Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!gatech!mcnc!decvax!dartvax!eleazar.dartmouth.edu!sean
From: sean@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Sean P. Nolan)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hypercard
Subject: Re: how to make arbitrary-shaped buttons?
Keywords: buttons, fields, buffer
Message-ID: <15006@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU>
Date: 13 Aug 89 19:07:31 GMT
References: <2594@laidbak.UUCP>
Sender: news@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU
Reply-To: sean@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Sean P. Nolan)
Organization: Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
Lines: 23

Hypercard can't do arbitrarily-shaped buttons. However, there is a new
Hypercard clone by Olduvi called "Plus" that allows you to sort-of do it.
You draw a normal rectangular button over the area and then assign the parts
of it you want to be "active" a particular color. Interesting idea, but I
wasn't very impressed with the overall package (it did have some nice extras,
but didn't have the solid foundation that Hypercard does -- kind of like they
were far more concerned with doing what Hypercard COULDN'T do than with making
at as good in the first place). 

A possible Hypercard solution is like the "Dog-Ear" buttons, so long as the
button isn't too complicated (a map would probably be too complicated). You
can get the MouseLoc and determine which pixel IN the button has been clicked,
and limit it that way. That really is only practical for doing triangular
or other regularly-shaped odd buttons.

                                             --- Sean

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| Sean P. Nolan     |                                   |  "Let's face it:   |
| Dartmouth College | Net: Sean_Nolan@Mac.Dartmouth.EDU |   IBM is no fun."  |
| Hinman Box 2658   | MCI Mail: snolan                  |     ::::::::::     |
| Hanover, NH 03755 |                                   |   John C. Dvorak   |
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