for  each stop made. Fatigue effects occur after a
given number of stops and no more given stops may be  schedule  for  a
dingle  week.  Stops have diminshing marginal effectiveness in a given
week, but have a gradually increading effectiveness each week  [Ex.  2
stops  in 3 weeks is more effective than 6 stops in 1 one week, but is
also more expensive]

[Foriegn Visit]
In the first week only, all candidates decide whether or not to take a
trip, and if so who will go, where they will go,  when,  and  for  how
long. Trips are pure gamble; sometimes they help, somtimes they hurt. 

All  players recieve an intelligence report at the end of the campaign
phase, showing estimate of each candidates's  dollar  expenditures  in
each  state  Also shown are the number of stops made by each candidate
in each state. 

Each week the players are offered the opportunity to debate,  if  they
are  willing.  Agreement  come  only  through the mutual consent among
potential debaters on who will debate and how many  question  will  be
asked. 

At  the  end  of  each  week,  strengths  ar`e  adjusted  based on the
decisions of the candidates and the events that have transpired.  Each
new week begins with a new poll. 

[> Election Night <]

After the ninth week, result of the election are given and a winner is
declared.  The  election  night  may  be  stimulated in real time [4-6
hours] or votes may be tailed in less than 15 seconds. The players are
given the opportunity to decide how to resolve the election night.