I receive emails regarding Solitaire quite often.  I believe I even answered it over five years ago.  Since I keep getting the question I figured I would take a look at it again.  It is pretty simple but apparently a lot of you out there wonder about it so here we go, a last time until something significant about Solitaire changes.

People want to know why is the game solitaire on all Microsoft Versions up to and including Vista.  It is also on the next version named, “Windows 7” which we will most likely start talking about in August when it is supposed to be released.

First, a short history of Solitaire for Windows.  The familiar game which all of us have played on our computers is not only a game but a training tool.  It all started in 1990 with Windows 3.0.

It is basically a computerized version of the card game that you may have learned to play as a kid.  It has all of the standard rules of the card game with several options for different ways to play and score.  It even has the ability to change the backs of the deck of cards.

Also you should watch the “draw deck” as you play the game.  The older versions of the game have a sneaky little “extra” that the programmers at Microsoft made for you.  The backs of the cards are animated; just enough to make you think you may be loosing your mind.  For instance, if you watch the palm tree deck you will occasionally see the sun stick his tongue out at you…maybe.  I have not noticed this in Vista but to be honest I really have not played it that much.  Let me know if you have seen anything strange.

Now, on to the training part and why solitaire has been in each version of Windows for the last 19 years.  When Windows first came onto the market not many people had any experience with a mouse.  Guess what?  To play solitaire properly you have to use, and learn, most all of the functions of a mouse.  You have to point to the cards you wish to use.  You have to click to draw new cards.  Clicking and dragging is needed to move card to a new location.  And in case you didn’t realize it, you can double click on any card that you want to go to the Ace piles.

This was the main reason that solitaire was created for use in Windows.  This is also the reason you will most likely continue to see it in Windows for the foreseeable future.

Would you like to know how to cheat at Solitaire?  Try holding down the CTRL, ALT and SHIFT keys then clicking on the deck.  This will draw a single card while you are playing the three card draw version, just like you played as a kid at the end of the game.  This has worked in all versions of Solitaire up to Vista.  Hmm, I wonder about Windows 7?

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 5:04 am and is filed under Columns. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.