Two general types of programming languages have been developed for computer based educational systems. The first type of language, which is patterned after such high order languages as PASCAL or FORTRAN, provides great programming flexibility. However, its structured, syntactical constructs require either that an experienced programmer be involved in lesson generation or that instructional personnel become skilled in sound programming techniques. Its use frequently results in other problems as well, such as communication difficulties between instructional and programming personnel in the implementation of the lesson design and development process. To avoid these problems, the second type of language was developed. It allows instructional personnel to generate on-line instructional materials without acquiring sophisticated programming skills. This second category of languages is often thought of as being "user friendly." Such languages usually take an algorithmic approach to instruction and rely heavily on prompting as the means of lesson program entry. They serve very well for many applications, but their use has not been without problems. Not the least of these problems has been a lack of flexibility in the presentation and creation formats. This paper describes the OMEGA authoring system, a lesson authoring approach that provides instructional personnel with the positive features of both of the above language types. The approach has been implemented on an educational system that includes capabilities for the integrated use of interactive videodisc and three dimensional simulation. The paper first relates some basic facts about computer systems in general, and then discusses the various aspects of user friendliness in the context of educational programming. It then describes and evaluates both the traditional and OMEGA approaches to user friendly authoring.