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| Author | A little Hypercard story... (Read 22324 times) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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mac-cellar
128 MB  Posts: 176 Gotta love System 7 
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on: November 05, 2021, 22:17
It was only about 12 years ago that I started experimenting with Hypercard. Cobbling together what I could learn from the manuals with stacks I found online (along with a LOT of trial and error), I was able to create a stack or two that served a real purpose for me. At the time, my son was trying to learn some vocabulary words for school, so I tried my hand at a simple flashcard stack. After that, I created another to help him do simple addition problems in math. Since then, I've made a few other stacks that do various things... a notes stack with a simple index, a hourly medication/symptom log for when one of my kids gets sick, and another for a discussion group I was helping to lead. Nothing terribly complex, but Hypercard makes all these little projects approachable and fun to do for someone like me without programming/scripting experience. It is fun to start with a blank card, create fields and buttons, add in a well-placed snippet of Applescript here and there, and come up with something useful, especially on a computer that is 20 years old. I find even simple things in Hypercard kinda neat. Case in point: last night, I was sitting at my PowerCenter Pro and I remembered that I had a number of Hypercard stacks scattered in different folders, and others on my home server. After copying all of the stacks into one folder on the PowerCenter's hard drive, I thought it would be neat if I had a button on Hypercard's Home stack that would open a file dialog, so that I could open any of the stacks I had gathered together. I thought surely there had to be a way to do this. A quick look at an Applescript reference gave me the guts of the tiny script I'd need for this button to work. A few lines (and one minor correction) later, and bingo, I had my "Open A Stack" button and I felt like I had a little fun doing it. For those of you keeping score at home, I know that "File... Open Stack" does the same thing, but my little button keeps my focus on the stack window and means I don't have to reach for a menubar menu. Plus, it's something I made myself, which makes it much more fun. Anyone else making use of Hypercard these days? Any useful stacks to share? |
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB  Posts: 2023
Reply #1 on: November 06, 2021, 15:22
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Awesome topic, mac-cellar! Thanks for sharing your personal Hypercard story with us. Which proves indeed what an awesome product Hypercard (nee 1987 !!!) was and still is. It heavily breathes the "Personal Computing" air, by intending to give everyone the tools into his/her hand to write programs exactly for the personal purpose you describe! Unfortunately, that also led to its demise. Programs written in Hypercard are somehow viewed als half-baked. Don't get me wrong, that's not MY opinion. I think it's a fantastic software. Yes, it's slower than stuff coded natively in Pascal / C. You'll notice if your try a stack with graphics and sound on your Mac SE. Yes, it needs an interpreter (Hypercard) to run, though I've read there's tools that let you create stand-alone apps as well. (or wasn't that included in some later version?) I've also been guilty of disregarding Hypercard for exactly that reason. There's simply tons of software written in Hypercard and unfortunately, a lot looks like it was done by 8-year olds on a sunday afternoon. In a way, it suffers the same syndrome like World Builder. It's too approachable. Also add the ego of "real programmers" that will scoff anything not requiring handling of arrays, pointers and loops :-D There is, however, pretty cool Hypercard stuff out there, you just need to start digging a bit. Maybe we can share our findings here? Because I've just been on the page - this Mac Fanzine in German is published as a Hypercard Stack. It contains not only text, but also graphics and animations. Sure, they could have used Docmaker as well, but Hypercard is a great medium for presenting anything on Mac OS. Dang, now I really want to get into Hypercard scripting :-D ... I created a really small adventure for mocking Knezzen some months ago but that's pretty much all of my experience. I know there's literally tons of stuff out there that greatly extends its capabilites, including the ability to execute C or Pascal code from within. Come to think of it, a stack covering all System 7 Macs with tech data and info would be a nice thing to have. Sure you can go to everymac on your mobile, but the coolness of viewing it on an actual IIci ... :-)
Last Edit: November 07, 2021, 11:42 by Bolkonskij
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mac-cellar
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128 MB Posts: 176 Gotta love System 7
Reply #2 on: November 06, 2021, 21:47
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When I first started experimenting with Hypercard, I had version 2.3 (complete in the box with disks and manuals... found it in a thrift store for $2.00!!), and that version allows creating stacks as stand-alone applications that can be run without Hypercard installed. The Internet Archive has a trove of thousands of Hypercard stacks that can be downloaded or run in a browser under an emulator. Now, there are plenty of them that look like afternoon doodlings by 8-year-olds, but there are many that are serious or at least useful. I've collected a short list of old sites I've found either with stacks for download, tips on using Hypercard, references, etc. I'll dig those up and post them. Your idea of an Everymac-ish Mac reference stack is fantastic, and exactly the kind of thing for which Hypercard is perfect. Perhaps a System 7 Today collaborative project in the making?
