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MS-BASIC 1.1 introduced programming to a generation - now you can download it for free
Microsoft finally open-sources its first language. Who would have thought?
That's because it was the first high-level language for many of the early PCs, such as the Apple II, Commodore PET, VIC-20, and one of the first important gaming platforms, the Nintendo Entertainment System. Microsoft BASIC 1.1 also included core language elements such as integer and floating-point arithmetic, string support, robust statement handling, and memory management. The language also, of course, provided the foundation for Microsoft's first business model of licensing software to hardware companies and individuals.
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