Dear Readers,
I'd like to talk about a change that you've no doubt already noticed: printed develop is
no longer accompanied by the Developer CD Series disc, but instead comes with its
own CD as in days of old. Yes, we've come full circle: develop had its own CD for Issues
1 through 7; then, starting with Issue 8, it was accompanied by the Developer CD
Series disc, which offered a superset of the contents of develop's own CD. The
Developer CD is actually a monthly CD that's mailed to members of Apple's developer
programs and to subscribers to the Apple Developer Mailing (formerly the APDA
Technical Information Mailing). At the time, it seemed simpler and more beneficial all
around to just take every third Developer CD and make it the CD that accompanies
develop.
So why did we change back? Well, it became increasingly common for Developer CD
contributors to submit valuable software (or documentation) that was considered
appropriate for the "monthly mailing" but not for develop. The bargain low price of
develop simply wasn't adequate to cover the value of the software. (An example that
some of you noticed is WorldScript, which made it onto the monthly Developer CD but
was pulled at the last minute from the Developer CD accompanying develop; see the
Letters section.) Keeping valuable materials off the Developer CD or raising the price
of a develop subscription would have been far less desirable than the option finally
chosen, to restore develop to having its own disc that's a subset of the Developer CD.
This new disc, which comes tucked into develop like a bookmark, is called the develop
Bookmark CD.
This is not to say that develop isn't still a bargain! Even without the CD, it's a
high-quality journal with articles that have passed rigorous review by engineers at
Apple and are also enjoyable to read. Throw in a CD containing the code described in the
articles, and already you're getting your money's worth (IMHO). But develop's CD
gives you even more than that: it contains all back issues and their code, Tech Notes,
Sample Code from the Developer Support Center, Apple Direct, the Apple DocViewer
application for electronic browsing, and assorted useful tools and documentation.
On the develop Bookmark CD, you'll notice some things missing from past CDs you
received with develop, primarily system software and Inside Macintosh (both old and
new). If you still want to get these, consider subscribing to the Apple Developer
Mailing so that you'll once again receive the monthly Developer CD Series disc, which
now includes more than ever before. And keep an eye out for other products in the
APDA catalog that may include what you want. (See the inside back cover for
information about APDA.)
For those develop subscribers who receive the Developer CD monthly and don't care
which disc develop comes with, you'll continue to have a beautiful printed copy of the
journal that you can curl up with and easily pass along (think of it as " develop
unplugged"). The months that develop is published, the Technical Documentation
edition of the Developer CD will be included in the monthly mailing. (See the March
issue of Apple Direct for details on the new three-edition Developer CD Series.)
To clean the CD slate, so to speak, printed back issues of develop will now be
accompanied by the Bookmark CD corresponding to this issue, rather than the
Developer CDs they were originallypaired with. Remember, all develop code is kept
up to date on the CD, and bugs fixed as necessary, so the latest CD is always the best one
to refer to for code.
Since develop readers will have either the develop Bookmark CD or the Developer CD
Series disc, how does develop now refer to the disc containing the code it describes?
After endless debate on this crucial issue, we decided on "this issue's CD." Clever,
huh? We're proud of it.
Speaking of pride, I can't help but mention that develop won the Excellence award in
the Society for Technical Communication's 1992 Northern California Technical
Publications and Arts Competition. Please don't forget to let us know how we can make
develop even better!
Caroline Rose Editor
CAROLINE ROSE (AppleLink CROSE) was a programmer for seven years, until
around the time "goto" went out of fashion. In those days, C was just the third letter of
the alphabet and OOPS a loud interjection. Caroline's technical background came in
handy when she was hired by Apple to work on Inside Macintosh Volumes I-III (may
they rest in peace). What she did next after that turned out to be merely an
interruption in her career at Apple, where she returned two years ago to edit develop.
Speaking of "Oops," Caroline betrayed both her Italian heritage and her intense
perfectionism by misspelling "mozzarella" in her bio in Issue 13; she received as
punishment 30 lashes with a wet strand of spaghetti. Her next vacation will be spent
on the Isle of Spice (trivia question: where?), and she is already brushing up on how
to spell "callaloo" and "ylang-ylang."*
SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Subscriptions to develop are available through
APDA (see inside back cover for APDA information), or you can use the subscription
card in the back of this issue. Please address all subscription-related inquiries to
develop, Apple Computer, Inc., P.O. Box 531, Mt. Morris, IL 61054 (or AppleLink
DEV.SUBS). *
BACK ISSUES For information about back issues of develop and how to obtain them,
see the last page of this issue. Back issues are also on the develop Bookmark CD and the
Developer CD Series disc.*