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From: joe@erix.UUCP (Joe Armstrong)
Newsgroups: net.lang.st80
Subject: A few st80 questions
Message-ID: <871@erix.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 7-Jun-85 11:19:20 EDT
Article-I.D.: erix.871
Posted: Fri Jun  7 11:19:20 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 13-Jun-85 22:20:46 EDT
Organization: L M Ericsson, Stockholm, Sweden
Lines: 79

I am a newcomer to Smalltalk and would like to get this newgroup rolling
it never seems to have much in it: so a few open questions:

   1/ How many Smalltalkers are there out there
   2/ What's happened to the 'missing' book
   3/ Where can I find example applications programs
   4/ A programming question
   5/ A comment

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1/ How many are there of us?

How many people who actively work with Smalltalk-80 has this message reached?

Please reply if you actively work with Smalltalk-80 at least 50% of your time,
and I don't mean little smalltalk, methods or whatever?

What machine do you use?
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2/ Wheres the book?

The "Smalltalk-80 Creating a User Interface and Graphical Applications" Book -
has anybody any idea when this book is to be published (and what colour 
it will be , the gold book? the black book?)

Does this newsgroup get forwarded to Xerox?
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3/ Application programs

The Xerox virtual image contains all the tools I want to build my application
program (say). Are there any documented application programs available,
expert systems, compilers for different langages (say functional languages),
data base quiery systems, prolog type interpretors, iconic programming
languages etc. If so where are they pulished and how can I get hold of them?
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4/ A programming problem (Simple for Gurus)

I want to make a Button (not the same as the exiting Button Class)
that is initialised by say the message:

    Button initialiseWithText:'foo' receiver:bar message:23

What this should do is create a little box size 100@100 at a location
specified by the user and write the text 'foo' in the middle of the box.

This little box should have the properties that it is permanent, and
moveable etc. i.e. I can use standard blue button options, (move, frame,
collapse , etc.)

When I select the box and click the red button I want the message

    bar message:23

to be sent from the Button to bar (note bar, and 23 were set up in my
initial initialiseWithText:receiver:message message).

If I close the box with a blue button close it should permanently die.

I have the feeling that this problem can be simply solved using the existing
smalltalk classes, but don't see how. I also want a mimimun solution using
existing classes as much as possible!

If and when I get any helpful proposals I'll try them hack them etc and
repost in FileOut format.

The red and blue books only go as far as forms in any detail. Views and
controllers are only lightly touched.

Presumably my problem requires building a "Model View Controller" whatever
that is.

Any enlightenments as to exactly what kind of animals standardSystemViews and 
scheduledSystemViews etc. are would be welcomed.
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5/ I like Smalltalk it's fun !

                                        Joe Armstrong
Newsgroups: net.lang.st80