The author of this program is, regrettably, totally unknown.

This is very unfortunate, because this is the *best* Star Trek game ever
written.  If it were shareware, I'd send the author thirty bucks in a
shot. 

When I downloaded VTREK, there was no documentation accopanying it.  It
looks a lot like a beta-test, because a couple of the features are
disabled.  The disabled features are only in the opening setup screen, and
do not affect play at all.

Here's what I've learned about VTREK by playing it as of July 11, 1991:

VTREK is "Visual Star Trek".  Like EGATREK, VTREK requires an EGA or
better screen.  The screen is divided into five sections.  The upper left
is a map of the galaxy.  The upper right is a short-range sensor scan of
your sector.  Lower left is a status window showing things like who's been
shooting at you, bases that are under attack and how long they'll be able
to hold out, and that sort of data.  Lower right is a similar screen
showing long-term information.

Between the short-range scan and long-term info windows is a row of icons.
Put your mouse cursor on each of them for details.  Pressing the left
mouse button while the cursor is on an icon will make the icon do whatever
it's supposed to do.

Below the icons are power and shield level bars.  Beside both of these
rows are vertical scroll bars and vertical icons.  Put your mouse cursor
on each of them for information.

Set long-range courses by simply putting your mouse cursor on the part of
the galactic map you want to make your destination and click the left
mouse button.  Set short-range by placing the mouse cross-hairs on your
destination in the short-range scan window and click the RIGHT mouse button.

Fire torpedos by placing your cross-hairs on a target and pressing the
LEFT mouse button.  Fire phaser by placing the mouse cursor on the energy
status bar and clicking the left mouse button.  Phasers will over-heat and
become damaged if you try to fire more than 2500 units of energy - so
don't do it.

You can replenish your energy supply by docking with a starbase or
converting mined dilithium to energy.  You mine or dock by being adjacent
to a planet or base.  Be careful of flawed dilithium, it will really wreak
havoc on you.

I suggest disabling tribbles, at least at first.  You do this by clicking
on the "TRIBBLES ENABLED" icon on the opneing screen.  There's no way to
get rid of them, and there's no way to prevent them coming aboard short of
not mining dilithium.  And I guarantee you're going to want to mine.  Once
you get over a few thousand tribbles aboard - and they breed very rapidly
- it becomes difficult or impossible to do anything.  Tribbles clog your
phasers, torps, fry your warp drive, distract your officers ...

Tholians are fun.  Unless you want to run out of torps shooting them, try
shoot a star they're adjacent to.

Don't shoot your own bases or planets - unless you enjoy getting
dressed-down by Starfleet and losing points.

That's it.  Finding out everything else makes for part of the fun in this
game.  I hope the author comes forward soon, so I can send him/her some
money.