TweetFollow Us on Twitter

MacWorld 90
Volume Number:6
Issue Number:6
Column Tag:Show Report

MacWorld Expo, April 1990

By Kirk Chase, Editor, MacTutor

The April 1990 MacWorld Expo in San Francisco is still having its effects at the time of this writing. The show was as large as ever in terms of exhibitors, but the crowd seemed smaller than last year with the exception of Industry Day and all the gate crashers. Still the show had some interesting products out for the developer and some good conferences (most of which were repeated due to the crowd of developers wanting in to hear them). Here are some of the highlights on products and conferences.

Products in View

After Dark

Berkeley Systems, Inc.

1700 Shattuck Ave.

(415) 540-5535

The people who made doing nothing on you Mac an enjoyable experience have announced a programming contest for their versatile screen saver, After Dark. Call Berkeley Systems for the entry form for all the details and rules. Then send in your compiled module on disk for judging. Grand prize is a SuperMac™ 19" Trinitron® Color Display with Spectrum/8 Series III Graphics Card. Second prize is the Maxcess™ 250t Tape Backup. Third prize is a Nutmeg/Xerox Full Page Display with graphics board. In addition, you can get $1000 more if they feature your module in an upcoming release.

Berkeley Systems is offering such nice prizes that everyone will be getting in on the action. Remember the deadline for getting your module in is midnight, August 1st, 1990. It will be interesting to see what is done giving this chance for fame and fortune from just a screen saver.

Macintosh Inside Out

Addison-Wesley

(617) 944-3700

Addison-Wesley started their new series of books for the Macintosh. Programming with MacApp® by David A. Wilson, Larry S. Rosenstein, and Dan Shafer is the first in the series which was announced at the show. This book covering Apple’s popular object programming environment goes into depth on using MacApp with MPW. It is filled with tips and examples. The book also comes with a disk.

The next book out in the series is Elements of C++ Macintosh Programming by Dan Weston, another well-known figure in the Macintosh community. This one is due out in June, or possibly July, so look for it on the shelves of your computer bookstore soon. This book will help you get started with C++. In fact, you should keep on looking on the shelves for other books in the Macintosh Inside Out series; they will cover such topics as MPW, System 7.0, and 32-bit QuickDraw.

Peter Norton Utilities for the Macintosh

Peter Norton Computing, Inc.

(213) 319-2000

The man who is famous for his utilities in the IBM world has brought a series of Macintosh utilities. The Norton Utilities for the Macintosh solve many of the data recovery problems. Some of the utilities included are the Norton Disk Doctor for diagnosing and repairing disk errors, Format Recover/File Saver for restoring file/folder after an accidental erasure or disk damage, UnErase for recovering “trashed” files, Speed Disk for hard disk optimization, Disk Editor, and more.

CAUSE

Maxem Corporation

(602) 491-2466

CAUSE is a product designed for the non-programmer. It is designed for the business person who wants to create custom software, without learning how to program. CAUSE may be thought of as a poor man’s “application generator”. Like that of other application generators like Serius, CAUSE can create simple applications and do it across both MS-DOS and Macintosh platforms! Unfortunately you must take the lowest common denominator. But even still, I was impressed with what it could do without a single line of coding.

To make an application, your first step is to your resources, such as windows. The next is the assignment of “steps”. These “steps” will create/open/save files, print reports, etc. With CAUSE you can create a simple database. And if you think your creation is good enough, Maxem will help you market your application, called “EFFECT”, by helping package and distribute your product.

Apple Products

Apple Programmer’s &

Developer’s Association

(800) 282-2732

MPW 3.1 is on its way. Available on a CD ROM as well as disks, version 3.1 offers a number of enhancements and updates. This is definitely a “must” upgrade according to a number of known authorities. There have been a number of improvements in SADE while you are single stepping. Also there have been extensions put in for working with SADE in either C++ or Object Pascal. Several bugs have been eradicated. Also there is better support for large Object Pascal programs.

MacApp 2.0 will be out (hopefully) by the time you read this. It will also come with sample source code for six applications. It is hoped that the sample applications, in connection with the updates to MacApp, will aid the developer to get into “Object Programming” (or “Object Oriented Programming” if you OP for OOPs).

Making it’s debut later on the scene is MPW C++ 3.1. Enhancements to C++ will allow you to mix Object Pascal with C. About the best improvement is the support for precompiled headers. Anyone who has developed in an OP environment knows the vast array of files needed to even get out the simplest application. By having support for precompiled headers, as THINK C has had for almost a year, compile time can be greatly reduced.

