Somewhere in the Mediterranean — On this , my third MacManiaGeek Cruise , I travel without the fellowship ( and , OK , the add disbursal ) of my make love family . I ’m sorry that they ’re not here with me not only because we ’re a chummy kindred who delight each others ’ company , but because my girl has missed the opportunity to meet one of her heroes .
This is a hero she ( or , perhaps , even you ) would n’t recognize by name , but if you ’re a longtime Mac substance abuser who ’s had children in the past 10 years , you ’re more than a little conversant with his body of work . I ’m speaking of Geek Cruiser Craig Hickman , the inventor of the original Kid Pix .
I had no musical theme this gentle - spoken Oregonian would be aboard and I was floored when I was introduced to him . As any computing machine - using parent knows , Kid Pix is n’t just for kids . Before I had a child , I was a fan of this sportive art and design political platform and there are still time when my daughter has to wrest the mouse away from me when we ’re bring withSoftware MacKiev ’s version of the programme . ( Although Hickman designed the original Kid Pix , he ’s had no input on recent versions . )
Craig Hickman , discoverer of the original Kid Pix
While lounging around the Internet Cafe the other night , Craig was nice enough to give me a demonstration of a undertaking he ’s working on — Beautiful Dorena , a “ pigment program ” that , in the About Box , he key as “ a fabric that would countenance me to try out ideas as they occur to me . ”
I ’d line it as beautifully playful .
While Beautiful Dorena includes some element that are standardized to Kid Pix — origin , shape , revenue stamp , and kinetic drawing shaft and sound effects that company your oeuvre , for example — it ’s not Kid Pix , or even Kid Pix for adults . Again to the About Box : “ Most of the tools in Beautiful Dorena are more interesting that useful . ”
No kidding .
How about a Freeform Line tool ( read : pencil ) that offers a Gravity selection ? With the pick enabled start drawing and as long as you halt down the shiner push button , the current scribble drifts slowly down the page . And speaking of scribble , that ’s an alternative too . Enable it and your line dance about like you ’ve jacked it into an electric socket . The Bad Handwriting option has a similar result but cluster the scribble closer together so it looks like a medico ’s poor script .
The Basic Shape tool — the instrument normally reserved for make circles and rectangle — is anything but normal . Choose the Stretch choice within the Line area of the tool ’s pop - up windowpane and the line you draw becomes progressively lean the longer you make it .
And then you leave the land of the gestate altogether with tools like Twist and Shout , a tool that generates marble - same target on the canvass . tick once and increasing numeral of colored marbles dance onto the canvas . Click again and they stop .
Then there ’s Hair , a tool that , well , draws this scrawly - expect hair wherever you ’ve dragged your pointer . Or the Bounce option within the More tool . Select it and you create fine art via a “ Pong ” interface — non-white marbles drop behind across the screen . You use your paddle to direct the course of the marbles . There ’s even a tool for capturing video from a connected camera ( even a build - in iSight tv camera ) and stamp the canvas with icon captured from the camera .
Beautiful Dorena in action at law
But the beauty of Beautiful Dorena ’s playfulness go means beyond the tool . This “ key program ” has a backstory that you may read by choosing The Backstory from the program ’s About menu . In Hickman ’s world , Beautiful Dorena was created by a computer club at the fictitious Oregon eminent school , Hazelnut Springs High . Supposedly , you ’re using the computer programme in the rural town of Hazelnut Springs and , as such , it on occasion plays the kind of ambient sounds you ’d in all probability hear when model at your computer — dog barking , doll chirping , sheep bleating , chickens click , and motorcar take by . Though the sounds are random , they ’re time - raw . Work with Beautiful Dorena later in the eve and you ’ll hear crickets and howling cats . During “ rush hour ” you ’ll hear far more automobiles that you ’d hear , say , mid - day .
At the bottom of the Thomas Nelson Page you find two small icons that stand for Dexter Lake , the computer baseball club ’s bang - it - all jerk , and English and Music teacher ( and the club ’s module adviser ) Mabel Silverton . Click Dexter ’s icon and he ’ll make crass remarks about your painting . Mabel , on the other hand , issue nothing but praise .
you’re able to even print a fake sheepskin — sport your name — from Hazelnut Springs High .
And the best part ? It ’s free . Just go toHickman ’s site , and you’re able to download a copy of Beautiful Dorena . As Hickman and the computer program monish you , it ’s beta software so it may behave in unexpected ways .
But , quite honestly , when lost in Beautiful Dorena ’s globe , I ’m not sure I ’d hump the difference .
