Farewell HyperCard
April 21, 2004
It finally happened. HyperCard is gone.
More than 16 years since its original debut, HyperCard was pulled from Apple's site towards the end of last month (March 2004). Created by Bill Atkinson of the original Macintosh team, HyperCard was a kind of easy-to-use, visual database system / programming environment that put custom application development into the hands of the average person. It was one of the very first applications to implement the concept of hypertext / hyperlinking / hypermedia. Originally offered freely to all Mac users, HyperCard was embraced by so many and became the vehicle of so much custom development that even the author was taken aback.
Many may recall the popular games by Macintosh development house, Cyan, who used HyperCard to create the landmark titles: The Manhole, Cosmic Osmo, and MYST.
Though many years had passed since Apple last updated HyperCard, version 2.4.1 (from 1998) has been available as a free download on Apple's site until a few weeks ago. While the product was in great need of modernization, lacking many features that would be obvious additions today, there is no real, equivalent alternative for would-be HyperCard users/developers to turn to, which, I believe, speaks volumes as to the creative genius that went into the product. Many lament the passing of this old friend, and will not let its ride into the sunset go unnoticed.
During its life, HyperCard was ported to the Apple IIgs
Posted by blakespot at April 21, 2004 7:47 AM | TrackBack
I recall HyperCard most fondly. I spent some time with it using a Mac II that we had in the office. Lots of little stacks people put together that were most interesting. It had a very "intelligent" feel to it. I wish I had gone further down the road of HyperCard development.
Timothy
>version 2.4.1 (from 1998) has been
>available as a free download on Apple's
>site until a few weeks ago.
Just to be clear, only the *Player* version was available as a free download. The full version sold for around $99.
Early versions of HyperCard were free, but eventually Apple split it into 2 separate products -- a full version that you had to purchase, and a free Player that could play existing stacks but not make new ones.
James
Posted by: James at April 21, 2004 12:05 PMI remember making a great game from Hypercard. Little circle guy with arms and a sword had to go through a maze with traps at the dead ends and a moster to fight if you chose correctly. Rest In Peace, HyperCard
Posted by: Tim Peterson at April 21, 2004 1:28 PMIf you miss HyperCard, check out Revolution http://www.runrev.com
Posted by: Lorin Rivers at April 21, 2004 5:20 PMI remember using HyperCard to teach basic programming in a lab of Mac Pluses. I still have, somewhere, some floppies with some of the most creative flip card and "plotted" animations imaginable.
All the more astounding when you consider that I'm an English teacher who barely knew how to turn on a computer. I attended 2 HyperCard Camps and met the most interesting people you could imagine. Somewhere in a drawer, I have 2 old T-shirts commemorating those "camps".
Fond memories, indeed.
HyperCard isn't so much extinct as it is evolved: take a look at Runtime Revolution (runrev.com).
And yes, dinosaurs evolved into birds.
Posted by: Janus at April 21, 2004 5:39 PMSuperCard is the modern HyperCard replacement. Designed for OS X, it can run Hypertalk too. Check it out.
Posted by: Jerry at April 21, 2004 7:00 PMHi all,
While there may be no link on current pages to the HC player at the Apple site, the files are still available if you have the direct URL.
Why do I know this? My partner and I have been working on an article about the days of HyperCard (as part of an ongoing personal history of multimedia), when it was free and when a lot of creative energy was directed towards Hypercard. An alpha version of this article is online at http://www.smackerel.net/black_white.html
BTW, I tested the Apple link before posting today, so as of this moment this information is correct.
Kevin Steele
Posted by: Kevin Steele at April 22, 2004 11:32 AMTwo blackest moments in HyperCard history: a) Bill Atkinson announces at MacWorld Expo that the format of HyperCard files will be published and cites by number the technical note that will describe them. About six months later the technical note is issued and consists of the single sentence "The HyperCard file format is not available."
b) At WWDC 1996, Apple announces and demonstrates HyperCard 3.0, giving the impression that it is nearly finished and close to release. This version of HyperCard produces stacks that require only QuickTime as a runtime environment, meaning that not only does the user not need a copy of HyperCard or HyperCard Player, but that HyperCard 3.0 stackware will run _on any QuickTime-equipped PC_.
The bungling of HyperCard must be one of Apple's worst missed opportunities... comparable to Xerox not being able to market the Alto and Star, or Digital never succeeding in making a commercial success of the Alpha chip series.
Posted by: Dan Smith at April 22, 2004 11:46 AMOh, blackest moment b was, of course, not the announcement of HyperCard 3.0, but the mysterious failure of Apple ever to release it.
Posted by: Dan Smith at April 22, 2004 11:47 AM*weeping*
Posted by: swimp at April 22, 2004 1:21 PMYou can still download Hypercard GS at:
Posted by: at April 22, 2004 4:22 PMIn a product review written by John Dixon, MacWorld Magazine UK stated:
In terms of power, REALbasic is way ahead of programs such as
Revolution and SuperCard... It's a strong contender for wearing the
mantle of "programming for the rest of us" that used to belong to
HyperCard.
Hypercard hasn't really gone as there are still many people using it, its just not supported by Apple any more.
I develop something called HyperNext and often receive emails wondering if HyperNext can load Hypercard stacks - unfortunately it can't. Clearly there are still many Hypercard users with stacks they regularly use so Hypercard will be in use for a long time to come.
By the way, HyperNext is a programming environment for beginners that borrows many ideas from Hypercard. Ideas, such as stacks, cards, an easy to use programming environment and an English-like scripting language. It also has a freeware Player and runs cross-platform on Macintosh OS X, OS 9 and Windows.
Posted by: Malcolm at January 6, 2007 6:36 AMHi,
I'm not sure whether anyone still looks at this site - but I was anyway glad to find it, since I'm one of those dinosaurs who still love Hypercard. The link posted by Kevin still works!
Greetings from Vienna,
Herbert
Oh yes Herbert... People still look...
and I still look for a Hypercard Download... hoping someone will out it...
Alas the last Mac that Ran Hypercard died on me recently.
Greetings from Hong Kong,
David
by Gordon Laing