If you are waiting for System 7.0, you probably have had a lot of practice waiting, and you will get even more practice when since it is not expected out until the end of the year. But those fortunate enough to be going to the Worldwide Developers’ Conference in May are expected to receive a beta version on CD ROM.

MacTutor CD ROM Source Code

MacTutor

(714) 777-1250

You’ve asked for it for a long time. Now it is here. The CD ROM version of our source code from day one up through December of 1989 is now available. Included on the CD is the topical index of the last five years. And to make life even easier, there is a text retrieval engine where a developer can search on any word that might be on a source and almost instantly be rewarded with a list of the sources that contain the word. Double click on any entry in the list, and you are taken to that source file with the word or phrase already highlighted. No more wondering what issue that routine you wanted was in. A CD ROM driver and the MacTutor CD will solve your problems.

ARANDA

Soft-Set Technologies, Inc.

(604) 734-1622

Soft-Set was showing a demonstration of ARANDA, a new software development and CASE tool. ARANDA makes your life easier in understanding and analyzing existing code, documenting it, and manage a product even better. This tool is like a browser and source code database all in one. Just feed it your Pascal or Object Pascal code and you’re off and running. Then you can look at the structure of your code, jump back and forth from a hierarchical view to your source, document it, and so on. This product is indispensable in getting new, or even old, team members up to speed with the software project.

Conferences in View

Most of the developers’ conferences at the show were not the greatest in my opinion. Although many of them had to be repeated because of the great number of people wanting to attend, they were flawed for the most part in two respects. First, most of them were presented by people who must have just read their own press releases. And second, the panels were so large as to give member only about ten minutes to say something useful. It would have been better in most cases to have visited the individual booths and grabbed a press release.

C++/MPW Report

This meeting gave an overview of what C++ is and where it is going in connection with MPW. They discussed some of the problems facing C++ and MPW. Most notably was the need for about 8 megs, two monitors, and something like Jasik’s Incremental Build to get down to business. An actual C++ compiler, instead of a preprocessor, and a richer set of tools were also on the wish list.

The next version of MPW hosts a number of improvements. Among them are split windows, shell optimizations, Mac II flags, and “411” on line help (taken from the phone company’s number for information). It was suggested that MPW would do better to have “911” help.

Object Oriented Programming Tools

This meeting was strictly a marketers’ meeting. In this session you were introduced to a number of object development environments. Symantec showed off their latest version of THINK Pascal; this latest version is MacApp compatible, has a very nice Browser, and has a number of tools (such as a source code converter from THINK Pascal to MPW Pascal, SARez, SADeRez, etc.) to help you. You also got a view of SmallTalk 80 and SmallTalk V for the Mac. Along for the ride was Prograph from TGS; Prograph is perhaps the most unique object programming environment out in the Mac community and hosts a number of nice development features.

Developer’s Toolkit

This session had a number of good tips for the developer. Jim Edmond talked about using HyperMedia (or HyperHype as I feel) tools such as SuperCard and CompileIt! for rapid prototyping and even development. Darren Adler gave the best tips in this session to the developer on how to reduce code complexity, side by side code comparison with the source and assembled version, and so on. It was suggested that MPW scripts could be used more effectively to help reduce development.

In’s and Out’s of INITs

This was, in my opinion, the best session of the whole conference, and I truly wish the other sessions could have been more along these lines. Rather than selling some product, these panel members, all very well known individuals, went one by one giving short tips to those writing INITs. Among the tips were some like don’t initialize windows if your INIT doesn’t use them, how to transfer your code to the system heap for later use, how to delete your installation code, don’t do tail patching unless necessary, don’t make your INIT so that it, or any of its file, depend on being in a certain folder (like the System Folder), and many more.

Extending the Mac User Interface

This session gave a number of guidelines in the creation of dialogs, menus, tool pallets and so on. They suggested that there should be better organization, consistency, and clarity from applications in general and applications of the same type. They recommended a number of helps in designing a dialog and other interface objects. They then asked for support in implementing these. I was surprised that it was not a “these are the new rules” session but rather a “this might be a better way” session. Some of the extensions would do rather well in ending our confusion if adopted by developers. And even if you were the only one, your application would look and feel a whole lot better (thereby forcing others to adopt these principles in user interface design).

This MacWorld Expo was exciting for a number of reasons. Besides the introduction of a number of new applications, there seemed to be an increase in developer tools and applications. There were also a number set for release in the not so distant future; I was unhappy with that because of the extra couple months of waiting time already from last MacWorld, but hopefully Boston will be sporting a number of new products for the developer. I hope they do a little better on the conferences. I feel why pay for a press release and a demo that you can get for free in a booth on the show floor.

