Registering - [EBP Help Contents]

You are welcome to try Empire Builder Pronto (EBP) at no charge for up to 30 days. If you enjoy EBP, and wish to join the thousands already playing, we ask you to support our efforts by registering your copy. By registering you'll be able to:

....1) use EBP past the 30-day initial period,

....2) play on alternate game maps,

....3) get a bonus map: a copy of the EB7 USA+Mexico alternate map (described below),

....4) receive discounts on other EBP items (see below) obtained at the same time,

REGISTRATION SETUP PROBLEMS

When you first use EBP, the program prepares itself for possible registration. "Is your operating system Windows Vista, or newer?" may appear if at this time you do not run EBP as an administrator. It is not enough to run Windows as administrator, you must tell Windows to run EBP that way. Exit the program, find its desktop icon or the EBP.EXE program where you installed it, right-click upon it, and choose "Run as Administrator". Other setup problems are rare but if you are unable to resolve one, email tech support at intersys@insystem.com

HOW TO REGISTER

Registration is easy: we recommend using the Help, Purchase Online pull-down menu in the game for payment processing via Paypal. Instead you can mail a check/money order via the printable order-by-mail form at RailGameFans.com.

Be sure to include your pre-registration number with your order; it can be obtained from the Help, Registration Numbers pull-down menu in the game. If you order via Paypal, your registration passcode will be included with your payment receipt.

Each registered copy of EBP entitles you to execute the program on one device (you may not install and execute a given registered copy on more than one device). When you register, submit the pre-registration number from the primary device on which you want to use that EBP registration. To preserve your registration, after entering your registration passcode, make a backup copy of the directory in which you installed EBP.

If you'd like to register EBP on more than one device of yours, list the additional copies on the discounted "secondary EBP registrations" line of an order form. EBP 2.0 is flexible and fast enough to run well even on older devices, and older versions of Windows all the way back to 98. Via emulation software, EBP will also run on most non-Windows devices made since 2010.

During your free trial period before registering, all EBP features (including Web Play) are active and available to try. By registering EBP you are agreeing that you are satisfied with how it operates on your device, and agree to abide by the license terms herein and as elucidated at our Web site.

The EBP Web site is at http://www.railgamefans.com.

REGISTRATION BONUSES

Registering enables play on alternate maps, including the "EB7" registration bonus map. The Empire Builder EB7 map is similar to USA but includes Mexico. When you register, we'll tell you how you can download a copy of the EB7 map from our Web site. If you don't wish to download it, we can send it to you on CD for a shipping/handling fee. On your registration form you do not need to list that you want the EB7 game map because it comes as your free bonus.

SUPPORT PLAN

As of this writing, registration includes a product Support Plan, the terms and period of which are elucidated at RailGameFans.com.

MORE GAME MAPS

At the time you register you can get additional fun alternate maps for EBP at discounted prices via a map package. Prices and availability are subject to change, so check RailGameFans.com to confirm.

As you probably realize, these maps are not board games, but rather computer versions that work within EBP. Choose from:

ebAOC - Agent of Change, aka West Virginia Rails. The small print run of the board game makes it a much sought-after collectible. AOC's unique feature: Coal is demanded on every contract, but to generate a load of Coal to pick up you must first build to a mine. Mountainous terrain that limits rail corridors adds to the challenge. Recommended for up to 4 players.

ebAUS or ebAU2 - Australian Rails - Crayon rails in the land down under. Unusual topography, such as deserts and dry rivers gives Australia a unique feel. After riding the ferry to Tasmania, should you build along the cost or cross-continent? Lots of fun with 45 cities and 27 load types. ebAU2 corresponds to the second edition of Australian Rails.

ebCHN - China Rails - play in China. Container ferries and the Party Congress event introduce new fun.

ebEUR or ebEU4 - Eurorails - gives the game a European flavor as it spans the continent from Spain to Russia. The British Isles are connected via ferries. Should you build to Spain for oranges, Italy for tobacco, or Warsaw for ham? Lots of fun with 60 cities and 30 load types. ebEU4 corresponds to the updated edition of Eurorails released in 2009.

ebGB1 or ebGB3 - British Rails - covers England, Wales and Scotland. Lots of hilly terrain makes this a race to lock up the best rights of way. ebGB3 corresponds to the third edition of British Rails.

ebIND - India Rails - sweeps across the Indian subcontinent from Pakistan to Bangladesh; trains can carry pilgrims to major cities. Note that some events differ slightly from those in the board game.

ebJPN or ebJP2 - Nippon Rails - depicts Japan; its narrow corridors make it a good map for 2 or 3 players.

ebMAR - Martian Rails - science fiction literature inspires you to build on the ruddy surface of the planet Mars. Note that a few mileposts and events differ slightly from those of the board game.

ebMOO - Lunar Rails - portrays the mountainous lunar surface in two halves, with teleports to connect around the edges. Note that a few mileposts and events differ slightly from those of the board game.

ebNYC - New York City - depicts the New York City metro area. Track building costs are high, but the payoffs are large and there are many load types to monopolize. The quickest map, takes only about half the play time of most other maps: you can win in under 30 rounds.

ebRUS - Russian Rails - illustrates Russia during the period of the fall of communism and introduces Special Demands. Note that some events differ slightly from those in the board game.

ebUMA - Empire Express - play the Expanded Rules in the Middle Atlantic and surrounding states.

