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Would you like to view a demonstration of how to take advantage of the Morphic animation system in Squeak? If so, you are in luck! A new video has recently been posted that takes you through the steps of doing just that. The Morphic animation system in Squeak offers a simple way to animate and interact with objects in your environment. Whether you are building basic animations or more complex interactive systems, Morphic provides a wealth of possibilities for both beginners and seasoned developers alike. You can watch the video titled “A BlinkingRectangle Morph in Smalltalk” here.
In addition to the video tutorial, you can explore a very simple, yet powerful example included in the Squeak image. This example morph can be found with the somewhat hard-to-remember name, MorphExample. By evaluating “MorphExample new openInWorld” (without the surrounding parentheses) in a Workspace, you can discover how easy it is to make morphs perform various actions. This demonstration emphasizes the beauty of the Morphic system’s simplicity: you do not need to write complex code to animate objects. Instead, you can focus on creating rich, interactive applications and interfaces with just a few lines of code.
One of the most compelling aspects of the Morphic system is how effortlessly it enables dynamic, real-time interaction, especially when used within the Smalltalk environment. Compared to many other graphical frameworks, where handling interactions often requires more complex event handling and manual updates, Morphic allows you to create interactive, animated objects with minimal code. For example, you can open a halo on the star, resize or rotate it, and the animation will continue to perform and adjust dynamically to the star’s new dimensions. This responsiveness highlights the simplicity and flexibility of the Morphic system, making it an ideal choice for building interactive systems without the need for manual recalculations or updates.
If you are interested in delving deeper into the Morphic system, you can access Chapter 12 of Squeak by Example for more detailed explanations and examples. The book offers a clear guide to the system, making it an excellent resource for developers looking to better understand Morphic. You can read the full chapter here.
For those who want to learn more about using halos with morphs in Squeak, there is another excellent video resource available. The video “Morphic Halo icons in Squeak Smalltalk” demonstrates how to interact with the Morphic halo icons to manipulate morphs in the Squeak environment. Whether you are new to Squeak or already familiar with the basics, this video provides valuable insights into how halos can be used to interact with morphs. Check it out here.
Have a great time with Smalltalk and keep on Squeaking!
In this lesson, we will learn about blocks in Smalltalk. A block is a small piece of code that can be treated as an object. It is often used to perform actions or calculations when needed. Blocks are written inside square brackets, and they can be passed around or executed by other parts of the program. While blocks are commonly used in programs to make things happen, for now, think of them as a way to understand how code can be organized and applied. This lesson is a simple introduction to blocks, so you do not need to fully understand everything about them yet. By the end of the lesson, you will have a better idea of what blocks are and how they work in code. You will also learn how to use blocks to interact with your EllipseMorph.
We will also use a simple button morph to interact with our EllipseMorph. By clicking the button, you will be able to make the EllipseMorph move. This lesson will show you how to create a simple graphical button that can then be used to interact with your morph. This is a nice way of interacting with the morph without having to do much coding for now. It allows you to focus on understanding the basic concepts before diving into more complex programming. As you progress, you will learn how to build more advanced interactions and customize the behavior of your morphs.
Additional Resources
For additional learning, there are several resources that can help you dive deeper into the topics we covered. You can start by exploring the Block Swiki page here to get a better understanding of how blocks work in Smalltalk. If you want to learn more specifically about the BlockClosure class, check out a detailed explanation here, also a Swiki article. Another helpful resource is the Terse Guide to Squeakonline, which is always available within the Squeak image under Help -> Terse Guide to Squeak. Lastly, the Squeak by Example book is an excellent resource for exploring Squeak and Smalltalk in more detail, and you can read it here. These resources will provide you with more in-depth information and examples to support your learning.
For the complete series of lessons on creating the Shooter Game, including all the necessary resources like PDFs, source code, images, sound files, and more, visit https://scottgibson.site/ShooterGame/. This site not only offers everything you need to progress but also lets you play the game directly in your browser using SqueakJS. Whether you are just getting started with Squeak/Smalltalk or are advancing your skills, these resources will help guide you as you progress through the game development process.
In this lesson, we will focus on making Morphs move, an essential step in creating interactive and engaging gameplay. You will learn how to send messages to Morph objects, enabling them to change their position on the screen. Movement is a key part of any game, whether it involves your ship, enemies, or projectiles. By the end of this lesson, you will understand different ways to move Morphs relative to a specific location, giving you basic control over their movement in your game.
