8.13. Checking on whereabouts

| Chapter 8: Change |

| 8.13. Checking on whereabouts

We have seen that while rooms are fixed, their contents move around, so we will need ways to examine the current whereabouts of things. The following examples show the kind of conditions allowed:

> if the genie's lamp is in Aladdin's Cave ...
> if Aladdin is not in Aladdin's Cave ...
> if Aladdin's Cave contains the genie's lamp ...
> if the genie's lamp is carried by Aladdin ...
> if Aladdin is carrying the genie's lamp ...
> if Aladdin does not have the genie's lamp ...
> if the table supports the genie's lamp ...
> if the table is supporting the genie's lamp ...
> if the genie's lamp is supported by the table ...
> if the genie's lamp is on the table ...
> if the genie's lamp is on top of the table ...
> if the genie's lamp is in the cupboard ...
> if the genie's lamp is contained in the cupboard ...
> if the genie's lamp is inside the cupboard ...
> if the genie's lamp is within the cupboard ...
> if the wick is part of the genie's lamp ...

As the previous section mentioned, these are exactly like the assertions which we use to set up the world, except that we make them questions by placing "if" in front. But we shall later see that we can also use three other tenses, not to mention plural forms, so that new verbal forms like "had not been inside" and "were not supported by" are legal here (which they would not be in assertions). What we are not allowed is to contract these verbs with apostrophes: "isn't", "hasn't" and "hadn't" are forbidden.

Overwhelmingly the condition we check most is whether the player is carrying something. The following are therefore equivalent:

> if the genie's lamp is carried by the player ...
> if the genie's lamp is carried ...

And similarly for "not carried", "worn" and "not worn". To be precise, if a form of to be carried or to be worn is not followed by any other description, then "the player" is assumed to be doing the carrying or wearing.

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