Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!osu-cis!tut!marvel
From: marvel@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu (Howard P. Marvel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hypercard
Subject: Error Messages
Keywords: HyperCard Unexpected Error Documentation Goodman
Message-ID: <4606@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu>
Date: 15 Jan 88 13:50:13 GMT
Organization: Ohio State Computer & Info Science
Lines: 31


Please help out a novice user.  I have had my Mac SE for less than a
week. (Thank you, Apple)  I insert the HyperCard startup disk in the
lower drive, turn the machine on, click the address stack icon, and
attempt to follow the instructions in the HyperCard manual.  When I
select the Sort button, I get the spinning ball, followed by a dialog
box that says ``Unexpected Error 387623.''  I click OK and am dumped
back to the home card.  Can anyone point me to the appropriate
documentation for such an error?  For that matter, what's the
difference between an unexpected error and an expected error?

I must say that the Hypercard documentation as well as the
documentation I received with the SE is rather sparse.  I bought the
Goodman book, but find it to be the computer equivalent of Sidney
Sheldon.  Trees died for this?  Perhaps I have been spoiled by
exposure to much better documentation in my other computer realms,
especially my experience in learning emacs and TeX/LaTeX.  Perhaps
there is a decent reference with a useful index that I have not seen
yet.  But so far, I've had a good bit of frustration with the Mac
world and with HyperCard.  Documentation pointers would be
appreciated.  Yes, I know about APDA and am attempting to join, but
they will not take an order for membership and the HyperTalk manual
over the phone, for reasons the phone contact did not see fit to
explain. 

Thanks in advance for assistance.
Howard P. Marvel
Professor of Economics
Ohio State University
hmarvel@osuecn.uucp
marvel@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu
marvel@pyramid.math.ohio-state.edu