Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!netcom!ergo
From: ergo@netcom.UUCP (Isaac Rabinovitch)
Newsgroups: comp.edu
Subject: Re: Educational software for children
Message-ID: <12522@netcom.UUCP>
Date: 26 May 90 17:20:37 GMT
References: <36512@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Distribution: comp.edu
Organization: NetCom- The Bay Area's Public Access Unix System {408 249-0290 guest}
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brand@janus.Berkeley.EDU (Graham Brand) writes:


>	I have a question also. I am looking for LOGO programs for
>my 6 year old that he could run on my '386 machine. I should
>appreciate pointers there as well.

You might want to have a look at Brian Harvey's *Computer Science
Logo Style, Volume 1* (MIT Press).  Not that this is the right book
for a six year old, but there's an appendix in the back with a
good, simple discussion of various Logo dialects.

According to Harvey, there are two main dialects of Logo, the one
designed by Logo Computer Systems, Inc., and MIT Logo.  Harvey
prefers LCSI Logo because it's consistent with the kind of teaching
he does, but I get the impression that MIT Logo is preferred by
most (but not all!) people who work with children.  This is probably
because MIT Logo makes some of its basic constructs more intuitive
at the cost of making the language definition a little more complex.

I've not actually used any MS-DOS Logos, but judging from their
ads, Harvard Associates (Cambridge, MA) PC Logo is MIT Logo.  List
price is $100, but Programmer's Connection ((800) 336-1166) sells
it for $90, including postage (and they're very good about giving
advice and info to even small customers).  Apparently the only LCSI
Logo for MS-DOS is IBM Logo, and it costs more than twice as much.

For my part, I'm still deciding whether I want to work through Harvey's
book.  I mean, it's a good book, but $250 for the language...