Update: Scratch is live – check it out at scratch.mit.edu.

It’s a good day for the much anticipated release of the Scratch 2.0 beta. It’s live and you can take it for a test drive. Click the Create link at to create a project. This beta is a flash-based, cloud living, browser dependent version. Hopefully, the standalone version won’t be far behind.

The first thing I noticed was the the page layout has changed when you are in “create” mode. The Scripts Area is on the right and the stage is on the left. I’m sure there’s a reason, but as a person who is used to reading and working left-to-right, the right-to-left workflow is jarring at first.

But there are many worthwhile and fun features tucked in this releases including video, cloning, vector graphics, and backpack (to allow you to share scripts/sprites). View the Scratch 2.0 overview. The list of planned features looks even more appealing including an export to YouTube version.

I’m in the process of figuring out what my Scratch 2.0 book will look like, and trying to determine what content I keep from Scratch 1.4 Beginner’s Guide. That’s where I need your help. You can leave me a comment or contact me directly and just give me some feedback.

What did you like in the Scratch 1.4 book? What would you remove? What should have been there?

What would you recommend in general terms for a Scratch tutorial? All suggestions welcome.

The Scratch 2.0 beta is slated for release on January 28, 2013. Yeah!! It’s been a much anticipated update, and I’ll remain skeptically optimistic that we’ll be creating cloud variables in Scratch on January 29.