No one is going to disagree with what you wrote :) One of the problems here is that LC is not a major programming language. To become one it'd need much better visibility, a ton of published books, several fan communities, learning courses offered in all big economy cities worldwide, etc. However, to gain publishing contracts and all that, LC would need to be a major programming language...
As a community, we can offer stepping stones, and maybe we could device a plan that allows us as a community to offer learning materials that are at least decent. I know that RunRev does not have the resources to do more learning materials themselves, but they're willing to offer a helping hand to any community effort. But be warned: all previous attempt at such an endeavour have failed miserably before producing anything at all. the world is unjust Bjoernke On 20.07.2012, at 15:02, stgoldb...@aol.com wrote: > I have used LiveCode extensively to develop my company's educational > software. It's a great program. I think one of the reasons why LiveCode is > not more widely adopted is the lack of an adequate user manual that would > attract beginners. I ask, would you recommend the present LiveCode user > manual to a student who has no background in programming and is just > starting? I wouldn't; it's too advanced and incomplete at the same time, > mixes complex with simple, has no Index, says virtually nothing about the > all-important property inspectors, and focuses only spottily on the key > scripting words. An adequate manual should clearly present 150 or so of the > basic scripting words, which was the extent of HyperCard's vocabulary and > made HyperCard easier to learn. The beginner in LiveCode is expected to rely > on the LiveCode dictionary, which, while truly excellent, contains some 2000 > scripting words, far too many for the beginner to deal with. The problem has > become more pronounced with > new advances in LiveCode's features. This is why I wrote my own manual (190 > pgs. plus figures) for my son. > > > All other major programming languages have a variety of manuals in the > bookstores. Where are they for LiveCode? It is insufficient to just direct > the user to scattered tutorials on the Internet or to seminars; there needs > to be a book that the user can easily use while learning the programming from > scratch. Many people on this forum (including myself) have a background in > HyperCard or MetaCard that has made it relatively easy to migrate to > Revolution/LiveCode. What happens when the old guard dies out? Will > beginners who have no such background replace them? Or will beginners > navigate to other programming languages for lack of an adequate LiveCode > manual? > > > I have spent 25 years teaching medical students and programming in HyperCard > and its successors. I'd love to develop for mobile apps, but I have not yet > subscribed to LiveCode for this, because these features are not in the > present user manual, and I am unaware of adequate, organized, step-by-step, > printed documentation that puts it all together and I can keep in front of me > on my desk as I work. (Perhaps Colin Holgate's forthcoming book, LiveCode > Mobile Development Beginner's Guide, will make a difference.) My > publishing company, Medmaster, is based on educational principles designed to > teach medical students learning complex subjects for the first time. My > sense is that sales of LiveCode in the schools and elsewhere would rise > significantly with better documentation. > > > Stephen Goldberg, President > Medmaster Publishing Co., Inc. > Professor Emeritus, Univ. of Miami Miller School of Medicine > www.medmaster.net > stgoldb...@aol.com > > _______________________________________________ > use-livecode mailing list > use-livecode@lists.runrev.com > Please visit this url to subscribe, unsubscribe and manage your subscription > preferences: > http://lists.runrev.com/mailman/listinfo/use-livecode -- Use an alternative Dictionary viewer: http://bjoernke.com/bvgdocu/ Chat with other RunRev developers: http://bjoernke.com/chatrev/ _______________________________________________ use-livecode mailing list use-livecode@lists.runrev.com Please visit this url to subscribe, unsubscribe and manage your subscription preferences: http://lists.runrev.com/mailman/listinfo/use-livecode
