Editing HyperTalk (section)

===Controlling HyperCard===
Unlike general [[rapid application development]] platforms, HyperCard stacks always looked like stacks - the menu bar was HyperCard's and not the programmer's (by default—scripting could add, delete and modify menus), the single window was a fixed size (in early versions), and in certain cases, commands that were central to the operation were part of the application itself, and not directly available in HyperTalk itself.

A good example of this was the creation of new cards, which was part of the application, not directly accessible from the HyperTalk language itself. A new card could only be created using the New Card menu item, which could be simulated in code using<code>doMenu "New Card"</code>. While HyperTalk called into menu commands, menu commands also invoked handlers in HyperTalk. To run custom code when the Copy menu item was selected, one would place a script in the stack using the <code>on doMenu itemName</code> handler, and then examine <code>itemName</code> to see if it was "Copy".

HyperTalk also provided script control over the built-in drawing tools, simply by scripting the needed changes in paint tools and simulating mouse movements using the <code>drag from ''start'' to ''end''</code> and the <code>click at ''position''</code> commands.