N-Squad | Frequently Asked Questions

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Here are some of the common questions concerning the online N-Squad Adventure Series.
If your question is not answered, or you just want to send us a comment, please use our
online comments form.

What is the N-Squad?
What is Flash, and why do you use it?
How do I download and install the Flash plug-in?
How long does it take to play?
How do I navigate through the episode?
Can I stop in the middle of an episode and come back to the same place later?
Is there a way to access a particular segment within the adventure?
Where can I find the Cool Links page that is at the end of the game?
Why does the animation seem to move slowly?
What are the recommended system requirements for N-Squad?
How do I get in touch with you?

Q: What is The N-Squad?
A: The N-Squad is an Internet-based adventure designed with Macromedia Flash® in which you are involved in a quest with a team of fictional forensic scientists to solve a mysterious, possibly criminal, case.

Q: What is Flash, and why do you use it?
A: Flash is a media application developed and owned by Macromedia Inc. Its primary use was to design and create vector-based animation for use on the World Wide Web. Flash allows for much faster downloads of graphics and animation than is possible with traditional graphics formats such as JPG, and GIF. Today, with Flash version 8 and 9, it can also be used for scripting and programming applications and games. Our use of Flash to create the N-Squad series involves all three previously mentioned areas.

Q: How do I download and install the Flash plug-in?
A: When you click on one of the episode hyperlinks, our web site will check to see if the Flash 8.0 plug-in is installed on your computer. If it is not detected, you will be provided with a link to Macromedia's web site to obtain the Flash plug-in. You may also visit Macromedia's web site for help in getting and installing the plug-in.

Q: How long does it take to play?
A: Each episode of the N-Squad is designed to be played in one sitting of approximately 30 - 45 minutes, although there are rest points and the player can control the speed of the game.

Q: How do I navigate through an episode?
A: Each episode has graphical interfaces that allow the player to control certain aspects of the game. These include:

navigation buttons
Forward and Back Buttons
You can move forward and back using the buttons on the bottom of the screens. Do not use the back button on your browser! This will back you out of the entire game and force you to start over!

sound button Audio Buttons
There are cool sound effects and background music throughout the game. While the sounds and music are neat, they are not required to play the game. If you want to turn off the music, just click the animated sound icon on the lower left corner of the screen. The sound effects cannot be disabled (though you can always turn down the volume on your computer).

Q: Can I stop in the middle of an episode and come back to the same place
later?
A: No, the program requires you to restart the episode each time you play the game.

Q: Is there a way to access a particular segment within the adventure?
A: To experience the N-Squad fully in context, we recommend that you play each episode from start to finish. If, however, you would like to access individual segments, you may access a navigation menu using the keystrokes:

SHIFT and | (the pipe key) simultaneously.

Q: Where can I find the Cool Links page that is at the end of the game?
A: You can jump over to the Cool Links section right now! Enjoy the many informative and fun web sites.

Q: Why does the animation seem to move slowly?
A: There are a lot of factors that can be the cause as to why the N-Squad adventures appear to be playing slowly. Most often, it is the speed of the Internet connection and the speed of the computer playing the animation. Different computers handle graphics and sound in different ways. We try to find a happy medium between slow computers and faster ones by building our base movie files at a size that will play at nearly full screen dimensions using an 800x600 screen resolution. If your computer's monitor is set to this resolution or higher, and you are still experiencing slow animation, check the minimum system recommendations below.

Q: What are the recommended system requirements for N-Squad?
A: To experience the N-Squad Adventures, you must have the Macromedia Flash Player 8.0 (or higher) installed on your computer and a valid Internet connection. If you need this plug-in, you may download it from Macromedia's web site. Follow the simple instructions provided to download and install the plug-in. Once this is done, you are ready to begin your adventure!

Platforms
Because the N-Squad uses Flash animation to keep file sizes small, it will run efficiently on the variety of computer platforms found in homes and schools. Our suggested minimum requirements for platforms are:

Apple Macintosh computers running Mac OS X (version 10.2 or higher)
- OR -
Pentium-Class computers running Windows 98 (or higher)

For better performance, use a computer with at least 256 MB of memory (RAM).

Browsers
Although many web browsers are satisfactory for use with the N-Squad web adventures, we have found that the following browsers offer the most optimal viewing experience:

Internet Explorer version 6.0 or higher

Mozilla Firefox version 1.5 or higher

Safari version 1.0 or higher

Opera version 7.0 or higher

America Online's browser version 7.0 or higher

Q: How can I get in touch with you?
A: Please feel free to contact us either through our e-mail address, nsquad@rice.edu, or our through our short web-based contact form.

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