COMPUTER LANGUAGES

In this text I will try to explain you something about 
computerlanguages.

The most wellknown language is ofcourse Basic.

The word Basic stands for: Beginners All purpose Symbolic 
Instruction Code.

There are all differend kinds of Basics, but in one way  or another
there is an link between all kinds of Basics. 
Let me give you an example: My first computer was an ZX-Spectrum,
after that I got an MSX, (yes and I am still ashamed of it.)
Their Basics where very different, but most of the instructions 
where and are the same. 
The Basic on the MSX was "smarter", you could do more things, and 
the computer didn't mind. 

M Basic (Basic on an MSX) looks very much like GW-Basic on an PC.
Only M Basic could do more with sound than GW-Basic.

GW-Basic didn't satisfy the Personal Computer Programmer, so they
have now a basic called Quick Basic. If you by a new PC you also 
get Quick Basic with it. 
Most of the people I spoke to agreed on the fact that Quick Basic
is quit an improvement. Quick Basic has a much better and "nicer" 
editor than GW-Basic.
As far as I am aware of the editor of Quick Basic Looks like the 
editor of GFA-Basic. 

On the PC they also have got GFA-Basic. This is  GFA-Basic 
version 4.00.  Although the GFA-Basic on the ST and GFA-Basic 
on the MS Dos have the same name and if you have much fantasy,
you can see some  corresponding things in both editors, both
Basics are not equal. 

This is because both computers are internal very different. 
For instance an Atari has a Motorola 68000 processor, and
an MS-Dos has an  Intel  processor. 

But there are more Languages than Basic. There is a language
called: C. I can not tell you much on this language, because I
have no experience with it. As far as I know It looks a bit like
Pascal, and it is much faster than Basic on the Atari ST.
On the Atari ST it can even support an Co-processor.

PASCAL is a computer language that is used very much on an Ms Dos.  
PASCAL is a language, which is developed by professor Niklaus 
Wirth, in 1970. He wanted a language which is powerfull, and 
which his students could use. 
PASCAL has very little things in comment with Basic, Because most
of the instructions are different with Basic. PASCAL is a very 
handy language for those who study maths on a very high level. 

But there is more then PASCAL, Basic, and C. There is also
Machine code. Machine code is a very low language, this means, 
that it has very little instructions. The advantage of 
machinecode has is, that it is very fast. 
For example K.G.E. of the D.B.A. (ofcourse) showed in the D.B.A. 
Diskmagazine 1 an  program that made produced more than 16 colours. 
Yes I know most of you people say:" But you can do that also in 
Basic." I know, also in the D.B.A. Diskmagazine 1 there was a 
small Basic program what provided the programmer more than
16 colours, but if you move the mouse, or you make the programm 
much  bigger then it doesn't look very nice anymore. 


I think I have said everything I know on languages.  There are 
much more languages, but I think they are not so important.
If you know more on computerlanguages, then write a piece on
it for the D.B.A. I think it will interest quite some readers.
If you don't want to write it in the D.B.A. Diskmagazine, then 
just write a lettre to me.


I promise you all, that I will write you more on computer-languages
as soon as I have finished my MTS education.

Text by O.T.M.

Rembrandtstraat 48,
8331 RP Steenwijk,
The Netherlands.