.
In the next article we are going to take a look at Inform 7. This is a free and open source interactive fiction editor, which we can find available for Gnu / Linux, MacOS, Android and Windows. Using this program, users can create works of interactive fiction quite easily. This tool can be used for literary writing, for the game industry as a prototyping tool, and also in education. It also includes a spell checker, extension support and more.
In the past, writing interactive fiction required the writer not only to have a talent for creative writing, but also programming skills. With Inform 7, all that has changed quite a bit, because this program makes it possible for the everyday creative writer, with little programming knowledge, to design an engaging and interactive fictional adventure.
Interactive fiction began in the early 1970s, with the pioneering games ADVENT and Colossal Cave. It was followed by the Zork trilogy, which required the user to navigate through a maze of underground and above ground settings. This type of fiction allows the user to determine the course of the story, the movements and actions of the central character.. Usually, the central character is the user himself, which makes for a fully immersive interactive experience.
A quick look at Inform 7
Inform 7 offers a new interface in which to write interactive fiction. It features a panel in the show that acts as a writing medium, where writers can use natural language to describe what they're trying to accomplish through the story. The program will transfer the story to another panel, at the writer's command, and also will automatically check the job for errors. Revisions are also easy, as this program will help the writer clear up any inconsistencies that arise from rewriting earlier parts.
Inform is the language used by this program and a design system for interactive fiction, which was originally created in 1993 by Graham Nelson.
In 2006, Graham Nelson announced the beta release of Inform 7, which consists of three main parts: the Inform 7 IDE with specialized development tools for testing interactive fiction, the Inform 7 compiler for the new language and 'The standard rules' that form the main Inform 7 library.
The version released in 2007 added command line support for Gnu/Linux, and new versions include an IDE that uses the GNOME desktop environment under the project GNOME Inform 7 SourceForge. In 2019, Graham Nelson announced the eventual open source of Inform 7.
Install Inform 7 on Ubuntu
report is available as a flatpak package file from flat hub. If you do not yet have this technology enabled on your system, and you are using Ubuntu 20.04, you can continue The Guide that a colleague wrote in this blog some time ago about it.
When you can already install this type of packages in the system, it will only be necessary to open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and execute the install command:
flatpak install flathub com.inform7.IDE
When the installation is finished, we can start the program from the applications menu, where we will find the program launcher. We will also have the possibility to write in the terminal:
flatpak run com.inform7.IDE
desalt
In case you want remove the program from your system, you will only have to open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and execute in it:
sudo flatpak uninstall com.inform7.IDE
The nice thing about Inform 7, at least for the aspiring interactive fiction writer, is that This is a totally free program. Stories designed with it can be distributed for free or for profit. The creators of Inform 7 do not impose restrictions on the works designed with this program. The app comes with two built-in books. These are intertwined and contain many usage examples.
To know more about this program, users we can consult the project website, or the documentation that they have published there.