Microsoft basic
language
(MS-BASIC) A dialect of BASIC from Microsoft, originally developed by Bill Gates in a garage back in the CP/M days. It was originally known as GWBasic, then QBASIC and finally MS-BASIC.
When the MS-DOS operating system came out, it incorporated the GWBASIC.EXE or BASICA.EXE interpreters. GWBASIC (“Gee Whiz”) incorporated graphics and a screen editor and was compatible with earlier BASICs.
QBASIC was more sophisticated. Version 4.5 had a full screen editor, debugger and compiler. The compiler could also produce executable files but to run these a utility program (BRUN44.EXE) had to be present. Thus source code could be kept private.
From DOS 5.0 or 6.0 onward, MS-BASIC was standard.
Latest version: 1.1, also produces stand-alone executables and can display graphics.
Usenet newsgroup: news:comp.lang.basic.misc.
[Relationship to BASIC in ROM on first IBM PC?]
(1995-05-12)
Read Also:
- Microsoft certified system engineer
education (MCSE) A qualification obtained by passing Microsoft’s system engineer certification exams. (http://microsoft.com/mcse). (2002-07-02)
- Microsoft corporation
company The biggest supplier of operating systems and other software for IBM PC compatibles. Software products include MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows, Windows NT, Microsoft Access, LAN Manager, MS Client, SQL Server, Open Data Base Connectivity (ODBC), MS Mail, and SNA Server for Windows NT. Microsoft was founded as “Micro-soft” in 1975 by Bill Gates (now CEO) […]
- Microsoft data access components
database (MDAC) Microsoft’s umbrella term for their ActiveX Data Objects (ADO), OLE DB, and Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) libraries. Together, these provide access to a variety of data sources, both relational (SQL) and nonrelational. MDAC is the technology that supports Universal Data Access, Microsoft’s strategy for providing access to information across the enterprise. (http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/en-us/mdacsdk/htm/mdacstartpage1.asp). (2004-02-17)
- Microsoft disc operating system
spelling Microsoft Disk Operating System
- Microsoft disk operating system
operating system /M S doss/ (Or “MS-DOS”, “PC-DOS”, “MS-DOG”, “mess-dos”) Microsoft Corporation’s clone of the CP/M disk operating system for the 8088 crufted together in 6 weeks by hacker Tim Paterson, who is said to have regretted it ever since. MS-DOS is a single user operating system that runs one program at a time and […]