On Fri, Mar 21, 2003 at 02:39:02PM -0800, Kim Rose wrote:

Hi, Jim -

If you have a background in computer science or engineering, etc. and want a kind of "text book" -- based on an earlier version of Squeak which would be downloaded from "squeak.org" you might try Mark Guzdial's book on Squeak published by Prentice Hall in 2000.

I've a mechanical engineering background, currently working as a Science Technician in a secondary school. As an amateur, I've dabbled with many computer languages, including a brush with Smalltalk some years ago using the Atari implementation of Gnu Smalltalk, which I learned enough of to be impressed. I like the graphical interface with Smalltalk that Squeak provides and believe that Squeak could be an ideal introduction to programing for young people - better even than Logo (which I've also tried). Once I feel I'm sufficiently up to speed with Squeak to demonstrate it, I'll try to gain some interest in the school where I work. ( I don't hold out much hope though, as the "What could _you_ - a mere technician - say to _me_ - a Teacher, that could possibly be of interest?" syndrome is rife in the trade!)

For my own interest, I'd like to try it for modelling secondary school science experiments.

Squeak: Object Oriented Design with Multimedia Applications see this amazon url: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0130280283/qid=1048285977/sr=2-2/ref=... Mark used this book at a text and intro to Squeak for his first/second year C.S. students at Georgia Tech.

This looks good.

If you are looking for a book which is based in the "etoy" component of Squeak and geared toward a younger /less technical user group and discusses the use of Squeak in a learning enviornment, then, I regret to say, "not yet". There are a few groups/people working on such books, but none (as far as I know) have been published yet...If all goes well, there will be one such "project book for teachers/curriculum guide" available late spring or early summer, authored by 4th/5th grade teacher BJ Conn, and myself.

This looks ideal for the introduction to my School I'm considering. I look forward to it being published - perhaps you could let me know when it is.

Thanks for the helpful reply

Regards: Jim Ford

On Sat, Mar 22, 2003 at 09:20:25AM -0700, Christel Smith wrote:

Hi Gentleman, I am a teacher trying to get other teachers to use technology so that students think. Beyond the PowerPoint mentality... While I was looking through a weblog (which I think is interesting), I found your site. Before I run around extolling the virtues of this I will have to do another great learning curve and try and figure out how to do it so that I can make it accessible for teachers who generally don't have time to play with technology. Any suggestions? Would the books recommended be good for someone without any programming concepts?

My experience in the U.K is that Teachers are not very receptive to new ideas/technology - they're too busy 'Delivering The Curriculum'. I can't say I blame them when it comes to computer technology - most of them have experienced the sinking feeling when confronted by the 'Windows Blue Screen Of Death' halfway through some important work. I also allways tell the pupils when it comes to datalogging, that if they trudge up Mount Everest to make some observations, it's no good getting up on the Summit and finding the batteries of your datalogger have gone flat and you've dropped the spares 5000 feet below. Their best bet in a one-off chance situation is still a pencil and paper!

When it comes to Smalltalk-80, which Squeak is based on, prior programming experience may not be particularly helpful. The Class/Object paradigm is unlike most other languages and can be offputting to those used to more mainstream languages. I find it very elegant!

From what I've seen on Squeak related sites, and the projects supplied with

the installation, there is very little - if anything - between the heavyweight projects like chess, tetris and scamper and the trivial projects just showing a page of graphics. We really could do with a suite of _graded_ tutorials.

When (if!) I get up to speed with Squeak perhaps I'll try a predator/prey simulation - I think it would suite the language/program development environment.

Regards: Jim Ford

Hi, Susan - I thought the book you mentioned, "...Squeak a quick trip to Object Land" was part of that amazon.com list but perhaps not...thanks for mentioning it. YES! We would love to see a more "media-directed" book, just like you describe available as well...there is certainly a need for such! Kim

----- Original Message ----- From: "Kim Rose" Kim.Rose@viewpointsresearch.org To: jaford@watford53.freeserve.co.uk Cc: "squeakland.org mailing list" squeakland@squeakland.org Sent: Friday, March 21, 2003 11:39 PM Subject: Re: A good book on Squeak?

...

Hi, Jim -

Now, *there's* a question! Depends on where you are "coming from". I'll point you to what I know is "out there" and then let you be the judge of whether any are "good books on Squeak".

Hi,

I discovered a few days ago, in a parisian bookshop, a book I never heard about before: "Squeak: a quick trip to object land".(Addisson Wesley) It's a good book if (like me), you came to squeak without knowing anything about smalltalk or object oriented programming. It is more a book about Smalltalk using Squeak than about Squeak itself, but it is a good thing for absolute beginners like me imho. Apparently, Etoys are not mentioned; there is a chapter at the end of the book about morphic, but I didn't read it yet...

I also use Mark Guzdial's book a lot, but I would love to see an even *more* multimedia book about Squeak, with more etoys, wonderland (3D), music and animation. Squeak seems to me to be like an open source Director (Etoys replacing the Macromedia interactive interface), and I would love to see a book dealing mainly with entertainment, games, cultural or artistic applications...

Remi

Remi

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