To begin, it is important to understand how Morph movement is accomplished in Squeak, a version of Smalltalk, as not all Smalltalk implementations support Morphs, which is what we are using here. Squeak is an object-oriented language, meaning everything is an object. Objects can communicate with each other by sending messages, which is how actions and information are requested in Squeak. Much like how people communicate by sending messages to one another, objects in Squeak send messages to request actions or receive information, or both.
Understanding Messages in Smalltalk
In Smalltalk, there are three types of messages: unary, binary, and keyword. Unary messages have the highest precedence, followed by binary messages, and then keyword messages. These different types of messages help objects interact in various ways.
Unary messages are messages that are sent to an object without arguments.
Binary messages consist of special characters like +, -, or @, and each one takes exactly one argument to perform an action or computation involving two objects.
Keyword messages consist of one or more keywords, each ending with a colon (:), and each keyword takes an argument.
The Difference Between position: and position
In this lesson, you will focus on understanding how to use the position messages. The first important thing to know is the difference between two messages that seem similar but actually work in different ways: position and position:. They both deal with the position of Morphs, but they are used differently.
The message position, without a colon, is a unary message. It does not require any arguments and simply retrieves the current position of the Morph.
The message position:, with a colon at the end, is a keyword message. It can receive a value or an argument, which is used to change the position of the Morph.
This difference in how the messages are structured is important because it tells Squeak how to process them. The position message simply retrieves the current location of the Morph, while the position: message accepts an argument to set or change the Morph’s location.
Understanding How to Control Morph Movement
By understanding how messages work in Squeak, you can effectively control the movement of Morphs. Each message, whether unary, binary, or keyword, enables you to send specific instructions to objects, helping them change their state or position on the screen. This knowledge of messages forms the basis of interacting with objects in your game.
As you progress through the lesson, you will learn how to send different types of messages to Morphs, allowing you to interact with them in various ways. This skill will be crucial for making your game dynamic and interactive, enabling you to work with Morphs to create engaging gameplay elements.
By the end of this lesson, you will have a good foundation in how messages are used to control movement in Squeak, and you will be ready to apply this knowledge in your game.
Final Notes
Please remember to save your Squeak image after each lesson. This way, if you ever encounter a problem with your code, you can always close the image and reopen it from where you last saved it. It would be helpful to save your Squeak image after you have successfully completed each lesson, so you can always reopen the image from the last completed lesson in case something unexpected happens while proceeding through the current lesson.
Note that the extra parentheses in this lesson are not necessary, but they may help new learners visualize the objects conceptually, especially at the start. The syntax is still correct and can be adjusted later, so nothing harmful is being introduced. At this point, it seemed better to provide a visual, conceptual understanding through the code, rather than focusing solely on minimizing syntax. Future lesson code will not include these.
Lesson Resources
For the complete series of lessons on creating the Shooter Game, including all the necessary resources like PDFs, source code, images, sound files, and more, visit https://scottgibson.site/ShooterGame/. This site not only offers everything you need to progress but also lets you play the game directly in your browser using SqueakJS. Whether you are just getting started with Squeak/Smalltalk or are advancing your skills, these resources will guide you through each step of the game development process, helping you apply the techniques you learned in this lesson, such as moving Morphs and controlling game objects.
The holidays may be over, but the presents are still arriving from the UK Smalltalk User Group! Videos of previous presentations have been released over the past month, covering a variety of interesting topics–a total of 57 as of this writing! Be sure to check out their new YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@UKSTUG. Also, be sure to visit their homepage at https://www.uksmalltalk.org/, and if you would like to attend any meetings, their Meetup site can be found at https://www.meetup.com/ukstug/.
Have a great time with Smalltalk and keep on Squeaking!
This article kicks off a series designed to introduce programming to beginners through the creation of a simplified space shooter game using Squeak, an open-source implementation of the Smalltalk programming language. By breaking down the process into a series of manageable lessons, the aim is to provide an accessible and interactive entry point into the world of programming. This series will guide learners through the process of building a game from the ground up while introducing them to essential programming concepts along the way. Upon completion, and with the accompanying resources such as source code, images, and a sound file, students will have everything they need to recreate or enhance the game.
