Business Basic
Encyclopedia
Business Basic is the name given collectively to variants of the BASIC
computer programming language which were specialised for business use on minicomputers in the 1970s and 1980s. Business Basics added indexed file
access methods to the normal set of BASIC commands, and were optimised for other input/output access, especially display terminal
control.
The two major families of Business Basic are MAI Basic Four
, and Data General Business Basic
. In the 1980s, Business Basics were ported from their original proprietary environments to many Unix
platforms, and to DOS
. In the 1990s, some Business Basics were ported to Linux
and Windows
, and Business Basic integrated development environment
s became available. Business Basic continues to be widely used due to the very large base of application software.
BASIC
BASIC is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages whose design philosophy emphasizes ease of use - the name is an acronym from Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code....
computer programming language which were specialised for business use on minicomputers in the 1970s and 1980s. Business Basics added indexed file
Indexed file
An indexed file is a computer file with an index that allows easy random access to any record given its file key.The key must be such that it uniquely identifies a record...
access methods to the normal set of BASIC commands, and were optimised for other input/output access, especially display terminal
Computer terminal
A computer terminal is an electronic or electromechanical hardware device that is used for entering data into, and displaying data from, a computer or a computing system...
control.
The two major families of Business Basic are MAI Basic Four
MAI Basic Four
MAI Basic Four refers to a variety of Business Basic, the computers that ran it, and the company that sold them .Basic/Four Corporation was created as a subsidiary of Management Assistance, Inc. in Irvine, California...
, and Data General Business Basic
Data General Business Basic
Data General Business Basic was a BASIC interpreter developed by Data General for their Nova minicomputer in the 1970s, and later ported to the Data General Eclipse MV and AViiON computers...
. In the 1980s, Business Basics were ported from their original proprietary environments to many Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
platforms, and to DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
. In the 1990s, some Business Basics were ported to Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
and Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, and Business Basic integrated development environment
Integrated development environment
An integrated development environment is a software application that provides comprehensive facilities to computer programmers for software development...
s became available. Business Basic continues to be widely used due to the very large base of application software.
See also
- Apple Business BASIC (Apple ///)
- AlphaBasicAlphaBasicAlphaBASIC is a computer programming language created by Alpha Microsystems in 1976. The language was written by Alpha Microsystems employees Paul Edelstein, Dick Wilcox and Bob Courier.-Unique Features:...
(Alpha MicrosystemsAlpha MicrosystemsAlpha Microsystems is a computer company founded in 1977 by John French, Dick Wilcox and Bob Hitchcock. The first Alpha Micro computer was the S-100 AM-100, based upon the WD16 microprocessor chipset from Western Digital...
, AMOS) - B32 Business BasicB32 Business BasicB32 Business Basic was a competitor to Data General Business Basic written by Murray Haszard in 1986. It ran on the Data General Eclipse MV line of computers initially, and was ported to Unix in 1989 and to DOS in 1991....
(Data General Eclipse MV, UNIX, MS-DOS) - BBxBBxBBx is the original name for the Business Basic interpreter developed by BASIS International in 1985. Subsequent generations of BBx have been BBxPROGRESSION/2, BBxPROGRESSION/3, PROGRESSION/4, PRO/5 and Visual PRO/5...
- BBjBBjBBj is a software development framework which consists of a dynamic programming language by the same name, an integrated development environment, a GUI forms designer, a Rapid Application Development tool called for generating database-driven graphical applications.BBj is Java-integrated and...
- RexonRexonRexon Business Machines, later Rexon, Inc., was a manufacturer of small business computer systems founded by Ben C. Wang in 1978 in Culver City, California. It also became a major manufacturer of tape drives and related products. At its height, it played a significant role in the development and...
- Dartmouth BASICDartmouth BASICDartmouth BASIC is the original version of the BASIC programming language. It is so named because it was designed and implemented at Dartmouth College...
(see also True BASICTrue BASICTrue BASIC is a variant of the BASIC programming language descended from Dartmouth BASIC — the original BASIC — invented by college professors John G. Kemeny and Thomas E...
) - Data General Business BasicData General Business BasicData General Business Basic was a BASIC interpreter developed by Data General for their Nova minicomputer in the 1970s, and later ported to the Data General Eclipse MV and AViiON computers...
(Data General Nova and later DG minicomputers) - Hewlett-Packard Business Basic (HP 3000HP 3000The HP 3000 series is a family of minicomputers released by Hewlett-Packard in 1973. It was designed to be the first minicomputer delivered with a full featured operating system with time-sharing. The first models were withdrawn from the market until speed improvements could be made. It ultimately...
minicomputers) - MAI Basic FourMAI Basic FourMAI Basic Four refers to a variety of Business Basic, the computers that ran it, and the company that sold them .Basic/Four Corporation was created as a subsidiary of Management Assistance, Inc. in Irvine, California...
- ProvideXProvideXProvideX is a computer language and development environment derived from Business Basic in the mid-1980s....
- Thoroughbred BASIC
- Production BASIC http://probasic.sourceforge.net/
- My Business Basic http://sourceforge.net/projects/mybusinessbasic/