Downloading and Installing Scratch
Writing a book about how to ride a bicycle is not very effective unless the
reader actually gets on a bicycle. Similarly, I could describe programming and
Scratch for days, but without playing around with it and doing some
examples, I highly doubt that you will understand it as well. So, let's start
out my tutorials on Scratch by explaining how to get it running.
Downloading Scratch
Downloading Scratch is not only free, but easy. Start up your favorite web
browser and type the following URL address into the address bar:
http://scratch.mit.edu
Click on the
"Download Scratch" button link you will see on the right side of the screen, and you will be shown a
registration form. This form is used to get an idea of who is using Scratch and
to allow you to register for news and other announcements. This form is
completely optional, so if you don't want to fill it out, click the "Continue
with Scratch Download" link to skip it.
Finally select your operating system and save the resulting file to your file system.
Installing Scratch
Now, assuming the download was successful, follow these instructions for your
particular operating system.
Note: Right now, Linux support is experimental, but it works quite well
on my Ubuntu laptop.
Macintosh
The DMG file that you download opens by default with the DiskImageMounter
application. Inside you will see a Scratch
drive entry in your Volumes. In this mountable drive, you will see a
Scratch folder (with the version). Simply copy this folder to your
Applications folder, and you are done.
The folder that displays has a
link to your Applications folder, so you can simply drag the Scratch
folder to the icon shown below.
Windows
The EXE file that you download is an executable installer, which will install
the Scratch directory to your Program Files directory, and create a link in
your Start | Programs menu. The defaults are typical, and you may not have
to change anything.
The following is the step-by-step instructions for each panel in the installer.
The first decision is where to install the Scratch folder. This folder contains
the application as well as the sample projects, artwork, sound recordings and
help information.
You can either type in the directory location, or click the Browse button to
select another.
Note: Most programs default to installing their applications in the Program Files directory, and this is recommended location.
Changing the installation location is optional.
Next, specify the name of the menu item in the Start | Program menu.
Once again, the default, Scratch, seems like a good default.
Finally, click the Install button to being the copying process.
When it is done, click the Next button to go to the final screen.
The final screen allows the installation program to place a Shortcut to the
Scratch program on your desktop and to actually start Scratch.
Congratulations, you are now ready to begin some fun!
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