Lunch with Roger Wagner

I have to tell you that it was quite a thrill for me to spend my lunchtime one on one with Roger Wagner of Hyperstudio. I can remember the first time I met Roger in New Jersey as he was showing off Hyperstudio running on an Apple IIGS. If you have been around educational technology as I have, then you know that Hyperstudio was one of those rare applications that inspired all of us in the early days to think about how multimedia could be used to enhance, engage and teach students about subject matter. Hyperstudio which was owned by several companies in the past couple of years withered on the vine, until now when MacKiev Software purchased the rights to it. With Roger Wagner back and MacKiev Software they have brought back the excitement of the program with a fresh look to it running on Macintosh OSX. I had the opportunity to sit through a presentation and was excited to see that the metaphor of cards and stacks still has been maintained. Looking at the projects that middle school students had completed with Hyperstudio reminded me why this program was so popular and adored by all educators. Having Roger back and giving the software team direction will result in one of the best iterations of Hyperstudio in some time. I hope to do a full review when it is available for testing. In the interim I for one can't wait to use Hyperstudio on my MacBook when it is released. And Roger, thanks for sharing your lunchtime with me- it was a real honor.