Minus' Solution to

Crash-Proofing Doorknob 2004
Posted October 7 - 13, 1996

The Fatebuster arcade game is the least compatible. Mac can run four programs at once: Purepaint, Spread-X, Wordwonder and Starbattle.


Your Solutions

Cara Bissell [cara@dorsai.org] gave Minus the most delicious (ie: thorough) solution of the batch:

There can be a maximum of 4 programs used of the programs listed. Since crashes occur only with the Fate Buster Arcade Game, running the programs without it, yields all programs working excpet the Fate Buster Arcade Game. The programs listed are the screen saver, Word Processor, Paint Program and the Spreadsheet. Any order of arrangement of these programs is acceptable by the last instruction that is unless otherwise noted, all programs are compatible. If the screen saver is not run and there is a way to make the remaining programs work together, there would still be only 4 programs running at a time.


Minus also enjoyed chomping on this solution submitted by Nicholas McNaughton and Michael Sharp of Christ Church Grammar School in Western Australia:

Mac can run all of the programs except the Fate Buster arcade game. The other programs, namely Spread-X Spreadsheet, Starbattle Screensaver, Wordwonder word processor and Purepaint Painting program, can all run, because they are all compatible with each other but not with Fate Buster.


Josie [joanneh@philly.infi.net] didn't want Minus to chip a tooth on her solution, so she kept it short and sweet:

Mac can run 4 programs at the same time. They are: StarBattle, WordWonder, PurePaint, and SpreadX.


Mattew Roberts from Christ Church Grammar School zoned into Minus' tummy with this scrumptious morsel:

The answer is 4: Wordwonder, Star Battle, Pure Paint, and Spread-X. If Fate Blaster is used then the other programs will not be able to run.



Michael Bayliss, also of CCGS, is  earning plenty of Frequent-Feeders points with submissions like this one:

The maximum number of these programs that he can run together are 4 (every program except the Fate Buster arcade game.)



Scott Glasson, from that math whiz school in Western Australia (yes, Christ Church Grammar School!), was not to be out-done by his mates:

Mac can run all the programs except the fate buster arcade game. The other programs all run fine together. So he can run 4 programs.



Andrew Pullinger [pullingera@ccgs.wa.edu.au] screamed his answer to our faithful mascot. Hey, Andrew, how did you know that Minus was hard of hearing?

MAC CAN ONLY LOAD 4 PROGRAMS: STARBATTLE SCREENSAVER, WORD WONDER, PUREPAINT, SPREAD X SPREADSHEET. FATE BUSTER WILL CRASH ANYTHING THAT IT IS ASSOCIATED WITH. SO MAC the COMPUTER GEEK CAN ONLY LOAD FOUR PROGRAMS .



And last, but not least, B. Hughes [whughes@tpgi.com.au] also came up with the right answer: 

He can run Screensaver, Word program, Painting and Spreadsheet at the same time.

Special thanks to our friends
in Western Ausralia's CCGS.
Minus has never been happier!