Who This Series is For
The intended audience for this article and the accompanying series includes both young learners and adults who are new to coding or to Smalltalk. Whether you are a student, educator, or hobbyist, these lessons are tailored to make programming approachable and enjoyable. Throughout the series, we will dive into key programming principles – such as object-oriented design, the concept of “Morphs” in Squeak, and more – at a beginner-friendly pace. Each lesson is supplemented with practical examples. If you are interested in starting with something fun and educational, and you are curious about how games are made or how Smalltalk can be used in a modern development environment, this series is for you.
Why a Game, and Why Squeak/Smalltalk?
So why a game, and why in Squeak/Smalltalk? Why not? Everybody understands the domain of games, or gaming. That is, the mechanics, interactions, and goals – such as managing player input, controlling game characters, defining win/loss conditions, and creating interactive environments. Games are a universal medium that spans across ages and cultures, from simple board games to complex video games. This familiarity makes games an excellent starting point for teaching programming concepts, as the mechanics and goals are intuitive to most people. Moreover, games require a variety of programming elements to function, such as managing user input, handling graphics, implementing game rules, designing levels, and even creating sound and music. These components provide a rich environment for introducing and practicing key programming skills – like decision-making, loops, object-oriented design, and event handling – while keeping learners engaged with a fun, practical outcome.
Why Squeak/Smalltalk is the Right Tool
Squeak makes all of this very easy, and you do not need to learn anything more than Smalltalk to get started. The language is intuitive and enjoyable to use, and Squeak provides a powerful and engaging development environment. While games may not balance your bank account, they can serve as an excellent resource for learning programming or a new language. Squeak/Smalltalk, in particular, makes this process both accessible and enjoyable.
How This Series Came to Be
This article introduces a series of lessons based on a simplified version of a space shooter game I developed using Squeak. The project, which was both fun to create and my first full Squeak program, turned out to be an ideal way to teach my middle school-aged son Smalltalk, as well as the fundamentals of object-oriented programming (OOP). Although he had prior programming experience, he quickly grasped the language due to its simplicity and the interactive nature of the environment. The natural syntax of Smalltalk, combined with the user-friendly environment, not only made it easier for him to solve problems but also allowed him to be more creative, without needing to alter his natural problem-solving approach. Both the language and the environment “got out of his way,” enabling him to express himself more easily and effectively.
What Will Be Covered in the Series
The lessons in this series are designed to introduce key programming concepts – such as classes, methods, debugging, and user interface design – through the process of building and modifying a game. You can find the complete list of lessons on the Shooter Game site. Each lesson was written daily, and I discussed topics both before and during the lesson to provide additional detail and ensure a deeper understanding. This approach allowed me to offer relevant explanations exactly when they were needed, based on my son’s progress and evolving needs.
For each article, I will aim to provide additional helpful information that may not be included in the lessons themselves. If you feel any details are missing or could be useful, please let me know, and I would be happy to provide further information.
Interactive, Live Coding Approach
The hands-on, live coding approach in these lessons encourages learners to experiment and learn in real time, making the process both educational and enjoyable. Each lesson also comes with a downloadable PDF version of the lesson page for easy offline reference or printing. The entire series progressively builds upon itself, allowing learners to gradually develop their programming skills as they move through the lessons.
Lesson 1: Creating and Positioning Morphs
For today’s lesson, we will dive into the first step in building our game: “Creating and Positioning Morphs.” In this lesson, we will introduce the concept of a Morph and explore how to create and manipulate these visual objects within the Squeak environment. Understanding Morphs is a crucial part of game development in Squeak, as they serve as the foundation for all the interactive elements of the game.
What is a Morph?
In Squeak, a Morph is an interactive graphical object. Like everything in Smalltalk, a Morph can be interacted with through messages. It is not a static, lifeless image on the screen, but rather a lively object waiting to interact with its environment. You can send a message to a Morph to receive information about it or to perform an operation. Everything you see when running Squeak is a Morph object. This presents some very exciting capabilities, as it provides you with the ability to create graphical objects, which can interact with the world (the entire Squeak environment – its display screen in this case) and the world can interact with them.
The Squeak world works using a coordinate system. The coordinate values can be absolute or relative. Each coordinate value is represented as a point, which has an X coordinate and a Y coordinate. For example, a Squeak world (remember, this will be the full size of the display screen in the Squeak environment) with a display size of 1024×768:
The point 0@0 is the top-left corner of the screen.
