<s>
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
is	O
the	O
foundation	O
software	O
product	O
of	O
the	O
Microsoft	O
company	O
and	O
evolved	O
into	O
a	O
line	O
of	O
BASIC	B-Language
interpreters	I-Language
and	O
compiler(s )	O
adapted	O
for	O
many	O
different	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
first	O
appeared	O
in	O
1975	O
as	O
Altair	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
which	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
version	O
of	O
BASIC	O
published	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
first	O
high-level	B-Language
programming	I-Language
language	I-Language
available	O
for	O
the	O
Altair	B-Architecture
8800	I-Architecture
microcomputer	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Slight	O
variations	O
to	O
add	O
support	O
for	O
machine-specific	O
functions	O
,	O
especially	O
graphics	O
,	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
profusion	O
of	O
related	O
designs	O
like	O
Commodore	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
and	O
Atari	B-Language
Microsoft	I-Language
BASIC	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
the	O
early	O
home	O
computers	O
gave	O
way	O
to	O
newer	O
designs	O
like	O
the	O
IBM	B-Device
Personal	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
and	O
Macintosh	B-Device
,	O
BASIC	O
was	O
no	O
longer	O
as	O
widely	O
used	O
,	O
although	O
it	O
retained	O
a	O
strong	O
following	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Altair	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
interpreter	B-Language
was	O
developed	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
founders	O
Paul	O
Allen	O
and	O
Bill	O
Gates	O
using	O
a	O
self-written	O
Intel	B-General_Concept
8080	I-General_Concept
emulator	O
running	O
on	O
a	O
PDP-10	B-Device
minicomputer	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
MS	O
dialect	O
is	O
patterned	O
on	O
Digital	O
Equipment	O
Corporation	O
's	O
BASIC-PLUS	B-Language
on	O
the	O
PDP-11	B-Device
,	O
which	O
Gates	O
had	O
used	O
in	O
high	O
school	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
versions	O
supported	O
integer	O
math	O
only	O
,	O
but	O
Monte	O
Davidoff	O
convinced	O
them	O
that	O
floating-point	B-Algorithm
arithmetic	I-Algorithm
was	O
possible	O
,	O
and	O
wrote	O
a	O
library	O
which	O
became	O
the	O
Microsoft	O
Binary	O
Format	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Altair	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
was	O
delivered	O
on	O
paper	O
tape	O
and	O
in	O
its	O
original	O
version	O
took	O
4KB	O
of	O
memory	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
LIST	O
,	O
NEW	O
,	O
PRINT	O
,	O
INPUT	O
,	O
IF	O
...	O
THEN	O
,	O
FOR	O
...	O
NEXT	O
,	O
SQR	O
,	O
RND	O
,	O
SIN	O
,	O
LET	O
,	O
USR	O
,	O
DATA	O
,	O
READ	O
,	O
REM	O
,	O
CLEAR	O
,	O
STOP	O
,	O
TAB	O
,	O
RESTORE	O
,	O
ABS	O
,	O
END	O
,	O
INT	O
,	O
RETURN	O
,	O
STEP	O
,	O
GOTO	O
,	O
and	O
GOSUB	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
were	O
no	O
string	O
variables	O
in	O
4K	O
BASIC	O
and	O
single-precision	O
32-bit	O
floating	B-Algorithm
point	I-Algorithm
was	O
the	O
only	O
numeric	B-Algorithm
type	O
supported	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Variable	O
names	O
consisted	O
of	O
one	O
letter	O
(	O
A	O
–	O
Z	O
)	O
or	O
one	O
letter	O
followed	O
by	O
one	O
digit	O
(	O
0	O
–	O
9	O
)	O
,	O
thus	O
allowing	O
up	O
to	O
286	O
numeric	B-Algorithm
variables	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Numeric	B-Algorithm
variables	O
now	O
had	O
three	O
basic	O
types	O
,	O
%	O
denoted	O
16-bit	O
integers	O
,	O
#	O
denoted	O
64-bit	O
doubles	O
,	O
and	O
!	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
extended	O
8KB	O
version	O
was	O
then	O
generalized	O
into	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
(	O
8080/85	O
,	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
)	O
,	O
and	O
ported	O
into	O
BASIC-68	O
(	O
6800	B-Device
)	O
,	O
BASIC-69	O
(	O
6809	B-Device
)	O
,	O
and	O
6502-BASIC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
6502	B-General_Concept
had	O
somewhat	O
less	O
dense	O
assembler	B-Language
