Last night at the Berkeley Cybersalon at the Hillside Club, Raines Cohen moderated and hosted a discussion with Bill Atkinson, creator of HyperCard, the program from Apple that let ordinary people put together data, images, and sounds via simple stacks. It was the 25th anniversary of HyperCard, and many in the audience were early users and promoters. One person, a stained glass maker, was still using HyperCard -- on a salvaged MacPlus -- to run his business.
Physically spry, Atkinson effervesced like an uncorked Champagne bottle about his newest program, which creates and actually sends custom postcards via the iPad. Atkinson proclaimed his original motivation for HyperCard: "I am a populist. I want everyone to be empowered."
This statement was vetted by an enthusiastic response from the crowd, which included writers. musicians, hardware builder and attorney Dan Kottke, IT consultants like Harold Mann, MacWeek editor Dan Ruby and MacWeek HyperCard columnist Steve Michel, a handful of former General Magic employees including Google VP Megan Smith, and community organizers like Raines who built a database of BMUG users with HyperCard. The general sentiment was that HyperCard turned the Macintosh into a creative tool for the activist as well as the artist.
Barbara Tien, founder of Ponga, who drove your carless correspondent home, said she was glad that Atkinson, a true pioneer in computing, was getting the recognition he deserved. "I wish there were more events like this celebrating HyperCard's 25th anniversary."
For those who missed out on Atkinson's revelations, including his close, four-year friendship with Steve Jobs, check out Fora.tv, which will post a video of the event later this month.