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Coincidentally, I also started trying to learn C programming on System 6 yesterday. So far the key resource for me has been "Macintosh C Programming by Example

Coincidentally, I also started trying to learn C programming on System 6 yesterday. So far the key resource for me has been "Macintosh C Programming by Example,"[0] which also uses THINK C. The disk that originally accompanied the book is available on Macintosh Garden.[1] Scott Knight also has a nice intro to classic Mac development, using Pascal in the Macintosh Programmer's Workshop instead of THINK C.[2] Then there's also the old Inside Macintosh books[3] and other how-to books[4][5], but I haven't looked at those yet. [0]: https://vintageapple.org/macprogramming/pdf/Macintosh_C_Programming_By_Example_1991.pdf https://vintageapple.org/macprogramming/pdf/Macintosh_C_Prog... [1]: https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/macintosh-c-programming-example https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/macintosh-c-programming-exa... [2]: https://knight.sc/software/2020/04/19/classic-macos-development.html https://knight.sc/software/2020/04/19/classic-macos-developm... [3]: https://vintageapple.org/inside_o/ https://vintageapple.org/inside_o/ [4]: https://vintageapple.org/macprogramming/index_year.html https://vintageapple.org/macprogramming/index_year.html [5]: https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/learn-c-the-macintosh-0 https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/learn-c-the-macintosh-0

atommclain 6y ago
While not C focused, https://macgui.com https://macgui.com might be a good resource for your endeavor.
- nickloewen 6y ago
  This does look promising, thanks! There's clearly a wealth of information available on the web—the trick is just tracking it down...
  - news_to_me 6y ago
    I routinely search "site:preserve.mactech.com $query" — there's a lot of interesting and helpful tech tips there.
duskwuff 6y ago
Inside Macintosh is vital for classic Mac programming. Get a copy of the the 1995 Inside Macintosh CD-ROM -- it's much easier to work with than the PDF scans you've found at Vintage Apple. With an online index (like ObiWan), jumping to documentation for a Toolbox function is trivial. https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/inside-macintosh-cd-rom https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/inside-macintosh-cd-rom
- nickloewen 6y ago
  Great tip, thanks! Macintosh C Programming by Example suggested the shareware "Inside Mac Desk Accessory," but I'm not sure if that's available anymore; this seems like a good alternative. I've also noticed that the original documentation for OS 8 and 9 is still available on the web—http://mirror.informatimago.com/next/developer.apple.com/documentation/macos8/mac8.html http://mirror.informatimago.com/next/developer.apple.com/doc.... Do you know if there was there ever a web-based version of the earlier Inside Macintosh?
  - duskwuff 6y ago
    Nope. Early editions of Inside Macintosh were pre-Internet. The CD edition was 1995, for instance -- web publishing was still in its infancy at that point. The PDFs on Apple's old developer site (mirrored at informatimago, among other places) are a decent substitute for the Inside Macintosh CD, although they are a bit scattered around the site.
- news_to_me 6y ago
  If you can find a physical copy of Vol I-III on eBay or elsewhere, I highly recommend it. It's much easier to flip through (even though it's a big tome) than searching through PDFs in my experience.

atommclain 6y ago

While not C focused, https://macgui.com https://macgui.com might be a good resource for your endeavor.

nickloewen 6y ago
This does look promising, thanks! There's clearly a wealth of information available on the web—the trick is just tracking it down...
- news_to_me 6y ago
  I routinely search "site:preserve.mactech.com $query" — there's a lot of interesting and helpful tech tips there.

duskwuff 6y ago

Inside Macintosh is vital for classic Mac programming. Get a copy of the the 1995 Inside Macintosh CD-ROM -- it's much easier to work with than the PDF scans you've found at Vintage Apple. With an online index (like ObiWan), jumping to documentation for a Toolbox function is trivial. https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/inside-macintosh-cd-rom https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/inside-macintosh-cd-rom

nickloewen 6y ago
Great tip, thanks! Macintosh C Programming by Example suggested the shareware "Inside Mac Desk Accessory," but I'm not sure if that's available anymore; this seems like a good alternative. I've also noticed that the original documentation for OS 8 and 9 is still available on the web—http://mirror.informatimago.com/next/developer.apple.com/documentation/macos8/mac8.html http://mirror.informatimago.com/next/developer.apple.com/doc.... Do you know if there was there ever a web-based version of the earlier Inside Macintosh?
- duskwuff 6y ago
  Nope. Early editions of Inside Macintosh were pre-Internet. The CD edition was 1995, for instance -- web publishing was still in its infancy at that point. The PDFs on Apple's old developer site (mirrored at informatimago, among other places) are a decent substitute for the Inside Macintosh CD, although they are a bit scattered around the site.
news_to_me 6y ago
If you can find a physical copy of Vol I-III on eBay or elsewhere, I highly recommend it. It's much easier to flip through (even though it's a big tome) than searching through PDFs in my experience.