View source for Development of Scratch 2.0

{{External Programs}}{{other version|2.0|3.0|title=Development of Scratch 3.0|1.0|title2=Development of Scratch 1.0|noversion=yes}}
The '''development of [[Scratch 2.0]]''' was a process taking several years and many stages, leading to a release on May 9, 2013. Even after its initial release, it was constantly being updated with new features and bug fixes until the release of [[Scratch 3.0]].

==Development==

===2008===

In May of 2008, the Playful Invention Company (PICo), which was also known for creating several very early pre-alpha versions of Scratch 2.0, collaborated with Scratch to create a [http://playfulinvention.com/tests/ScratchPlayer/SP.swf Flash-based version of the Scratch project player]. This player used unique start and stop buttons, seen nowhere else other than [[Scratch Classmate]].

===BlocksEngine===

In late 2009, John Maloney, the lead programmer of Scratch since 2003, began development on a Flash-based program simply titled "BlocksEngine". The blocks in this version resembled those in the final release of Scratch 2.0, and this version had very basic programming capability -- there were no sprites, only simple shapes could be drawn making use of a "rectangle (_) (_) w (_) h (_)" block. It has been confirmed that this program did indeed evolve into Scratch 2.0, as parts of its code are seen in Scratch 2.0's source code. Several versions of the BlocksEngine program are still available for download on John Maloney's MIT site [https://web.media.mit.edu/~jmaloney/blox/ here].

===iScratch V2===

iScratch V2 was an early codename for Scratch 2.0. The earliest pre-alpha versions of Scratch 2.0 were labeled this. These versions were developed in collaboration with the Playful Invention Company (PICo), and date from May to August of 2010. These versions can still be downloaded from the PICo site [http://playfulinvention.com/tests/jspb/ here].

===Pre-Alpha===
[[File:Experimental Viewer.png|thumb|200px|left|The Experimental Viewer.]]
The announcement for Scratch 2.0 came in January 2010, thanks to andresmh, though Scratchers were not allowed to view Scratch 2.0 until in August of the same year.<ref>[[ar-topic:29700]]</ref> During that time, the [[Experimental Viewer]] went public for several months, as pictured to the left. The viewer was an online editor meant to experiment with Scratch, though it lacked several simple features, like [[costume]] editing, [[comments]], and many more. A [[studios:203479|Scratch 2.0 Transition Team]] was formed to help Scratchers transition from Scratch 1.4 to 2.0.

[[File:Try the new Flash Player.png|thumb|200px|What showed under the [[Downloading Projects|download option]] when a [[project]] was running in the Java Player.]]
Meanwhile, in February 2011, the [[Flash Player]] entered the Scratch website, though the Project Editor did not come in [[Flash (programming language)|Flash]] yet. The Flash Player was a way to view projects online, while carrying the benefits of faster projects, causing many Scratchers to applaud it. As time passed, the project viewer received many updates, and later became the official project viewer on May 9, 2013.

The first known version of the project editor followed in [[Scratch Day]] of May 2011, during which a limited audience was allowed to view it at MIT. A little afterwards, the ST also started releasing [[Scratch 2.0 Progress Reports|progress reports on Scratch 2.0]].

===Alpha===
[[File:Scratch 2 project page.png|thumb|An alpha version of the Scratch 2.0 project page.]]
On February 16, 2012, Scratch entered alpha development.<ref>http://blog.scratch.mit.edu/2012/02/scratch-20-project-page-and-project.html</ref>{{dead link}} The next taste the public got of Scratch 2.0 came a long time later, though, on Scratch Day 2012. During that time, the alpha site for Scratch 2.0 (at alpha.scratch.mit.edu) was released for a few days, and a preview video of Scratch's new features was released [[yt:z4UIf7gDojg|here]]. After the event, alpha testers were brought in to test the site. These alpha testers were notified by the [[Scratch Team]], and given a code to allow them to access the beta.{{citation needed|date=February 2016}} Of the testers there were:

* [[Community Moderators|Community moderators]]
* Selected educators
* [[Collab Camp#Counselors|Collab counselors]]
* Former [[curator (front page)|front page curator]]s
* [[Scratch Design Studio]] curators
* [[TBG]] moderators

Along with that, 500 additional testers were later brought in to test the website. To have become an alpha tester, a Scratcher must've posted on [[projects:2801565|this project]] by Lightnin, and then the first 500 requests were accepted. Some users, though, were able to use a loop-hole in the website to preview the alpha website.<ref>[[topic:57]]</ref> It was encouraged that these people acted as if they did not use the loop-hole.

===Beta===
The beta development of [[Scratch]] officially began in December 2012, though public Beta testing began on January 28, 2013.<ref>[[Scratch 2.0#cite note-1]]</ref> The [[Scratch Team]] had migrated all current user accounts and projects to the beta website, at [http://beta.scratch.mit.edu/ beta.scratch.mit.edu], in preparation for this date. Once the beta website became public, beta testers, as they are commonly referred to, could look at and test the website while it was in development. Profiles created after December 2012, though, could not test the website due to the fact that their accounts weren't migrated over. This was a commonly asked topic by [[New Scratcher]]s after the start of the Beta.

The Beta website finally went down on May 6, 2013, to later replace the main Scratch homepage.

==Snapshots==
{{see also|:Category:Scratch 2.0 Images}}
<gallery widths=175px perrow=5 caption="Scratch 2.0 Images">
File:Experimental Viewer.png|The Experimental Viewer.
File:Scratch 2.0 interface prealpha.png|A screenshot from the pre-alpha at [[Scratch Day#Scratch Day MIT 2011|Scratch Day @ MIT in 2011]]. Many Scratchers disagreed with the new look.<ref>{{Forum Archive|63817}}</ref>
File:Scratch 2 project editor.png|An alpha version of the Scratch 2.0 project editor.
File:Scratch 2 project page.png|An alpha version of the Scratch 2.0 project page.
File:2.0 Beta Front Page.png|The [[Front Page]] of the website prototype.
File:Tokis search mockup by Gaia.png|A Scratch 2.0 search mockup by Gaia ([[Scratch Team]] member).
File:Playerscreenshot2-11.png|An example project playing with the increased size online.
File:Pop balloons with webcam.png|An example project showcasing the new [[Sensing Blocks|video blocks]].
File:Try the new Flash Player.png|What showed under the download option when the project was running in the Java Player.
File:Functions.png|A [[procedure]] and its usage, in the Scratch Day 2011 pre-alpha.
File:Procedure creation dialog collapsed.png|An old version of the custom block feature.
File:Scratch-2.0-blocks-september-2012.PNG|New blocks as of September 2012.
File:Cloud List.PNG|Cloud Lists in Scratch v138.
</gallery>

==Builds/Downloads==

Some archived versions can be found [https://web.archive.org/web/20210325003527/https://github.com/retro-person/Scratch-Archive/tree/master/Scratch%202.0%20Versions here].

==See Also==
* [[Experimental Viewer]]

==References==
<references/>

{{Scratch Versions}}
[[Category:Scratch Versions|2.0]]
[[Category:Scratch 2.0]]