Talk:Altair BASIC

message: Please post the language's EBNF grammar, and highlight the differences between Altair BASIC and other Microsoft BASICS.
*Would the source code help? I've posted a link to the Internet Archive's record of Reuben Harris' 2001 disassembly of Altair Basic. Haikupoet (talk) 01:48, 7 July 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Grammar

message: Re:  http://en2.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altair_BASIC_programming_language
There was mention of me in this article,  where it falsly claims I was involved in 
bootlegging altair basic.   This is not true and I resent this connection.
Where did you obtain this information?
John D
crunch@shopip.com
:I'm surprised that nobody responded to this sooner.  Any external sources I can find that connect Mr. Draper to the BASIC bootleggers seem to point back here - questionable indeed.  On the other hand, Steven Levy's Hackers refers to Dan Sokol as the "liberator" of Altair BASIC, and I have reassigned the credit/blame for the deed to him.
:Beinsane 23:06, 19 Dec 2004 (UTC)
thread_title: Bootlegging

message: "While on the plane they each wrote a bootstrap program to read the tape into memory, competing to see who could make it shortest." 
Paul Allen went to Albuquerque alone. -- SWTPC6800 05:29, 19 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Bootstrap Loader 

message: The language on the listing in the image is certainly not Basic.--79.111.147.180 (talk) 02:32, 30 December 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: It is assembly language for the Intel 8080 microprocessor using a modified Digital Equipment Corporation macro assembler. The code was compiled on a DEC PDP 10 and the resulting program was a BASIC interpreter that ran on the Intel 8080 microprocessor in the Altair computer. Thanks for pointing out the confusing image caption. -- SWTPC6800 (talk) 03:42, 30 December 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  The image 

message: About the bootstrap loader: we're told that Allen wrote this as the plane made its final approach. However, the last sentence of the section is "Later, they made a bet on who could write the bootstrap program first. Gates won." This is impossible if Allen had already written it! Does this mean a different bootstrap program, or (as implied by the quote higher up this Talk page) the shortest bootstrap program? Whatever, the text as it stands needs editing. Loganberry (Talk) 14:11, 24 April 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Confusing text in "Origin and development" section 

message: Make a general list/table of version release dates etc..
*Original Altair Software:
    Altair Basic 3.2 (4k)
    Altair 8k Basic
    Altair Basic 4.0
    MITS Disk Extended BASIC Version 4.1
    Altair Disk Extended Basic Version 300-5-C (made available by Scott LaBombard)
    Altair Disk Extended Basic Version 5.0 (from Andrew Kessel)
--------------
SIMH file   Name                        NameDetails                 Copyright
disbas50    ALTAIR BASIC 5.0 [14JUL78]  [DISK EXTENDED VERSION]     COPYRIGHT 1978 BY MITS INC.
basex       ALTAIR BASIC REV. 4.0       [EXTENDED VERSION]          COPYRIGHT 1977 BY MITS INC.
basdsk      ALTAIR BASIC REV. 4.1       [DISK EXTENDED VERSION]     COPYRIGHT 1977 BY MITS INC.
bas440      4K BASIC 4.0                                            COPYRIGHT MITS 1976
bas432      BASIC VERSION 3.2           [4K VERSION]
bas8        ALTAIR BASIC REV. 4.0       [EIGHT-K VERSION]           COPYRIGHT 1976 BY MITS INC.
bas5        ALTAIR DISK EXTENDED BASIC  VERSION 300-5-C [01NOV78]   COPYRIGHT 1978 BY MITS INC.
*computer_notes/1975_01_01 mentions the cost of the first version
* A Version of Bill Gates' (Microsoft's) First Product - Altair 4K BASIC, 2011/01/22, Heino R. Pull's Personal Blog, ALTAIR 4K BASIC, VERSION 4.0 JANUARY 1977, COPYRIGHT 1976 BY MITS INC., 2400/1850 HZ
* mits :: Altair 8800 BASIC 4.1 Reference Jul77,  Published July 1977 
:: — Preceding unsigned comment added by So-retro-it-hurts (talk • contribs) 08:41, 27 April 2015 (UTC)
thread_title: Other info

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thread_title:  External links modified 

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thread_title:  External links modified