code	I-Language
and	O
expanded	O
in	O
size	O
to	O
just	O
under	O
8K	O
for	O
the	O
single	O
precision	O
version	O
,	O
or	O
9K	O
for	O
a	O
version	O
using	O
an	O
intermediate	O
40-bit	O
floating	B-Algorithm
point	I-Algorithm
format	I-Algorithm
in	O
place	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
32-bit	O
version	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
new	O
40-bit	O
format	O
became	O
the	O
most	O
common	O
as	O
it	O
was	O
used	O
on	O
most	O
6502-based	O
machines	O
of	O
the	O
era	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
also	O
ported	O
to	O
the	O
16-bit	O
BASIC-86	B-Language
(	O
8086/88	B-General_Concept
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
final	O
major	O
release	O
of	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
was	O
version	O
5.x	O
,	O
which	O
appeared	O
in	O
1981	O
and	O
added	O
support	O
for	O
40-character	O
variable	O
names	O
,	O
WHILE	O
...	O
WEND	O
loops	O
,	O
dynamic	O
string	O
allocation	O
,	O
and	O
several	O
other	O
features	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
core	O
command	O
set	O
and	O
syntax	O
are	O
the	O
same	O
in	O
all	O
implementations	O
of	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
and	O
,	O
generally	O
speaking	O
,	O
a	O
program	O
can	O
be	O
run	O
on	O
any	O
version	O
if	O
it	O
does	O
not	O
use	O
hardware-specific	O
features	O
or	O
double	O
precision	O
numbers	O
(	O
not	O
supported	O
in	O
some	O
implementations	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
initial	O
success	O
of	O
Altair	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
became	O
the	O
basis	O
for	O
a	O
lucrative	O
software	O
licensing	O
business	O
,	O
being	O
ported	O
to	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
the	O
numerous	O
home	O
and	O
other	O
personal	B-Device
computers	I-Device
of	O
the	O
1970s	O
and	O
especially	O
the	O
1980s	O
,	O
and	O
extended	O
along	O
the	O
way	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Contrary	O
to	O
the	O
original	O
Altair	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
most	O
home	O
computer	O
BASICs	O
are	O
resident	O
in	O
ROM	B-Device
,	O
and	O
thus	O
are	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
machines	O
at	O
power-on	O
in	O
the	O
form	O
of	O
the	O
characteristic	O
"	O
READY.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Hence	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
and	O
other	O
variants	O
of	O
BASIC	O
constitute	O
a	O
significant	O
and	O
visible	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
user	B-Application
interface	I-Application
of	O
many	O
home	O
computers	O
 '	O
rudimentary	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
1981	O
,	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
was	O
so	O
popular	O
that	O
even	O
companies	O
that	O
already	O
had	O
a	O
BASIC	O
licensed	O
the	O
language	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
IBM	O
for	O
its	O
Personal	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
,	O
and	O
Atari	O
,	O
which	O
sold	O
both	O
Atari	B-Language
Microsoft	I-Language
BASIC	I-Language
and	O
its	O
own	O
Atari	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
IBM	O
's	O
Don	O
Estridge	O
said	O
,	O
"	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
had	O
hundreds	O
of	O
thousands	O
of	O
users	O
around	O
the	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
licensing	O
IBM	O
Advanced	O
BASIC	O
(	O
BASICA	O
)	O
to	O
IBM	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
licensed	O
the	O
compatible	O
GW-BASIC	B-Language
to	O
makers	O
of	O
PC	O
clones	O
,	O
and	O
sold	O
copies	O
to	O
retail	O
customers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
similarly	O
licensed	O
an	O
Applesoft-compatible	O
BASIC	O
to	O
VTech	O
for	O
its	O
Laser	B-Device
128	I-Device
clone	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
NCR	O
Basic	B-Language
Plus	I-Language
6	O
,	O
released	O
in	O
the	O
first	O
quarter	O
of	O
1977	O
for	O
the	O
NCR	O
7200	O
model	O
VI	O
data-entry	O
terminal	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
adaptation	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
