BASIC is an easy-to-use programming language that was introduced in 1963 to make computers accessible to non-science students. It gained popularity in the 1970s and 1980s with microcomputers and personal computers. BASIC was created for students to use in writing programs for the Time Sharing System at Dartmouth University. A variant, called Tiny BASIC, was one of the first to be used for microcomputers, such as the MITS Altair 8800. Altair BASIC was released in 1975 as Microsoft BASIC; Bill Gates, Paul Allen and Monte Davidoff have been credited with its development. Eventually, new languages were created and BASIC lost much of its importance to home computer users.
General Purpose Symbolic Instruction Code (BASIC) for Beginners is a family of easy-to-use programming languages. Introduced in 1963, the initial purpose of this high-level language was to make computers accessible to non-science students. Along with its variants, it enjoyed great popularity for microcomputers in the 1970s. It gained a similar level of popularity with personal computers in the 1980s.
Early computers were highly specialized and expensive machines that were used to perform special tasks, such as calculating scientific formulas and processing data. In the 1960s, however, computers began to change, becoming cheaper and faster. Computers were a major expense, and programming languages were very difficult to use. As such, computers were impractical for ordinary users.
As computers became faster and more convenient, people began to consider their feasibility for commercial use, and time-sharing computers were introduced. Time sharing allowed multiple users to access and use the same central processing unit (CPU) and system memory. Computers have grown steadily faster. Eventually, they grew fast enough for users to forget they were sharing with others. Soon, it became possible for hundreds of users to share a single CPU.
BASIC was created for students to use in writing programs for the Time Sharing System at Dartmouth University, to support teaching and research requirements. His goal was to eliminate the problems caused by older and more complex programming languages, while creating a language that was more suitable for people without a highly technical or arithmetic-based background. This programming language was the first dialect and became known as Dartmouth BASIC. Other dialects were introduced in the years following its design and construction.
In 1975, BASIC began moving into more widespread use. At the time, typical programming languages consumed more memory than the average computer user had available on their systems. BASIC’s designers began to consider its feasibility for microcomputers. A variant, called Tiny BASIC, was one of the first to be used for microcomputers, such as the MITS Altair 8800. The Altair 8800 is often credited with starting the personal computer revolution that marked the following years.
Altair BASIC was released in 1975 as Microsoft BASIC; Bill Gates, Paul Allen and Monte Davidoff have been credited with its development. Soon, other versions of it were developed on other platforms. At one point, this language was considered standard on most home computers. Eventually, new languages were created and BASIC lost much of its importance to home computer users. Its versions live on, however, through hobbyists, developers, and others interested in a simple computer language.
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