Rev difficulty

[J. Landman Gay]

On 5/27/05 7:34 PM, Vjstbenz at aol.com wrote:

> ye.....i will attend the TEACHING conference tomorrow...
> 
> if they cant teach me the principles of REV...then i am not
> interested...OBJECTS HANDLERS...Transcript...GLOBAL
> variables...HANDLER....cards and their relationship to stack
> scripts.....WHY a stack has a SCRIPT?....outside of cards...

Note that each conference deals with a different aspect of Revolution. 
Tomorrow Klaus will present information about the various controls -- 
buttons, fields, scrollbars, etc. We assume you already know a bit about 
the introductory material that has previously been presented. The 
information you are looking for has been partially covered in the first 
two conferences. You should download those stacks from the web page and 
study them. They will answer your questions. These stacks were created 
exspressly for newcomers like yourself, to answer exactly the questions 
you are asking.

The conference stacks are here:

<http://support.runrev.com/scriptingconferences/>

> 
> if they can't use an EXAMPLE program...that involves these CORE
> principles inside it...(maybe calling a function too)

Funtions will be covered in a few weeks in our Script Anatomy 2 
conference. All the conference stacks are filled with many examples for 
you to study.

> 
> if they can't do this example and explain the fundamentals of the
> language and STRUCTURE of making OBJECTS scripts....and LINKING
> objects scripts ...to get RESULTS...
> 
> then i am not interested in REV....
> 
> i have looked at all the VIDEO tutorials....watched them....read all
> the INTRO documents....and i am still NO WISER...about the above...
> 
> 
> i just find myself STUMBLING through....deceding on somehting i fancy
> trying...then stumbling for DATA..and stuff...
> 
> it also seams that this is TRUE of all the REV users out
> there....this is why these LISTS are literally JAMMED with
> traffic...asking questions....all the time...

The questions and responses you see here are standard for a programming 
list like this one. We consider ourselves a tight community and we help 
each other. This list is the place we all go to get answers to things we 
don't know. I have some trouble believing you don't know what a mailing 
list like this is for.

> 
> that can't be a SIMPLE tool....to my mind...

Revolution is a complex programming tool. It is not simple. However, it 
is far easier than any other similar programming environment, and while 
it has tremendous power, you can do simple tasks with it nearly 
immediately. The learning curve is easier than most, but harder than 
what you are apparently used to.

> 
> HYPERCARD was kind of simple...you know...

Revolution is modeled after HyperCard, and is so compatible in fact that 
it will directly open HyperCard stacks. If you are familiar with 
HyperCard, then you must already know what a script is, a handler, a 
button, and so forth. If you know HyperCard, then you already know at 
least two-thirds of Revolution before you even start up the program for 
the first time.

Your credibility becomes strained here.

> 
> but the VARiables video TUTORIAL...IS THE ONLY  reasonable tutorial
> ANYHWERE on the rev SITE...
> 
> what you end up doing is looking at other peoples CODE...and picking
> it apart and trying to understand what the hell is going on....

Actually, this is a very good way to learn. I recommend it. I think we 
all do that.

> 
> WITHOUT UNDErSTANDING THE BASIC PRINCIPLES of the WHOLE
> SYSTEM.......which are NOT explained properly...anywhere on the REV
> site....

This is true, or it was. It was a perceived gap, we started the 
conferences for this exact purpose, and now you will find the first two 
sessions on the web site. More will be added. You will also find some 
excellent overview information in the docs that are accessible within 
Revolution; click on the Documentation icon in the tool bar. In 
particular, read the information under the Topics section, especially 
the parts about scripts and their structure.

> 
> maybe you have the answers...CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE ABOVE?

Now you know where to get the information. Download the first two 
conference stacks, and start attending the conferences.

> 
> it is basically OBJECT ORIENTATED programming...so a FULL tutorial on
> object orientated progamming is REQUIRED as standard....

Nonsense. First off, Revolution isn't true OOP. Secondly, you don't need 
to know a thing about OOP to work with Revolution, and in fact, those 
who have high expectations of OOP will be frustrated.

> 
> the REV site does not provide this tutorial...as far as i can see...
> 
> this, to my mind ....is a bad sign...

The conferences are addressing this.

Revolution is not a point-and-click pre-made structural tool, it is a 
full programming environment with some very sophisticated capabilites. 
You have to do some coding to work with it. It may be that Revolution is 
not the program for you. Some people cannot master writing code. Others 
find it a source of pleasure containing many "eureka" moments.

-- 
Jacqueline Landman Gay         |     jacque at hyperactivesw.com
HyperActive Software           |     http://www.hyperactivesw.com