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB Posts: 2023
Reply #3 on: November 07, 2021, 12:05
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That's just such an awesome find, congratulations! Man, I wish I'd ever come across a complete Hypercard box myself. Certainly would love (and use) it :-) I think the issue with Hypercard development is really the lack of clear orientation. Where to start, what to get etc. I'd love to have Hypercard its own section here on System 7 Today but it'll require time and dedication to filter the good stuff out of a plethora of mediocre apps / scripts. A few impressive Hypercard apps I ran into lately: Clue Deluxe is an adaption of the board game made with Hypercard. I recently uploaded it on the Garden after finding it on some old System 7 shareware disc and it's really well made. Keep of the Demon Lord - it's a classic Bard's Tale style RPG that I ran into some months ago. Features very nice color graphics. Get Rich Quick is a very nice black & white Point and Click adventure that is fun to play. A good example that you can do the next retro compatible Monkey Island with Hypercard ;-) There's lots of weird / creative stuff out there as well which is something to love Hypercard for. Now you've made me really really wanting to spend time with Hypercard. :-D ... yeah, the S7T hardware guide as a hypercard stack sounds awesome. Should we have a go? ;-)
Last Edit: November 07, 2021, 12:22 by Bolkonskij
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB Posts: 2023
Reply #4 on: November 07, 2021, 16:23
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Wow, I had totally forgotten that once upon a time I had started a project in Hypercard myself. It's at an early stage still, a kind of business simulation that would put you into the shoes of someone opening an indie Mac store in 1985. Month after months you'd have to manage store inventory, advertising, have "customer encounters" and most of all, learn something about the Mac / Apple history. I just started it up and took some pics: http://images.macintosh.garden/2021/11/07/macdealer2.jpg http://images.macintosh.garden/2021/11/07/macdealer3.jpg http://images.macintosh.garden/2021/11/07/macdealer4.jpg http://images.macintosh.garden/2021/11/07/macdealer5.jpg Maybe I should pick it up again ...
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB Posts: 2023
Reply #5 on: November 16, 2021, 16:45
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It's all your fault, mac-cellar!  http://images.macintosh.garden/2021/11/16/hypercard.jpg P.S. posting this from Norm, my 8600, who is back in business after two weeks. Feels great to boot the old pal again :-)
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ovalking
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128 MB Posts: 199
Reply #6 on: November 16, 2021, 20:22
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Love your enthusiasm Bolkonskij! The reversed Mac Dealer sign in the window is a nice touch. Right, back to Clue Deluxe... EDIT: Crime solved! Couple of useage tips: Don't click madly on the splash screen trying to make it go away or you'll be there all day. Be patient. If you try and load a scenario (not actually necessary unless you want to change scenario), don't choose Clue Deluxe. It won't work properly/spoils the game.รด
Last Edit: November 17, 2021, 16:33 by ovalking
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mac-cellar
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128 MB Posts: 176 Gotta love System 7
Reply #7 on: November 17, 2021, 06:14
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Bravo Bolkonskij!
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB Posts: 2023
Reply #8 on: November 17, 2021, 17:46
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As I received my boxed original Hypercard 2.3 all I can say is that I'm overwhelmed. Opening the box this afternoon was like a little trip back in time. I had forgotten how heavy those boxes with their printed manuals were! It's amazing to have all the refence guides and the scripting manual. Sure, I had Hypercard downloaded before but then it feels entirely different now. I can only recommend looking for a real copy if you're interest in Hypercard. Mine was offered for 45$ on ebay, I bid 30$ and the seller accepted. At least to me owning the whole package makes this a completly new experience. Now I've got get a nice drink and do some more skipping through the manuals :-) Now highly motivated to convert my game-in-development to Hypercard and proceed ...
Last Edit: November 17, 2021, 17:49 by Bolkonskij
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mac-cellar
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128 MB Posts: 176 Gotta love System 7
Reply #9 on: November 17, 2021, 18:44
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The documentation is terrific - if you ever come across a copy of the book HyperCard Power - grab it! It is an excellent resource. When I found my copy of Hypercard in the thrift store years ago, this book was sitting right next to it, along with another on HyperTalk that I snapped up .
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68040
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512 MB Posts: 950 68k - thy kingdom come, thy will be done !
Reply #10 on: November 27, 2021, 05:02
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@Bolkonskij - Any chance to digitize the docu and upload it to System7 and/or the Garden?
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