Maps can be purchased individually (on the form, list the "ebXXX" names of the ones you want) or as part of various discounted packages described below. Check our Web site to learn about other new maps as well. A map's size is typically about 250K each in ZIP form. If you order via Paypal, you will be directed to where to download the maps after your payment is processed. Note that a few of these maps have slight play differences (typically events or milepost locations) from their board game counterparts.

Various free maps can be downloaded from the railgamefans.com site as well as the RailGameFans user group. Visit the site for information.

EBPEDIT MAP EDITOR

Ever wanted to change a game map a bit? Add a mountain here, adjust the coastline there, add a ferry? That's where EBPEdit, our visual map editor program, comes in. If you know how to drag and drop with your mouse, you can create your own game maps. You can edit all EBP map items visually (except for images like the background and icons, or sound effects). This program is a must if you want to easily edit existing maps, or are serious about making your own from scratch. To download a free trial, in EBP use the File, Edit Map pull-down menu.

Those who register both EBP and EBPEdit can obtain upon request a free copy of EBPHP, our high performance version of EBP that is intended for testing maps via Continuous Play. It operates about twice as fast as standard EBP (the exact speed boost depends on your device and the map in use).

PACKAGE DEALS

You can get your EBP registration as part of a discounted map package. Note these maps are not the board games themselves, but rather counterparts that work with EBP. The Express contains the Eurorails and Australian Rails maps. The SuperExpress contains the Eurorails, Australian Rails, Nippon Rails, New York City, British Rails maps. The Boardgamer Special consists of 10 popular maps from the Empire Builder series: Agent of Change, Australian Rails, British Rails, China Rails, Eurorails, India Rails, Lunar Rails, Martian Rails, Nippon Rails and Russian Rails. Some maps exist in multiple forms that correspond to multiple editions of the board games; the packages above give you the most recent version of the most recent edition available. If you wish to know specifically which edition map is included in a package, check RailGameFans.com.

For the serious Empire Builder fan, the Ultra Package provides all the maps listed above (11 board game maps, and New York City), plus 5 maps corresponding to older board game editions (ebEB5, ebEUR, ebAUS, ebGB1, ebJPN) and 3 more free (ebEB7, Colorado, Canada). That's 20 maps in all at our best price, one much less than acquiring all those games in board game form. Note that if sent as an email attachment, the Ultra Package is roughly 6 megabytes in size.

LOST REGISTRATION

After you enter the passcode with which we reply, to preserve your registration be sure to back up the directory containing EBP. It can be lost if your hard drive fails, you reload your operating system, etc.

If you lose your registered copy of EBP or get a new device, contact us to re-register. Users covered by a Support Plan are entitled to one free passcode for their registered version per 12 months per full-price registration. If less than 12 months have elapsed, or if the version of the program is newer than one you last paid to register, or you do not have Support Plan coverage for EBP, you can get a new passcode for a small fee: order a recovery copy. Install and run EBP on the device, choose the Help, Registration Numbers pull-down menu, and include the pre-registration number shown. See details in the FAQs at RailGameFans.com.

NEW VERSIONS / UPGRADING

Check for the availability of upgrades via the File, Download Update feature. This feature requires that your device is Internet-ready. In the window that opens, click the Check For Upgrade button to check our Web site for the current version.

You'll be told if your version is the most recent, as well as if a newer version exists and how much (if any) it will cost to upgrade (outside the USA there may be a surcharge). You will then be given a choice to automatically download and install the upgrade. In case there is a problem, your old version will be kept, automatically renamed to contain a version number (for example, the old program may be renamed to EBP208.EXE).

If there is a fee for upgrading, after the download you will need to contact us to pay and obtain a new passcode. Upgrades are available only to registered users of a prior version; the upgrade takes the place of the prior version. People with registrations for their multiple devices should order upgrades simultaneously for all registrations for which they wish to maintain registration benefits. For example, if someone who has registered 3 copies of prior versions orders upgrades for just 2 of those 3, all registration benefits for the third copy will be lost.

Note that during 2020 Microsoft/Windows Defender was known to falsely report a virus in EBP, and to sequester your download. Microsoft eventually fixed Defender, but if problems recur, consider switching to a different virus checker. We perform many virus checks here, so any report of an issue with software obtained directly from us is likely a false positive. Search online or ask the product vendor how to report false positives.

If you do not wish to use the automated upgrade, or if there are other problems, visit our Web site to download manually. If you get no response upon choosing File, Download Update, or get run-time error 372 or 339, your version of the Windows internet drivers is likely outdated or missing. Refer to the driver information in the Hardware topic.

NOTES

Except where prohibited by applicable law, by using EBP and EBPEdit software you agree that it is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to the warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and noninfringement of third-party rights. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software. Where "as is" is prohibited, the Software should not be considered to operate beyond or better than what you observe during the free trial. In no event shall the authors or copyright holders be liable for any claim, damages or other liability, whether in an action of contract, tort or otherwise, arising from, out of or in connection with the Software or the use or other dealings in the Software.

See the FAQs at RailGameFans.com for additional terms and details.