Extended	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
was	O
carried	O
out	O
by	O
Marc	O
McDonald	O
in	O
1976/1977	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MBASIC	B-Language
is	O
available	O
for	O
CP/M	B-Application
-80	I-Application
and	O
ISIS-II	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MBASIC	B-Language
is	O
a	O
stripped-down	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
with	O
only	O
hardware-neutral	O
functions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
popularity	O
of	O
CP/M	B-Application
,	O
the	O
great	O
majority	O
of	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
machines	O
ran	O
MBASIC	B-Language
,	O
rather	O
than	O
a	O
version	O
customized	O
for	O
specific	O
hardware	O
(	O
TRS-80	B-Device
BASIC	O
was	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
few	O
exceptions	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
's	O
CP/M	B-Application
card	O
for	O
the	O
Apple	O
II	O
included	O
a	O
modified	O
version	O
of	O
MBASIC	B-Language
that	O
incorporated	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
graphics	O
commands	O
from	O
Applesoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
such	O
as	O
HPLOT	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
full	O
command	O
set	O
is	O
not	O
supported	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
implementation	O
to	O
use	O
an	O
8-bit	O
variant	O
of	O
the	O
File	B-Application
Allocation	I-Application
Table	I-Application
(	O
FAT	B-Application
)	O
was	O
a	O
BASIC	O
adaptation	O
for	O
an	O
Intel	O
8080-based	O
NCR	O
7200	O
,	O
7520	O
,	O
or	O
7530	O
data-entry	O
terminal	O
with	O
8-inch	O
floppy	O
disks	O
in	O
1977/1978	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
offered	O
a	O
BASIC	O
compiler	B-Language
for	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
under	O
CP/M	B-Application
,	O
by	O
1980	O
or	O
before	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
compiler	B-Language
executable	O
was	O
named	O
BASCOM	O
or	O
BASCOM32	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
TRS-80	B-Device
computer	O
was	O
offered	O
initially	O
with	O
an	O
adaption	O
of	O
Li-Chen	O
Wang	O
's	O
Tiny	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
(	O
Level	B-Language
I	I-Language
BASIC	I-Language
)	O
;	O
within	O
a	O
few	O
months	O
this	O
was	O
replaced	O
by	O
a	O
port	O
of	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
which	O
incorporated	O
some	O
of	O
Level	B-Language
I	I-Language
BASIC	I-Language
's	O
command	O
set	O
,	O
particularly	O
the	O
commands	O
for	O
setting	O
graphics	O
characters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Level	O
II	O
BASIC	O
contained	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
features	O
of	O
Extended	O
BASIC	O
,	O
although	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
need	O
to	O
include	O
Level	O
I	O
commands	O
such	O
as	O
SET	O
and	O
PSET	O
,	O
other	O
features	O
such	O
as	O
descriptive	O
error	O
messages	O
still	O
had	O
to	O
be	O
left	O
out	O
;	O
these	O
were	O
subsequently	O
added	O
into	O
TRS-80	B-Device
Disk	O
BASIC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
TRS-80	B-Device
Model	O
4	O
had	O
a	O
newer	O
disk-based	O
BASIC	O
that	O
utilized	O
the	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
5.x	O
core	O
,	O
which	O
included	O
support	O
for	O
40-character	O
variable	O
names	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
modified	O
version	O
published	O
later	O
by	O
OS	O
provider	O
Logical	O
Systems	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
LS-DOS	O
Version	O
6.3	O
update	O
,	O
added	O
single-letter	O
access	O
to	O
BASIC	O
control	O
functions	O
(	O
like	O
LIST	O
and	O
EDIT	O
)	O
and	O
direct	O
access	O
to	O
LS-DOS	O
supervisor	O
calls	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
facility	O
available	O
in	O
Level	O
II	O
to	O
sort	O
arrays	O
(	O
CMD	O
"	O
O	O
"	O
)	O
was	O
not	O
available	O
;	O
programmers	B-Application
and	O
users	O
had	O
to	O
devise	O
their	O
own	O
workarounds	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
implementation	O
as	O
a	O
