                Announcing Outpost Trader Helper

Outpost Trader Helper is a players TERMINAL PROGRAM with a GRAPHICAL
INTERFACE that maintains an ONLINE DATABASE of sectors with their
outposts, warp to, and other information.  Several commands are
available to utilize this information in addition to automating most of
the repetitive processes and a GRAPHICS MAPPING capability.  Outpost
Trader Helper not only makes playing more enjoyable, it makes you much
more effective.

The file name is OTHELP15.ZIP.  It can be downloaded on the first call
from Monty's Place BBS (801) 944-8636 or Rocky Mountain Software (801)
963-8721 and logging on as "Just Fun" with a password of "Software".
The file size is 180K and 14,400 bps capability is available.  Please
just log on, download and log off.

The main features of Outpost Trader Helper are discussed below.  Many of
these features and capabilities are available to registered users only.
VGA monitor and mouse required for Graphical User Interface.  The
features are:

An optional Graphical User Interface (GUI) that can be activated simply
by clicking a mouse button!  Several gauges and readouts are displayed
along with a graphics map of the current sector.  In addition you can
click on any of several buttons to activate OTHELP or OT commands.  You
gotta check this out!  It's truly like being in the cockpit of your own
spaceship!

Automated cross trading between paired outposts incuding firearms and
spice.  You can even cross trade between nonadjacent sectors with or
without the HyperSpace Drive.  Of course you must find the best outposts
to trade at so there is not only the ability to locate specific outpost
types and paired outposts, but also nonadjacent trading pairs and other
specialized combinations.

You don't just trade all the time, you want to travel around and
explore the OT universe, right?  Just enter the /u command to see the
paths to the five closest unexplored sectors or, better yet, just enter
/e and have OT Helper take you to the nearest unexplored sector!
Concerned about mines or other enemy forces?  No problem!  Just tell OT
Helper to dynamic scan each sector before moving you into it.  OT Helper
can even move from one unexplored sector to another, stopping only when
your direct involvement is required!  And it can optionally and
automatically MRI scan, deploy fighters and/or trade along the way!

Then there are the E-probe routines that can launch an E-probe to an
unexplored sector not warped to by any other known sector, launch to an
isolated sector, or launch so as to pass thru the maximum numbers of
sectors not visited during the current session.  This, like many
features in Outpost Trader Helper, can be accomplished quickly and
easily only with a terminal program accessing an online database.

Other features include showing sectors with fighters closest to a dest-
ination sector, showing isolated sectors, automated colonizing of a
planet, automated buying and conveying of product to a planet, automated
hauling of colonists or product between planets, automated mine
disruption, merging another traders database, accessing a scroll back
buffer and creating a capture file.

And if all this weren't enough, Outpost Trader Helper provides a
graphics (EGA/VGA) mapping capability with mouse or keyboard interactive
controls.  A specific sector and its adjacent sectors to any level can
be graphically displayed or the path between two sectors can be mapped.
Controls include the ability to change levels, scale, contents, and
separation to present the most useful layout.  In addition to being able
to click on any sector in the map, the sectors resulting from many of
the other commands can be selected using the mouse.  Whether used online
or offline this graphics mapping capability makes strategic planning
both more effective and more enjoyable. 

Since an example database is provided in the zip file, you can take a
look at the graphics features and many of the commands and displays
without ever going online or initializing your own database!  Simply
click a mouse button to see the Graphical User Interface or enter /G to
view the complete graphics map.  Try it, and see for yourself that why,
with Outpost Trader Helper, you "See the Graphics!  Feel the Power!"
