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These are very important concepts but notably absent is programmer-defined functions or methods.
However, what Scratch lacks in the support of fundamental programming concepts, it makes up for in high-level multimedia functionality. Ineffect, Scratch provides just enough in the way of fundamental programming capability to form a bridge to high-level multimedia functionality.
Among other things, (particularly including the availability of a quasi social-networking community) , it is probably this multimedia functionality that has attracted the large following among middle school and high schoolstudents.
There are a few projects on the website containing original music developed by the scratcher. (I recall seeing one project where the scratcher was offering to compose original music to be used by other scratchers.) However, that is the exception and not the rule. Most of the music on thewebsite appears to be copyright music for which the scratcher probably doesn't own the copyright.
That having been said, Scratch provides the capability for scratchers to compose their own music if they choose to do so.
Image 8 shows a near normal size screen shot of the leftmost portion of Image 6 .
The small frame at the top of Image 8 show the eight toolbox buttons that you click to expose a corresponding toolbox of blocks in the lower frame. (The Variables toolbox was selected before capturing the screenshot shown in Image 8 .)
With regard to high-level multimedia functionality, Scratch makes it possible and relatively easy for scratchers to do the things they like to do such as:
These capabilities, which are often difficult to access using "typical CS-approved" programming languages, provide a great deal of sensory feedback and they are a lot of fun to program. This is a largepart of what causes Scratch to engage aspiring programmers.
This high-level multimedia functionality is controlled by:
As a practical matter, the four buttons on the left in Image 8 are the fun buttons and the four buttons on the right are the control buttons.
In this module, I have provided a high-level overview of the Scratch programming environment. Future modules will provide more detailed information about the programmingenvironment.
This section contains a variety of miscellaneous information.
Financial : Although the Connexions site makes it possible for you to download a PDF file for thismodule at no charge, and also makes it possible for you to purchase a pre-printed version of the PDF file, you should beaware that some of the HTML elements in this module may not translate well into PDF.
I also want you to know that, I receive no financial compensation from the Connexions website even if you purchase the PDF version of the module.
In the past, unknown individuals have copied my modules from cnx.org, converted them to Kindle books, and placed them for sale on Amazon.com showing me as the author. Ineither receive compensation for those sales nor do I know who does receive compensation. If you purchase such a book, please beaware that it is a copy of a module that is freely available on cnx.org and that it was made and published withoutmy prior knowledge.
Affiliation : I am a professor of Computer Information Technology at Austin Community College in Austin, TX.
-end-
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