Welcome to Alphabet Zoo! We developed this program as a fun way to help youngsters learn the basics of writing the letters of the alphabet.
In the beginning, you can sit down at the Macintosh together and go through the alphabet. An animal will demonstrate how to draw each letter. (Sounds make it all come alive, too!) After the animation, encourage the child to trace the letter on screen with their finger or the mouse, or reproduce the letter on a sheet of paper.
Then move to another letter by clicking on it or by pressing the letter on the keyboard. Soon children will be using the program by themselves! They can switch back and forth between capital and lower-case letters, if they wish, by clicking on the ABC or abc button in the lower right-hand corner of any alphabet card.
This is the demo version of Alphabet Zoo, containing the letters A through E. Please remember to register your shareware to receive the full version containing all letters and sounds. The program has a $15.00 shareware fee. You can print out the shareware registration form from within Alphabet Zoo, or you can remit directly to:
Software Perspectives
3084 Peachtree Court
Lake Ridge VA 22192-1518
Check, money order, or purchase orders are accepted. U.S. funds only.
Alphabet Zoo requires HyperCard Player or HyperCard 2.0v2 or above. If you have a lower-numbered version of HyperCard, you should upgrade. Your local Apple dealer can help you with obtaining the upgrade.
Troubleshooting:
If you experience problems with printing, check all cables and printer lights. Make sure you have the appropriate driver for your printer installed in the System Folder. Insert paper correctly into the printer. Use the Chooser to select the printer. If the page still will not print, you may be experiencing a memory problem. HyperCard or HyperCard Player come configured for a minimal amount of memory. Assuming you have enough available RAM, you can raise this allocated amount of memory by taking the following steps:
a. Quit from Alphabet Zoo.
b. Find the icon for HyperCard or HyperCard Player, depending on which program you are using. Click only ONE time on the HyperCard icon or the HyperCard Player icon, to select (highlight) it.
c. From the File Menu, select "Get Info."
d. The current size of the memory allocated to the program appears in the lower right corner of the Get Info window. Try raising it to at least 1300 K.
e. Close out the Get Info window.
f. Double-click on the Alphabet Zoo icon.
g. Try printing once again. If it still does not work, you will need to follow steps a through f again, repeatedly raising the memory allocation by 256K increments until you can print properly.
If you get an out of memory message that tells you that you do not have enough memory to run HyperCard or HyperCard Player, then you should consider buying more RAM in the form of SIMMs for your Macintosh. Your local Apple dealer can assist you in the selection and installation of these SIMMs. HyperCard and the HyperCard Player run optimally under more RAM, and you will find the extra RAM useful with many other newer programs and systems.
If you are a subscriber to America Online (a service accessible by modem), you can reach us at the user names SPerspect or JanF or post a message in the France & Associates support forum (reach it by using keyword MED and then click on the Company Support button). If you are interested in becoming a subscriber of America Online, you can call their voice number at 1-800-827-6364 to inquire about setting up an account.
We value our customers’ opinions and suggestions for improvements in our products. If you have a feature that you would like to see incorporated in the next version of Alphabet Zoo, please let us know.
