One day about two years ago I had a couple hundred dollars burning a hole in my wallet, so I headed for the closest computer store with the idea of becoming a Macintosh programmer.
This kind of situation, of course, is a salesperson’s dream.
I had been interested in programming since I learned how to use an IBM PC while in college. Dinking around with the AUTOEXEC.BAT file and remapping the keyboard for a joke helped build a deep interest in making the computer do what I wanted. Programming, especially on the Macintosh, seemed like the next step.
I discovered that some of my favorite applications, including QuarkXPress, Aldus FreeHand and Adobe Illustrator, had been created using Symantec’s Think C (then Lightspeed C). I read C was the hottest programming language available, so I decided to do it.
The salesman gladly took my money and sent me off into the wonderful world of programming.
I was so excited that I was tearing off the shrinkwrap in the car on the way home.
I was going to be a programmer.
No sooner was I in the door when I had Think C installed and the manual cracked open. You see, if you’re going to be a programmer, you have to read the manuals.
The manual’s introduction mentioned that true Mac programmers have available at their fingertips all five volumes (now six) of Inside Macintosh, Apple’s guide to programming. This meant another trip to the store and another $125 for the set.
Now I was ready to program, so I jumped into the first lesson, the famous “Hello World” program. I followed the instructions, everything went well and I wrote my first application. With the second chapter, I had written my second.
But I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. You see, Symantec figures if I’m forking out this kind of cash for a programming language, I must know what I’m doing.
It was back to the store, this time to pick up a book called Macintosh Programming Primer, which teaches how to program using Think C. Macintosh Programming Primer assumed less than Symantec, but not much. I could follow the instructions and make the applications work, but I had no understanding of why.
So $400 and two years later I still wasn’t a programmer. But I impressed folks with my collection of Inside Macintosh.
Last month I spent an additional $100 upgrading to Think C 5.0 and wanted to give this programming another shot. The manuals, I discovered, weren’t any more for beginners than they were two years ago.
But the author of Macintosh Programming Primer, Dave Mark, had written a new book, called Learn C on the Macintosh. When I picked it up at Software, Etc. last month, I figured it would be another “You should know how to program in Basic or Pascal ...” type of books. Instead, it stated on the back cover: “If you can use a Macintosh, you can program in C.”
I’ve finally found what I’m looking for.
The price — $35 — seemed kind of steep, even for a computer book, but Learn C on the Macintosh comes with a special version of Think C called “Thin C” that is used for the lessons in the book. It also includes a coupon to buy Think C 5.0 for only $130. That’s less than half of what I already have spent just in software.
I quickly purchased Learn C on the Macintosh, again rushed home and gulped down the first couple of chapters.
Finally, I had struck gold.
Learning C on the Macintosh doesn’t lie. If you can point and click a mouse, you know enough to use the book. And with this book, you’ll find out whether you want to take all those steps I, perhaps foolishly, took first.
Here’s a quick rundown of Learning C on the Macintosh:
• Welcome Aboard: Discover why you want to learn C over other programming languages, what you’ll need to know and what equipment you should have.
• Installing Thin C: You only have to drag a folder to your hard drive, but the author is determined to hold your hand. This includes a quick tour and a rundown of Thin C’s features (and how it differs from the full Think C).
• Programming Basics: Find out how computers work and why programs have to be written the way they do.
• C Basics:Using the 25 programming projects that come with Thin C, the next several chapters teach about functions, variables, operators, flow control, data types and other cool programming stuff. For instance, have you ever wondered what the deal was with all of those parentheses? Now I understand.
• Adding the Macintosh Interface: Here we finally delve into the mysterious Mac Toolbox, those special functions in the Macintosh’s read-only memory (ROM) that creates windows on the screen, draws text and creates pull-down menus.
I’m still not a Macintosh programmer, but I have a greater understanding of Think C and I have more confidence as I back up and start over with Macintosh Programming Primer (and its sequel, Macintosh C Programming Primer, Volume II, which I also purchased). And I’ve dusted off my six volumes of Inside Macintosh and have a little bit of an idea what I’m looking for when I open one of them.
In other words, I’m no longer trembling and frustrated at not being able to get started.
If you think you might be interested in programming on the Mac, I’d advise picking up Learn C on the Macintosh before plunking down a few hundred dollars. It’s a good investment to find out what you want and it’s a well-written first programming book.
Non-profit computer users group have full permission to reprint this article providing the author and the Mid-Columbia Macintosh Users Group in Tri-Cities, Wash., are fully credited and a copy of the newsletter in which the article appears is sent to:
