Bob Taylor

Back-2-Basic Bob Taylor

Back-2-Basic is an 80+ page self-study that explains programming using the original Basic language to non-programmers and even accomplished programmers. We call this language, OldBasic. Have fun with these exercises using OldBasic. This program is a highly creative idea developed in the 1960s and 70s in the science labs at Dartmouth College. The idea blossomed during the last half century and breathed immense life into a very new personal computer field. This study uses a learn-by-example study, teaching the unique features of the OldBasic interpreters. Study, run, and test the sample programs in the exercises. Create your own programs as you learn. Nothing helps us to understand better than hands-on. Learn that numeric and alphanumeric data are different classes of data. Learn when and when not to use each. Learn the difference in RAM and ROM. Learn strange facts; such as: Fifty years ago the cost of a single byte of computer memory cost the buyer over a dollar, about the same as an entire gigibyte (billion) costs today. Learn by designing, writing, and testing simple programs of your own design. Save them on the EXERCISES disk you'll create. Discover how bytes unite to become fields; how fields link to become records; how records join to become files. Understand the whys and the how-tos of OldBasic commands, such as GOTO, IF, GOSUB, PRINT, INPUT, RUN, and the mathematical meaning of +, -, *, /, ^, etc. Example of an OldBasic Program10 rem increment the variable a to 9, then exit20 a = 030 a = a + 1 40 if (a