The point 0@768 is the lower-left corner of the screen.
The point 1024@768 is the lower-right corner of the screen.
The point 1024@0 is the top-right corner of the screen.
Every point in between represents a location within the world. Points can exist outside of that world too; however, they would not be visible.
In this game, everything is a subclass of Morph, so you will be using Morphs a lot.
Before beginning Lesson 1, it would be very helpful to read Chapter 1 of the Squeak By Example book (available as a free PDF, SBE-6.0.pdf), an excellent resource for learning Squeak and understanding its environment. Afterward, you can go straight to the lesson here.
Additional Resources
To access the full series of lessons and resources for the space shooter game, Shooter Game, visit the lesson site at https://scottgibson.site/ShooterGame/. There, you will find the complete set of lessons and their associated PDFs, along with the source code, images, the sound file, and other useful resources. You can even play the game directly in your browser (using the awesome SqueakJS!). Whether you are a beginner or looking to learn more about Squeak/Smalltalk, its environment, and its tools, these resources will guide you through each step and provide everything you need to recreate or enhance the game.
In recent months, Craig Latta has been exploring the integration of AI language models, particularly GPT-4, into Smalltalk development environments, with the goal of enhancing workflows and improving conversational interactions with the language model. Rather than relying on traditional coding methods, Craig has focused on fine-tuning the model using English system prompts, with promising results. This approach aims to guide the AI’s behavior through prompt evolution, rather than direct coding, leading to surprisingly effective outcomes.
One of the key insights from this experimentation is that GPT-4’s pre-existing knowledge of Smalltalk and Squeak provides a solid foundation for further fine-tuning. By applying constraints to system prompts – such as instructing the model to avoid sending messages to access objects when direct access via instance variables is possible – Craig has steadily refined the AI’s responses.
Conversing with the Language Model in Squeak
A central goal of the project was to enable conversations with the AI model from within any text pane in Squeak, utilizing Smalltalk’s classic “do it,” “print it,” and “inspect it” functionalities. To achieve this, Craig modified the Compiler>>evaluateCue:ifFail: method to handle UndeclaredVariable exceptions. When an undeclared variable (e.g., “What” in “What went wrong?”) triggers an exception, the model object underlying the text pane takes over, interpreting the next chat completion from the language model.
The model objects Craig has focused on are instances of Smalltalk’s Debugger and Inspector. A notable feature of this approach is that it logs all interactions – whether English prompts or Smalltalk code – into the changes log, just as it would with traditional code. Each model object maintains a reference to the most recent chat completion, allowing successive prompts to be interpreted in the context of the entire conversation, fostering dynamic and evolving dialogues.
Practical Results and Application
The system has already shown practical value in a live development environment. For example, when evaluating a prompt like “What went wrong?” in the debugger, the language model provides surprisingly accurate and detailed responses, as if debugging the code itself. Similarly, when tasked with generating Smalltalk code – such as instructions for selecting the most recent context with a BlockClosure receiver – the debugger manipulates the code correctly, demonstrating the viability of using the AI in real-time development workflows.
Future Exploration
Currently, Craig is expanding the scope of the AI’s functionality. He is experimenting with prompts that describe the application’s domain, purpose, and user interface, eager to see how the model can assist in these areas. This exploration has the potential to significantly improve Smalltalk development workflows by integrating AI-driven conversational interactions into the process.
As AI models continue to evolve, Craig anticipates further advancements in integrating these models with development environments, offering new opportunities to enhance productivity, troubleshooting, and even code generation. The future of AI-enhanced Smalltalk development looks promising, and this project represents an exciting first step. For more details on Craig’s exploration of AI in Smalltalk development, be sure to check out his full blog post at thisContext.
Growing Interest in AI for Squeak Development
There has been growing interest in applying both semantic understanding and generative AI to the Squeak environment, as these technologies hold great promise for improving development workflows. By combining the ability to generate code with deeper understanding and reasoning, developers are beginning to explore new ways AI can assist with both writing and debugging Smalltalk code. This integration could help streamline development, enhance debugging efficiency, and even assist in explaining complex code patterns, all within the context of Squeak’s unique environment. Or, it could take over the world. You decide. As interest continues to grow, a future article and video from a recent demonstration will explore these advancements in more detail, offering insights into how AI-driven approaches can enhance Smalltalk programming and provide practical demonstrations of these evolving tools.
