TECHNICIAN TED

THE MEGA-MIX



PLAYING INSTRUCTIONS



INTRODUCTION 

Help Technician Ted outwit his dastardly Boss and win promotion in 

the Chip Factory. A specially extended version of the Spectrum 

arcade hit. 



Technician Ted is an enthusiastic young computer hacker who bounces 

to work at the local Microprocessor factory every day at 8.30 a.m. 

Anxious to please, he knows he must complete his 30 daily tasks in 

and around the factory by clocking off time at 5.30 p.m. or incur 

the wrath of the Big Boss. 

His tasks are to be found in some of the rooms he visits. He must 

find the right rooms and visit them in the right order. A task is 

shown as a numbered box. When Ted finds the room with the next task 

he must work his way around the room to touch the numbered box. When

he has done so a second, unnumbered, box in the same room will start

to flash and Ted must touch this one also. 

To help him Ted has a rough sketch of some of the places in and 

around the factory: 



Up in the Air    We Call Him Sir   Ted's Desk   Canteen 

Factory Gates    Reception         Cloakroom    Silicon Slice Store 

Ted's Den/Shop   Boardroom         Photocopier  Main Corridor 

Steward's Lounge 



Ted knows that his first task is in his Den, the second is at his 

desk and the third is in the Silicon Slice Store. A mate has told 

him that after that he must go to the Diffusion Furnace but Ted's 

map doesn't tell him where that is. He also knows that time is of 

the essence and that the two parts of some tasks must be done 

Mega-quickly. 



LOADING INSTRUCTIONS 

Technician Ted The Mega-Mix has a unique loading system and it is 

preferable that you reset the computer before loading the program 

either by switching it off and then on again or by using the small 

switch located on the lower left side. This ensures that the machine 

is in 128K mode. Press ENTER to start the loading sequence. After a 

few seconds a dynamic loading screen will appear with a countdown in

the bottom right hand corner of the remaining time to completion. 



CONTROLS 

Technician Ted The Mega-Mix responds to Sinclair Interface II and 

all standard IN 31 type joysticks. 

Action                                Result 

Q, E, T, U, O, joystick left          Ted moves to the left 

W, R, Y, I, P, joystick right         Ted moves to the right 

CAP SHIFT, SPACE, Z, X, C, V,         Ted jumps 

B, N, M, SYMBOL SHIFT, joystick fire 

A                                     Pause (hit a movement key to 

                                      recommence). 

ENTER                                 Music off (press again to 

                                      switch on again). 

Any jump key followed by              Sound effects off (press again 

ENTER                                 to switch on again). 

A followed by P R I N T               Copy screen to ZX printer 

                                      (press A or SPACE to halt). 

BREAK                                 Return to beginning of game 

1 followed by BREAK                   Reset computer. 



SCORING 

The number of tasks completed and the time of day is shown at the 

bottom of the screen. A pink tell-tale running horizontally across 

the screen shows the number of lives remaining. You will lose a life

if Ted collides with a hostile object  most moving objects are 

hostile and some stationary ones are too. 

When Ted has completed task 3 in the Silicon Slice Store, Silicon 

Slices appear on the tell-tale. The two parts of some subsequent 

tasks have to be completed within a time limit. On completion of the 

first task the slices move a long the tell-tale and Ted must 

complete the second part before they all disappear off the screen. 



PLAYING TIPS 

1) Technician Ted graphics are ultra-smooth and collision detection 

is exact so that starting position is even more important than in 

ordinary platform games. The PAUSE (key A) facility can often be 

used to ensure that the correct starting position is used. 

2) Similarly a jump can be made from a precise position by first 

jumping vertically and then pressing left or right (as appropriate) 

whilst Ted is still in the air. 

3) Time is of the essence. Many rooms have been timed so that the 

skiIled player can pass through without pausing provided that he 

makes the right moves from the correct positions. 

4) Similarly when a task has been completed it can sometimes be 

faster to lose a life deliberately so that Ted is reset to the 

required exit from the room rather than waste time following a 

tortuous route to that exit. 



TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION 

* A full event processor-solving a problem in one room changes the 

nature of another problem elsewhere. 

* Very high cycle time -ultra smooth, pixel-by-pixel movement occurs

at all times. 

* Exact collision detection so that collisions occur if and only if 

objects overlap. 

* Synchronisation of interrupts for constant speed animation. 

* Intelligent sound routine -the music plays constantly no matter 

what the progress of the game. 

* Complex two channel music routine with a cycle time of over one 

minute complete with vibrato and slide. 

* One hundred high resolution screens. 

* Myriads of eight-positions sprites of varying sizes. 



CREDITS 

 Search 1986

Published by Hewson Consultants Ltd.