 

Community Search:
MacTech Search:

Software Updates via MacUpdate

coconutBattery 3.9.14 - Displays info ab...
With coconutBattery you're always aware of your current battery health. It shows you live information about your battery such as how often it was charged and how is the current maximum capacity in... Read more
Keynote 13.2 - Apple's presentation...
Easily create gorgeous presentations with the all-new Keynote, featuring powerful yet easy-to-use tools and dazzling effects that will make you a very hard act to follow. The Theme Chooser lets you... Read more
Apple Pages 13.2 - Apple's word pro...
Apple Pages is a powerful word processor that gives you everything you need to create documents that look beautiful. And read beautifully. It lets you work seamlessly between Mac and iOS devices, and... Read more
Numbers 13.2 - Apple's spreadsheet...
With Apple Numbers, sophisticated spreadsheets are just the start. The whole sheet is your canvas. Just add dramatic interactive charts, tables, and images that paint a revealing picture of your data... Read more
Ableton Live 11.3.11 - Record music usin...
Ableton Live lets you create and record music on your Mac. Use digital instruments, pre-recorded sounds, and sampled loops to arrange, produce, and perform your music like never before. Ableton Live... Read more
Affinity Photo 2.2.0 - Digital editing f...
Affinity Photo - redefines the boundaries for professional photo editing software for the Mac. With a meticulous focus on workflow it offers sophisticated tools for enhancing, editing and retouching... Read more
SpamSieve 3.0 - Robust spam filter for m...
SpamSieve is a robust spam filter for major email clients that uses powerful Bayesian spam filtering. SpamSieve understands what your spam looks like in order to block it all, but also learns what... Read more
WhatsApp 2.2338.12 - Desktop client for...
WhatsApp is the desktop client for WhatsApp Messenger, a cross-platform mobile messaging app which allows you to exchange messages without having to pay for SMS. WhatsApp Messenger is available for... Read more
Fantastical 3.8.2 - Create calendar even...
Fantastical is the Mac calendar you'll actually enjoy using. Creating an event with Fantastical is quick, easy, and fun: Open Fantastical with a single click or keystroke Type in your event details... Read more
iShowU Instant 1.4.14 - Full-featured sc...
iShowU Instant gives you real-time screen recording like you've never seen before! It is the fastest, most feature-filled real-time screen capture tool from shinywhitebox yet. All of the features you... Read more

Latest Forum Discussions

See All

The iPhone 15 Episode – The TouchArcade...
After a 3 week hiatus The TouchArcade Show returns with another action-packed episode! Well, maybe not so much “action-packed" as it is “packed with talk about the iPhone 15 Pro". Eli, being in a time zone 3 hours ahead of me, as well as being smart... | Read more »
TouchArcade Game of the Week: ‘DERE Veng...
Developer Appsir Games have been putting out genre-defying titles on mobile (and other platforms) for a number of years now, and this week marks the release of their magnum opus DERE Vengeance which has been many years in the making. In fact, if the... | Read more »
SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring...
Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 22nd, 2023. I’ve had a good night’s sleep, and though my body aches down to the last bit of sinew and meat, I’m at least thinking straight again. We’ve got a lot to look at... | Read more »
TGS 2023: Level-5 Celebrates 25 Years Wi...
Back when I first started covering the Tokyo Game Show for TouchArcade, prolific RPG producer Level-5 could always be counted on for a fairly big booth with a blend of mobile and console games on offer. At recent shows, the company’s presence has... | Read more »
TGS 2023: ‘Final Fantasy’ & ‘Dragon...
Square Enix usually has one of the bigger, more attention-grabbing booths at the Tokyo Game Show, and this year was no different in that sense. The line-ups to play pretty much anything there were among the lengthiest of the show, and there were... | Read more »
Valve Says To Not Expect a Faster Steam...
With the big 20% off discount for the Steam Deck available to celebrate Steam’s 20th anniversary, Valve had a good presence at TGS 2023 with interviews and more. | Read more »
‘Honkai Impact 3rd Part 2’ Revealed at T...
At TGS 2023, HoYoverse had a big presence with new trailers for the usual suspects, but I didn’t expect a big announcement for Honkai Impact 3rd (Free). | Read more »
‘Junkworld’ Is Out Now As This Week’s Ne...
Epic post-apocalyptic tower-defense experience Junkworld () from Ironhide Games is out now on Apple Arcade worldwide. We’ve been covering it for a while now, and even through its soft launches before, but it has returned as an Apple Arcade... | Read more »
Motorsport legends NASCAR announce an up...
NASCAR often gets a bad reputation outside of America, but there is a certain charm to it with its close side-by-side action and its focus on pure speed, but it never managed to really massively break out internationally. Now, there's a chance... | Read more »
Skullgirls Mobile Version 6.0 Update Rel...
I’ve been covering Marie’s upcoming release from Hidden Variable in Skullgirls Mobile (Free) for a while now across the announcement, gameplay | Read more »