Have a great time with Smalltalk and keep on Squeaking!
Work has progressed with SqueakJS since our last report in April. In May, version 1.2.1 was released, adding a virtual Cmd button and fixes for touch events. The June release, version 1.2.2, made the copy-and-paste menu items functional on mobile devices. The most recent version, 1.2.3, was released in September, bringing a touch keyboard and other minor fixes.
Additionally, we would like to extend congratulations to the SqueakJS project! The Dynamic Language Symposium (DLS) awarded SqueakJS this year’s DLS Most Notable Paper award for the paper “SqueakJS: A Modern and Practical Smalltalk that Runs in Any Browser,” authored by Vanessa Freudenberg, Dan Ingalls, Tim Felgentreff, Tobias Pape, and Robert Hirschfeld. You can read the paper here, and also view the announcement here.
Work continues to progress with SqueakJS, and we are grateful for it. The project leverages web browsers as the primary platform, enabling applications to run directly without the need for native software installations. This feature ensures easy deployment and access, making it ideal for environments where installing traditional software is not possible or practical.
SqueakJS is an HTML5 runtime engine for Squeak/Smalltalk, written in pure JavaScript. It is also compatible with many other OpenSmalltalk-compatible images. Check it out at https://squeak.js.org. If you would like to contribute, head over to https://github.com/codefrau/SqueakJS and see what you might like to help with. Contributions are welcome!
Have a great time with Smalltalk and keep on Squeaking!
When developing complex systems, encountering errors that leave your project in a frozen state can bring much sadness and consternation. For developers working with Squeak/Smalltalk, a frozen image refers to a situation where the system becomes unresponsive. This can happen due to various issues, including deadlocks, infinite loops, or recursive operations in Smalltalk code, which can cause the VM to freeze, hang, or lock up.
A recent discussion in the Squeak community highlighted how one such incident, caused by a stuck semaphore during an image load, turned into an opportunity for both recovery and valuable practices in safeguarding against future mishaps. You can explore the full conversation in the Squeak-dev mailing list thread (here).
The Problem: Semaphore Deadlock in the Image File
In this case, a developer encountered an issue while attempting to draw in multiple background threads, using a chain of semaphores to manage the UI thread. After resolving an error in one of the background threads, the drawing process was resumed. However, it was found that the image would fail to load. Instead of opening, the image became unresponsive and effectively “frozen.” It had likely become stuck due to a semaphore waiting for a signal that would never come. This left the image unresponsive and effectively unusable – or so it would have seemed.
Recovery Options: DoItFirst and Debugging
The good news is that there are several options available for recovering from such failures.
For developers dealing with frozen images at startup, Squeak provides a mechanism called DoItFirst. This is a class that is processed at the very beginning of the image startup sequence, allowing developers to inject custom code or actions before the main system fully loads. By using command-line arguments like --debug, it is possible to force the image to enter the debugger at the earliest point in the startup process, allowing issues to be diagnosed and fixed before the image fully loads.
Additionally, for situations where the issue is well-understood, the --doit option allows Smalltalk expressions to be passed and executed before any problematic behavior occurs, giving developers a chance to resolve issues before they impact the image during loading.
Another option is to open the Virtual Machine (VM) in a debugger. In the specific case of a stuck semaphore, you can set a breakpoint in interpret. Run the VM until it reaches interpret a second time (the first invocation does some initialization). At this point, you can use printAllProcesses to locate the stuck process. This should display the semaphore the process is waiting on. Once identified, you can invoke synchronousSignal with that semaphore to unstick it and restore functionality without losing significant progress. While this technique can specifically handle a stuck semaphore, it could also be helpful for other cases of system hangs or unresponsiveness.
The Importance of Backups and Versioning
While debugging and recovery tools are invaluable, it is clear that prevention is equally important. Routine backups and effective versioning are essential practices that can mitigate the risks associated with frozen images and other failures. One practice that proved helpful in this case was maintaining regular system backups, which made it possible to quickly restore a previous version of the image with minimal data loss. However, more granular versioning, especially in environments with frequent risky changes, would provide an additional layer of safety.
