[Chicago] Hypercards (was Re: python intro for 13 yo -- suggestions?)

[Brian Sobolak]

Atul Varma wrote:
> On 7/11/06, Michael Tobis <mtobis at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Well if you have opinions about this be sure to show up on Thursday,
>> because this is the sort of thing I'll be talking about. I'm hoping
>> more to start up a conversation than to show off.
>>
>> Specifically: what's the right architecture for an interactive
>> teaching tool? Does it involve the browser? Does it involve multiple
>> languages? Which ones? (I'd prefer 100% Python if it's practical, but
>> maybe it isn't.)
>
> Ok, I wasn't planning on coming because I had plans, but this topic is
> way too interesting to miss...
>
> On a side note, I loved Hypercard as well... And find it really
> interesting that an old app from 1987 is still considered to be
> superior than anything out there today in a lot of ways. (Speaking of
> which, did anyone know that Apple didn't stop selling it until March
> 2004?)

When I was working in Hypercard in 1989 (or whenever) never occured to me
that I was programming.  I was building cool stuff with a computer, and I
think that was a huge part of its appeal.

And my CS 101 class used a non-Apple product, SuperCard, which is still
available, for our first programming project.  <http://www.supercard.us/>

> I've tried using PythonCard and found it really confusing.


Agreed.  I could never get it to work, and gave up.

It seems with all of the stuff migrating to the web (wikis, spreadsheets,
caribou), that some fan of Hypercards back in the day would have tried to
do a good recreation of it on the web. [1]

brian

1.  Which wouldn't be unprecedented:  I've read this week (in the WSJ
maybe?) that hedge fund managers who loved baseball cards as kids are
trying to take over Topps, the candy company that makes them.

--
Brian Sobolak
http://www.planetshwoop.com/