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Books and Stacks for learning HyperCard

The manuals that come with the latest version of HyperCard (version 2.3) are excellent and they may be all you need.

Among multimedia programs or authoring tools HyperCard is unique in terms of the shear quantity of books that have been published. There are literally dozens of books that will teach you HyperCard and HyperTalk.

Here are some that I have used over the years. Some of these have later editions too. (The ones marked* have disks with example stacks).

If I had to choose just one of these books I'd go for

The Complete HyperCard 2.2 Handbook by Danny Goodman

HyperCard 2.3 in a HurryGeorge Beekman1995
HyperCard 2.2 in a HurryGeorge Beekman1994
The Complete HyperCard 2.2 HandbookDanny Goodman1993
HyperProgramming*Colouris & Thimbleby1993
Cool Mac Stacks*David Drucker1992
HyperTalk and HyperTextTony Stanley 1992
HyperTalk 2.2 The BookWinkler & Kamins &Devoto1992
The Complete Book of HyperTalk 2Dan Shafer1991
Multimedia Design With HyperCardStephen Wilson1991
HyperTalk 2.0 The BookWinkler & Kamins1990
Cooking with HyperTalk 2.0*Winkler & Kamins1990
Tricks of the HyperTalk Masters*The Waite Group1989
HyperCard : The Complete ReferenceStephen L. Michel1989
HyperTalkLon Poole1988

Helpful Stacks

The full version of HyperCard comes with very useful stacks

  • HyperCard Help and Help Extras, just as the names suggest
  • Audio Help, you need this for making sound resources
  • Art Bits, Background Art, copy what you like
  • Readymade Buttons, Readymade Fields and Stack Templates
  • QuickTime Tools, learn to use and control QuickTime in your stacks
  • Power Tools, for making palettes and moving resources and more
  • HyperTalk Reference, an interactive reference to HyperTalk

    Stacks to download from here

      HyperTalk QuickRef by Jeanne DeVoto (1996) (85K)
      HyperTutor1 by Mark Gregory (1996) (320K)
      HyperTutor2 by Mark Gregory (1996) (430K)
      How Can I Do That? by Diane Bundy (1995) (116K)
      Techniques 5.0 by Genevieve Crabe (1994) (99K)
      HyperCard Defined by Ken Dunham (1993) (281K)
      HyperCard Basics 1 & 2 by Cindy Carney (1993) (150K)
      Pict Tools by Bryan McCormick (1991) (120K)

    Stacks from the internet or user group CD-ROMS

    HyperExtrasDavid Donachie1994
    HyperLarry's PowerHomeLarry Morton1994
    HyperCard DefinedKen Dunham1993
    Universal Card CopierKevin Forsberg-Lary1993
    Pict ToolsBryan McCormick (Hub City Software)1991
    StackDetectiveJoost Verhaar1991

    ...and a Desk Accessory!

  • HyperTalk Dictionary by George Coyne (1988)

    For comments and suggestions email

    mark@unionsong.com

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