Specifically, incremental versioning of the image can be a lifesaver when things go wrong. By saving a new version of the image each time a meaningful step in development is reached, developers can create a clear history of their work. This allows them to revert to earlier versions of the image if issues arise, minimizing the impact of failed changes and speeding up the recovery process. Incremental image saves help ensure that even if an image becomes frozen or corrupted, a previous, stable version can be restored with minimal effort.
The Robustness of Squeak: Multiple Recovery Options
One of the key takeaways from this experience is how robust Squeak is in terms of recovery options. Even when a frozen image occurs or the system becomes unresponsive, Squeak offers multiple layers of recovery mechanisms. Whether using DoItFirst to inject custom code during startup or interacting with the VM through a debugger to manually resolve issues with semaphores, there are a variety of ways to recover from errors and get back on track.
Additionally, Squeak’s development environment is designed to be highly flexible, encouraging experimentation while ensuring that recovery is always possible. One of the key advantages of Squeak is that all the code executed or saved during development is stored in the .changes file. This makes it possible to recover from almost any issue, as the system is built to retain all your code. Even if an image becomes frozen or corrupted, the code itself is never truly lost. With the resources mentioned in this article, developers can restore their environment and continue their work. In Squeak, code is safe; no matter what happens to the image, your code can always be recovered.
Conclusion
In conclusion, while Squeak’s development environment offers tools to recover from serious errors, the most effective defense is good preventive practice: maintain regular backups, version your work consistently, and always be mindful of the unexpected.
For more detailed information on using DoItFirst to debug and recover your Squeak image, visit the DoItFirst Swiki page (here). If you encounter issues like crashes or freezes in Squeak, there are various levels of potential failure to consider, and helpful guidance is available in the What to do if Squeak crashes or freezes resource (here), which offers insight into diagnosing and resolving different types of system freezes or crashes.
Have a great time with Smalltalk and keep on Squeaking!
In a recent email to the Squeak developers mailing list (here), Tim Rowledge shared insights from the Raspberry Pi team regarding beneficial tweaks to memory configuration in the firmware, specifically focusing on NUMA (Non-Uniform Memory Access). These updates are part of ongoing efforts to enhance SDRAM performance for both Raspberry Pi 4 and 5 models.
Performance Enhancements Explained
Recent testing revealed that the 8GB models sometimes performed worse than the 4GB models due to SDRAM self-refresh consuming bandwidth, especially since larger sizes require longer refresh times. Investigations showed that adjusting the SDRAM refresh interval could yield better results. Monitoring temperature indicated that a faster refresh rate was feasible, which helped reduce overhead. Micron confirmed that 8GB SDRAM could safely operate with 4GB refresh timings.
Ongoing tweaks to SDRAM and ARM settings have led to small but cumulative performance improvements, typically around 1% per update. A significant issue noted is the competition among multiple ARM cores accessing SDRAM, leading to inefficiencies when multiple pages in the same bank are accessed. Implementing NUMA can help manage this by splitting SDRAM into regions, allowing for more efficient allocation and improved performance in multi-core tasks.
Benchmarking Squeak Smalltalk
Tim tested these configurations on a Raspberry Pi 5 equipped with NVMe storage, running benchmarks from the Benchmark Shootout suite. The tests included:
nbody
binary trees
chameneos redux
thread ring
Results of the NUMA Configuration
The performance comparisons between a NUMA-configured Raspberry Pi 5 and a standard setup yielded notable results:
nbody: Improved from 5.157 seconds to 5.095 seconds (1.2% improvement)
binary trees: Improved from 3.398 seconds to 3.096 seconds (8.9% improvement)
chameneos redux: Improved from 7.274 seconds to 5.239 seconds (28% improvement)
thread ring: Improved from 8.347 seconds to 7.783 seconds (6.7% improvement)
These findings indicate that even minor adjustments in RAM timings can lead to substantial performance gains, particularly highlighted in the chameneos redux benchmark.
Conclusion
Tim Rowledge’s testing of the Raspberry Pi team’s memory configuration tweaks has revealed valuable performance gains. By implementing NUMA and optimizing SDRAM settings, Raspberry Pi users can unlock significant benefits. These small adjustments can lead to meaningful improvements, making the Raspberry Pi an even more effective tool for development and education. You can find Raspberry Pi team’s recommended tweaks here. Additionally, you can explore the bug report thread detailing the testing and findings here.
Have a great time with Smalltalk and keep on Squeaking!
The Weekly Squeak 