BASIC
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== Altair BASIC and Micro-Soft == | == Altair BASIC and Micro-Soft == | ||
| − | The computer had already become more welcoming and accessible thanks to innovations on university and college campuses, but it wasn't until the computer moved into the home that the true revolution began. In popular lore, that revolution began with a single photograph of a panel of switches and LEDs on the cover of the January 1975 issue of ''Popular Electronics'' -- the first public look at the Altair 8800 minicomputer. While the history of BASIC at Dartmouth shows that personal computing did not suddenly spring to life fully developed in 1974, that year does mark an inflection point for home computing. | + | The computer had already become more welcoming and accessible thanks to innovations on university and college campuses, but it wasn't until the computer moved into the home that the true revolution begins. In popular lore, that revolution started with a single photograph of a panel of switches and LEDs on the cover of the January 1975 issue of ''Popular Electronics'' -- the first public look at the Altair 8800 minicomputer. While the history of BASIC at Dartmouth shows that personal computing did not suddenly spring to life fully developed in 1974, that year does mark an inflection point for home computing. |
Proclaiming in a headline that "THE HOME COMPUTER IS HERE," ''Popular Electronics'' gushes about the possibilities of the $395 Altair 8800 ($495 assembled). The magazine claims that the computer can be used as a "Sophisticated intrusion alarm system," an "Automatic IC tester," an "Autopilot for planes, boats, etc.," a "Time-share computer system," a "Brain for a robot," and a "Printed matter-to-Braille converter for the blind," among other things, noting that "many of these applications can be performed simultaneously" (38). As it happened, even the applications that were within the capabilities of the device were rather difficult to realize since the system by default could only be programmed in machine language. Furthermore, unless one happened to have a Teletype or other terminal lying around, the programming had to be done mechanically, with the toggle switches on the front panel. The home computer may have arrived, but most users would have no way of talking to it. From the outset, it was clear that the Altair 8800 needed a programming language that facilitated experimentation. ''Popular Electronics'' mentions four programming languages by way of explaining the distinction between hardware and software (34); one of these languages was BASIC, the language that showed the most promise to early Altair 8800 enthusiasts. | Proclaiming in a headline that "THE HOME COMPUTER IS HERE," ''Popular Electronics'' gushes about the possibilities of the $395 Altair 8800 ($495 assembled). The magazine claims that the computer can be used as a "Sophisticated intrusion alarm system," an "Automatic IC tester," an "Autopilot for planes, boats, etc.," a "Time-share computer system," a "Brain for a robot," and a "Printed matter-to-Braille converter for the blind," among other things, noting that "many of these applications can be performed simultaneously" (38). As it happened, even the applications that were within the capabilities of the device were rather difficult to realize since the system by default could only be programmed in machine language. Furthermore, unless one happened to have a Teletype or other terminal lying around, the programming had to be done mechanically, with the toggle switches on the front panel. The home computer may have arrived, but most users would have no way of talking to it. From the outset, it was clear that the Altair 8800 needed a programming language that facilitated experimentation. ''Popular Electronics'' mentions four programming languages by way of explaining the distinction between hardware and software (34); one of these languages was BASIC, the language that showed the most promise to early Altair 8800 enthusiasts. | ||