Price Scanner via MacPrices.net

New low price: 13″ M2 MacBook Pro for $1049,...
Amazon has the Space Gray 13″ MacBook Pro with an Apple M2 CPU and 256GB of storage in stock and on sale today for $250 off MSRP. Their price is the lowest we’ve seen for this configuration from any... Read more
Apple AirPods 2 with USB-C now in stock and o...
Amazon has Apple’s 2023 AirPods Pro with USB-C now in stock and on sale for $199.99 including free shipping. Their price is $50 off MSRP, and it’s currently the lowest price available for new AirPods... Read more
New low prices: Apple’s 15″ M2 MacBook Airs w...
Amazon has 15″ MacBook Airs with M2 CPUs and 512GB of storage in stock and on sale for $1249 shipped. That’s $250 off Apple’s MSRP, and it’s the lowest price available for these M2-powered MacBook... Read more
New low price: Clearance 16″ Apple MacBook Pr...
B&H Photo has clearance 16″ M1 Max MacBook Pros, 10-core CPU/32-core GPU/1TB SSD/Space Gray or Silver, in stock today for $2399 including free 1-2 day delivery to most US addresses. Their price... Read more
Switch to Red Pocket Mobile and get a new iPh...
Red Pocket Mobile has new Apple iPhone 15 and 15 Pro models on sale for $300 off MSRP when you switch and open up a new line of service. Red Pocket Mobile is a nationwide service using all the major... Read more
Apple continues to offer a $350 discount on 2...
Apple has Studio Display models available in their Certified Refurbished store for up to $350 off MSRP. Each display comes with Apple’s one-year warranty, with new glass and a case, and ships free.... Read more
Apple’s 16-inch MacBook Pros with M2 Pro CPUs...
Amazon is offering a $250 discount on new Apple 16-inch M2 Pro MacBook Pros for a limited time. Their prices are currently the lowest available for these models from any Apple retailer: – 16″ MacBook... Read more
Closeout Sale: Apple Watch Ultra with Green A...
Adorama haș the Apple Watch Ultra with a Green Alpine Loop on clearance sale for $699 including free shipping. Their price is $100 off original MSRP, and it’s the lowest price we’ve seen for an Apple... Read more
Use this promo code at Verizon to take $150 o...
Verizon is offering a $150 discount on cellular-capable Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 models for a limited time. Use code WATCH150 at checkout to take advantage of this offer. The fine print: “Up... Read more
New low price: Apple’s 10th generation iPads...
B&H Photo has the 10th generation 64GB WiFi iPad (Blue and Silver colors) in stock and on sale for $379 for a limited time. B&H’s price is $70 off Apple’s MSRP, and it’s the lowest price... Read more

Jobs Board

Optometrist- *Apple* Valley, CA- Target Opt...
Optometrist- Apple Valley, CA- Target Optical Date: Sep 23, 2023 Brand: Target Optical Location: Apple Valley, CA, US, 92308 **Requisition ID:** 796045 At Target Read more
Senior *Apple* iOS CNO Developer (Onsite) -...
…Offense and Defense Experts (CODEX) is in need of smart, motivated and self-driven Apple iOS CNO Developers to join our team to solve real-time cyber challenges. Read more
*Apple* Systems Administrator - JAMF - Activ...
…**Public Trust/Other Required:** None **Job Family:** Systems Administration **Skills:** Apple Platforms,Computer Servers,Jamf Pro **Experience:** 3 + years of Read more
Child Care Teacher - Glenda Drive/ *Apple* V...
Child Care Teacher - Glenda Drive/ Apple ValleyTeacher Share by Email Share on LinkedIn Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Apply Read more
Machine Operator 4 - *Apple* 2nd Shift - Bon...
Machine Operator 4 - Apple 2nd ShiftApply now " Apply now + Start apply with LinkedIn + Apply Now Start + Please wait Date:Sep 22, 2023 Location: Swedesboro, NJ, US, Read more
All contents are Copyright 1984-2011 by Xplain Corporation. All rights reserved. Theme designed by Icreon.