StackRunner
Volume Number: 7
Issue Number: 10
Column Tag: Tools of the Trade
StackRunner and Updates 
By Dave Kelly, MacTutor Editorial Board
Double-Clickable HyperCard Stacks!
What is StackRunner!? StackRunner from Symmetry Software claims to let you
install an engine into a HyperCard stack, making it into a Run-time stack. This
deserves a closer look to determine its true usefulness.
Installing StackRunner! into a stack is easy. Select Install from the StackRunner!
installer then select the HyperCard stack that you want to install to from the standard
getfile dialog. StackRunner! can be de-installed with the installer application too. The
stack can be converted back later without the installer if you check the “Enable
Auto-convert” option to allow it. Once converted back to a HyperCard document, you
must use StackRunner! Installer to re-install the run time engine.
On the surface, StackRunner appears to be a great way to create double-clickable
applications from HyperCard Stacks. It has its usefulness, but don’t expect to be able to
convert every stack you own. StackRunner doesn’t support the full set of HyperTalk
commands.
The small subset of commands, handlers, and functions are ideal for simple
stacks. For example, you could use commands like:
--1
Go to first card
Go to fourth card
Go to recent
openStack "StackRunner! Manual
Push next card
Since StackRunner! does not understand all of the HyperTalk vocabulary,
unsupported HyperTalk are simply ignored. This won’t cause problems for you as long
as your stack only includes HyperTalk that is supported by StackRunner! A list of
HyperTalk features implemented in StackRunner includes:
Commands:
beep go play set xcmd dial global
pop show domenu hide print unlock find
if push wait get lock put visual
Handlers:
closeBackground mouseUp mouseDown
openBackground openCard closeCard
mouseStillDown idle enterKey
openStack closeStack returnKey
tabKey userDefinedHandlers
Functions:
the mouseV
Properties Objects
the clickText field
the hilite ˜ button
the left ˜ button, field
the name ˜ button, field, stack
the number button, field
the scroll ˜field
the short name button, field
the textHeight field
the top ˜ button, field
Mathematical and Conditional Operators:
+ addition
- subtraction
DIV integer division
MOD remainder
= equal to
<> not equal to
< less than
<= less than or equal to
> greater than
>= greater than or equal to
& concatenate two stings with no space between
&& concatenate two strings with a space between
Global Variables and Containers:
Global and local variables can be defined and used just as they are in HyperCard.
The limitations of StackRunner!’s HyperTalk support determine the kind of
HyperCard stacks that should be converted. Stacks that just display information (card
by card) are ideal candidates to be converted. It may even work well when creating
“non-functional” demos of stacks you have created, e specially since your stack will
probably not work once converted anyway. Before building a stack for StackRunner!, it
is strongly advised that you read section 3 of the StackRunner! manual for a list of
hints, tips, etc. to make sure that StackRunner! will understand the HyperTalk syntax
that you use. There are also helpful techniques presented too.
StackRunner! requires an average of 200K of free memory to run. Because of
this, some stacks will be able to run with StackRunner! that didn’t have enough
memory to run with HyperCard. StackRunner! should also run faster than HyperCard
since not as many functions are included in StackRunner!
Symmetry Software has a licensing policy. The suggested retail list price is $99
(introductory special is $79). This includes license to install the StackRunner!
run-time into unlimited stacks and distribute up to 250 run-time copies, world-wide.
Distribution for quantities more than 250 units require a yearly $150 annual license
fee.
StackRunner! works with System 7.0, however, I experienced some INIT
conflicts that were remedied by update to the latest versions of INITs. Anytime you run
into INIT conflicts you should be sure that you have the latest version.
StackRunner! is distributed by:
Symmetry Software Corporation
8603 East Royal Palm Drive
Scottsdale, Arizona 85258
Phone: 602-998-9106
America Online: Symmetry1
AppleLink: D0031
GEnie: Symmetry
Price: $99; special introductory special $79; Annual license fee to distribute
unlimited run-time copies is $150.
Requires: Any Macintosh that can run HyperCard. Supports all versions of
HyperCard, including 2.0, A moderate level of programming ability is required.
Not copy protected.
More Now Utilities
Now Utilities is better than ever and works with 7.0 too. A quick summary of
the changes:
AlarmsClock now can be positioned anyplace in the menu bar. It also yields to
menus if the running application installs menus that fill the entire menu bar. With
System 7.0 the clock won’t interfere with the Balloon help icon at the right edge of the
menu bar. In addition, AlarmsClock now supports ascending and descending stopwatch
functions, multiple alarm recurrences, custom sounds, color and other preferences.
DeskPicture now lets you put multiple pictures on multiple screens. You can
even scale, position and resize PICT and MacPaint files to display on your desktop.
MultiMaster lets you launch files and applications, adjust memory allocation on
the fly, vary sound level and video bit depth on an application-by-application basis,
and automatically “Hide” background applications (a feature already provided by
System 7.0).
NowMenus is a favorite of mine. It will create submenus up to 5 levels deep for
anything you put in your Apple Menu Folder (System 7.0 only). I create a folder alias
and put it in the Apple Menu Folder and NowMenus displays submenus for all of the
folders up to 5 levels deep.
NowSave is a new init that automatically saves work after a specified number of
minutes, keystrokes, or mouse clicks on an application-by-application basis.
SuperBoomerang, Profiler, SuperBoomerang and WYSIWYG Menus now support
Startup Manager controls which extensions and control panels will load and in
what order they will load when you start up your Macintosh. It automatically adjusts
the System heap to prevent system crashes (System 7.0 already does this). You can
now create exclusion lists to keep conflicting inits from loading at the same time. You
can link extensions that require each other’s presence (example: AppleShare and
QuickMail). Under System 7.0 it can provide remove extension management across a
network.
Now Utilities is still very highly recommended.
Now Utilities 3.0 is distributed by:
Now Software, Inc.
520 S. W. Harrison Street, Suite 435
Portland, OR 97209
Phone: 503-274-2800
FAX: 503-274-0670
AppleLink: NOW SOFTWARE
Price: $129; upgrades are $29. Until Oct. 31, 1991 owners of On-Cue, INIT
Picker, Adobe Type Reunion can get Now Utilities for $69.
Not copy protected.
More After Dark
Berkeley Systems has just announced “More After Dark” at the Boston
Macworld. This package includes more than 25 new screen savers that were the results
of the module programming contest sponsored by Berkeley Systems. You may want to
check this one out and get busy writing more modules and submitting them to Berkeley
Systems.
M.A.D. contains 4 new fish for the Aquarium and an updater to After Dark 2.0v
(v is the latest revision as of this writing). The updater will also update any of your
older modules to the latest and greatest. My favorite is the new Lunatic Fringe module
written by Ben Haller of Solarian II fame. Who would have thought that you could play a
game as an After Dark module?
OTHER NEW UPDATES
Don’t wait to get your THINK Pascal and THINK C updates. A friend of mine just
finished upgrading to THINK C 4.0 and THINK C 5.0 is now available. THINK Pascal has
been upgraded to version 4.0. Included in these upgrades is support for System 7.0 and
32-bit addressing compatibility.
Be sure to get the new version (1.6.2) of CETools (for QuicKeys II). It’s
available on several systems including America Online. SuitCase II has a new updater to
update to version 1.2.11. It may not seem like much, but one small update can
sometimes make the difference between crashing or not.