standalone	O
disk-based	O
language	O
system	O
was	O
for	O
Seattle	O
Computer	O
Products	O
S-100	B-Architecture
bus	I-Architecture
8086	B-General_Concept
CPU	O
card	O
in	O
1979	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
utilizing	O
an	O
8-bit	O
FAT	B-Application
file	I-Application
system	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
also	O
offered	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
Standalone	O
BASIC-86	B-Language
for	O
SBC-86/12	O
for	O
Intel	O
's	O
8086	B-General_Concept
Single	O
Board	O
Computer	O
platform	O
in	O
1980	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
is	O
the	O
version	O
of	O
BASIC	O
used	O
on	O
the	O
TI-99/4A	B-Device
home	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
very	O
similar	O
to	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
it	O
was	O
not	O
written	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
as	O
was	O
widely	O
rumored	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
TI-99/4	B-Device
BASIC	O
was	O
based	O
on	O
Dartmouth	O
BASIC	O
and	O
complies	O
to	O
the	O
American	O
National	O
Standard	O
for	O
minimal	O
BASIC	O
(	O
ANSI	O
X3.60-1978	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
ported	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
to	O
the	O
6502	B-General_Concept
during	O
the	O
summer	O
of	O
1976	O
;	O
it	O
was	O
mostly	O
a	O
straight	O
port	O
of	O
the	O
8K	O
version	O
of	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
and	O
included	O
the	O
same	O
prompts	O
asking	O
for	O
memory	O
size	O
and	O
if	O
the	O
user	O
wanted	O
floating	B-Algorithm
point	I-Algorithm
functions	O
enabled	O
or	O
not	O
(	O
having	O
them	O
active	O
used	O
an	O
extra	O
135	O
bytes	O
of	O
memory	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
earliest	O
machines	O
to	O
use	O
6502	B-General_Concept
BASIC	O
were	O
the	O
Ohio	B-Application
Scientific	I-Application
Model	O
500	O
and	O
KIM-1	B-Device
in	O
1977	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
6502	B-General_Concept
BASIC	O
included	O
certain	O
features	O
from	O
Extended	O
BASIC	O
such	O
as	O
user-defined	O
functions	O
and	O
descriptive	O
error	O
messages	O
,	O
but	O
omitted	O
other	O
features	O
like	O
double	O
precision	O
variables	O
and	O
the	O
PRINT	O
USING	O
statement	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
compensation	O
for	O
not	O
having	O
double	O
precision	O
variables	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
included	O
40-bit	O
floating	B-Algorithm
point	I-Algorithm
support	O
instead	O
of	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
'	O
s	O
32-bit	O
floating	B-Algorithm
point	I-Algorithm
and	O
string	O
allocation	O
was	O
dynamic	O
(	O
thus	O
the	O
user	O
did	O
not	O
have	O
to	O
reserve	O
string	O
space	O
like	O
in	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
vendors	O
could	O
still	O
request	O
BASIC	O
with	O
32-bit	O
floating	B-Algorithm
point	I-Algorithm
for	O
a	O
slightly	O
smaller	O
memory	O
footprint	O
;	O
as	O
one	O
example	O
,	O
Disk	O
BASIC	O
for	O
the	O
Atari	O
8-bits	O
used	O
32-bit	O
floating	B-Algorithm
point	I-Algorithm
rather	O
than	O
40-bit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Standard	O
features	O
of	O
the	O
9K	O
version	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
6502	B-General_Concept
BASIC	O
included	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
6502	B-General_Concept
BASIC	O
lacked	O
a	O
standardized	O
set	O
of	O
commands	O
for	O
disk	O
and	O
printer	O
output	O
;	O
these	O
were	O
up	O
to	O
the	O
vendor	O
to	O
add	O
and	O
varied	O
widely	O
with	O
each	O
implementation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Later	O
implementations	O
of	O
6502	B-General_Concept
Basic	O
(	O
1983	O
–	O
)	O
were	O
improved	O
in	O
many	O
aspects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
catalogs	O
from	O
the	O
1980s	O
also	O
showed	O
the	O
availability	O
of	O
BASIC-68	O
and	O
BASIC-69	O
for	O
the	O
Motorola	B-Device
6800	I-Device
and	O
6809	B-Device
microprocessors	O
respectively	O
,	O
running	O
the	O
FLEX	B-Device
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
,	O
