Why did you pick such strange names for each version of CUSTOM and GAME.EXE?

The strange names assigned to each stable release are chosen by James. He was originally planning to assign them reverse-aphabetically starting with paternoster, but he got confused and assigned them alphabetically instead, and didn't realize he was doing it until rusalka.

The practice of giving odd names to official software releases is not uncommon. A codename is often easier to remember (and more fun!) than a version number or a datestamp.

Examples:

• Debian GNU/Linux slink, potato, woody, sarge, etch, sid
• Ubuntu Linux Warty Warthog, Hoary Hedgehog, Breezy Badger, Dapper Drake, Edgy Eft
• FBOHR Aristotle, Berkeley/Bentham, Chomsky/Camus, Descartes/Derrida, Euclid/Epicurus
• Microsoft Windows Whistler, Springboard, Longhorn, Cougar

These naming schemes usually have a "theme" such as "Characters from Toy Story" for Debian. The theme for OHRRPGCE release codenames is:

polysylabic words that James likes the sound of

• handshake - A hearty handshake to thank bug-testers for helping to solve a nasty crash
• espereble - Esperanto word for "Hopefully" (ekzemplo: Espereble gi programo ne erarkraŝi!)
• wolfwood - After Nicholas D. Wolfwood from Trigun
• paternoster - The beginning of a prayer in some religions where you call God "Father"
• ozarks - A mountainous region in the eastern part of the United States. Sometimes associated with Hillbillies, although I'm sure anyone who lives there will be quick to point out that it is an unfair stereotype. Their cousins will agree.
• quaternion - A class of non-commutive associative hypercomplex numbers. When William Hamilton discovered them in 1843, he thought they were so awesome that he had to stop right where he was and carve the formula into a rock.
• rusalka - A Slavic water spirit. The ghost of a drowned girl who lures men into the water to kill them. James highly recommends Rusalka by C.J. Cherryh
• serendipity - Luck, Good Fortune, Accidental discovery. IIRC, Mike suggested this one.
• tirgoviste - A town in Romania. The site of one of Vlad Dracula's castles.
• ubersetzung - German word for "Translation". Out of optimistic hope that the translation from QuickBasic to FreeBasic will be fully complete soon.
• voxhumana - The pipe organ stop that sounds most like a human voice.
• werewaffle - James was bitten by a waffle once.
• xocolatl - The ancient Aztec word for "Chocolate"
• zeitgeist - The spirit of the age (literally "time-ghost")