Learn to Program with BBC BASIC
A guide to programming for beginners using BBC BASIC
This article explains why BBC BASIC is a good learning language, which BBC BASIC to choose, programming, and a starter set of links to programming articles.
What is Programming?
Programming can be explained as writing a list of instructions for the computer to follow which achieves a task. This covers everything from writing VBA macros through to creating large scale industrial software, and anything in between.
A purist programming professional might disagree, but with the recent advances in macro programming offered by Microsoft Excel, Word, and Access, programming is being brought to the masses. To ready the masses for the power of programming, this article introduces BBC BASIC, a very good starting point for any budding programmer.
Why is BBC BASIC a good Introduction?
BBC BASIC was created to be simple to understand, powerful enough to be of use in solving real world programming problems, and very flexible. It does simple things very well, but in the hands of an expert, can also yield excellent results in the real world.
The skills learned using this language are also transferable. In other words, a programmer starting out using BBC BASIC can quickly grasp other languages, from PHP to C, Java to Modula-2. This building block approach to learning programming, facilitated by BBC BASIC, provides a very low impact learning experience.
The watchword is doing. Learn by doing. Use BBC BASIC for an hour at a time, several times a week, and play with it. Very quickly it will become second nature, and the general syntax of the language transfers itself to VBA, Excel and Word macros, and even VB Script for interactive web pages.
Which BBC BASIC is the best?
The short answer is BBC BASIC for Windows. The long answer is that it is worthwhile finding an implementation that:
- is maintained by a BBC BASIC expert;
- has a good support forum;
- is good value for money (or even free);
- is complete
BBC BASIC for Windows satisfies all of these criteria. There are other BBC BASIC implementations around, but this is the clear recommendation. If, however, the reader is just starting out and playing around - any BASIC will be reasonably compatible with the examples in these articles, with a few minor alterations.
How do I approach Learning to Program?
The steps to take in learning programming are:
- The principles;
- A language or family;
- Practice;
- Practice some more;
- Keep practicing...
By the time the reader has read through the starting point material at the end of this article, they will at least know what they need to learn. As articles are created that cover specific topics we will add them here:
- Text Output with BBC BASIC
- Text Input with BBC BASIC
- Counted Loops with BBC BASIC
- Repetition with BBC BASIC
- Writing PROCedures in BBC BASIC
- Using FuNctions in BBC BASIC
- Flow Control in BBC BASIC
- Condition Testing in BBC BASIC
- Types and Variables in BBC BASIC
- Making Sounds in BBC BASIC
- Simple Graphics in BBC BASIC
Until then, the articles on this site should be enough for you to get going! You can also subscribe to the RSS feed for the site by clicking the orange button, this will keep you informed of when new articles are added.
