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From: ech@spuxll.UUCP (Ned Horvath)
Newsgroups: net.micro.apple
Subject: Re: Macprogramming.
Message-ID: <569@spuxll.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 10-Oct-84 21:34:12 EDT
Article-I.D.: spuxll.569
Posted: Wed Oct 10 21:34:12 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 11-Oct-84 08:25:23 EDT
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Organization: AT&T Information Systems, South Plainfield NJ
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First, your question -- "what is the BEST programming language for the mac" --
is out of order: you program best in what you are most comfortable with.
There is a pretty clear consensus that MS Basic is about as poor as anything
you will encounter, but the tops is largely a matter of taste: no doubt
Jerry Pournelle will use Modula II when he eventually gives in...

Personally, I have MacFORTH level 2 ($250 list) which has a built-in
assembler that true FORTH hackers will want to have; even level 1 has a few
defining words that allow many of the toolbox traps to be reached, in addition
to the many traps that they support directly.  More precisely, that is version
1.1.  Window, menu, sound, and graphics are pretty well supported, and the
all-but-compiled object is pretty fast.  A good, effective medium for probing
the toolbox calls, and you can do some learning and fun stuff while you are
waiting for a "good" modula II or native mode C or whatever.

In answer to another of your questions, the latest Club Mac News has an ad
for MacASM, a "co-resident Editor/MacroAssembler for the Macintosh."
Introductory price $100 from Mainstream, 28611B Canwood St., Agoura Hills CA
91301. Tel (818) 991-6540.  I have no idea how well the fact corresponds to
the copy.

More generally, there is simply no way to make effective use of the Mac
AS A PROGRAMMER without the Inside Macintosh documentation.  In for a penny,
in for a pound: for $150 you get Inside Macintosh, or you can wait for the
hardcover book (probably next Spring) for somewhat less money.  For another
$100 you get the LISA WorkShop (WS) Supplement, which is the only way to
get the updates to the above AND they will throw in a copy of the hardcover
when published.  They have had some REAL problems getting this stuff out
the door, but there is NOWHERE else to get the data.

The WS supplement, by the way, is not entirely useless: you also get 8
disks or so, 3 of which are readable by the Mac.  I have no Lisa, but the
three disks I can read have lots of useful tools on them.

Let's see, so far I have told you how to spend $600 while you wait for the
right language processor.  Sounds like enough for now.  But if you are 
serious, get Inside Macintosh FIRST.

=Ned=