and	O
also	O
mention	O
OEM	O
versions	O
for	O
Perkin-Elmer	O
,	O
Ohio	O
Nuclear	O
,	O
Pertec	O
and	O
Societe	O
Occitane	O
d'Electronique	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
seems	O
likely	O
this	O
is	O
what	O
is	O
also	O
the	O
basis	O
for	O
the	O
Microsoft/Epson	O
BASIC	O
in	O
the	O
Epson	B-Device
HX-20	I-Device
portable	O
computer	O
,	O
which	O
has	O
two	O
Hitachi	O
6301	O
CPUs	O
,	O
which	O
are	O
essentially	O
a	O
"	O
souped	O
up	O
"	O
6801	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
of	O
the	O
core	O
features	O
in	O
BASIC-68	O
and	O
BASIC-69	O
were	O
copied	O
directly	O
from	O
BASIC-80	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
BASIC-69	O
was	O
notably	O
also	O
licensed	O
to	O
Tandy	O
,	O
where	O
it	O
formed	O
the	O
nucleus	O
of	O
Color	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
on	O
the	O
TRS-80	B-Device
Color	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Not	O
to	O
be	O
confused	O
with	O
BASIC09	B-Language
,	O
a	O
very	O
different	O
BASIC	O
created	O
by	O
Microware	B-Operating_System
as	O
the	O
main	O
language	O
for	O
its	O
OS-9	B-Operating_System
,	O
the	O
other	O
OS	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
Color	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
(	O
Microware	B-Operating_System
also	O
wrote	O
version	O
2.0	O
of	O
Extended	O
Color	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
when	O
Microsoft	O
refused	O
to	O
do	O
it	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
was	O
also	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
Dragon	B-Device
32	I-Device
/	O
64	O
computers	O
that	O
were	O
built	O
in	O
Wales	O
and	O
enjoyed	O
some	O
limited	O
success	O
in	O
the	O
UK	O
home	O
computer	O
market	O
in	O
the	O
early	O
1980s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dragon	B-Device
computers	I-Device
were	O
somewhat	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
Tandy	B-Device
TRS-80	I-Device
,	O
as	O
they	O
were	O
built	O
on	O
very	O
similar	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
produced	O
a	O
ROM-based	O
MSX	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
for	O
use	O
in	O
MSX	B-Operating_System
home	I-Operating_System
computers	I-Operating_System
,	O
which	O
used	O
a	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
processor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
version	O
supported	O
the	O
graphics	O
and	O
sound	O
systems	O
of	O
the	O
MSX	B-Operating_System
computers	O
;	O
some	O
variants	O
also	O
had	O
support	O
for	O
disk	O
drives	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
No	O
variety	O
of	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
(	O
BASICA	O
,	O
GW-BASIC	B-Language
,	O
QuickBasic	B-Language
,	O
QBasic	B-Language
)	O
is	O
currently	O
distributed	O
with	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
or	O
DOS	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
versions	O
that	O
will	O
still	O
run	O
on	O
modern	O
machines	O
can	O
be	O
downloaded	O
from	O
various	O
Internet	O
sites	O
or	O
be	O
found	O
on	O
old	O
DOS	B-Device
disks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
latest	O
incarnation	O
of	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
is	O
Visual	B-Language
Basic	I-Language
.NET	I-Language
,	O
which	O
incorporates	O
some	O
features	O
from	O
C++	B-Language
and	O
C#	B-Application
and	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
develop	O
Web	O
forms	O
,	O
Windows	O
forms	O
,	O
console	B-Device
applications	I-Device
and	O
server-based	O
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
.NET	B-Language
code	O
samples	O
are	O
presented	O
in	O
VB.NET	B-Language
as	O
well	O
as	O
C#	B-Application
,	O
and	O
VB.NET	B-Language
continues	O
to	O
be	O
favored	O
by	O
former	O
Visual	B-Language
Basic	I-Language
programmers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2008	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
released	O
Small	B-Language
Basic	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Small	B-Language
Basic	I-Language
Version	O
1.0	O
(	O
12	O
June	O
2011	O
)	O
was	O
released	O
with	O
an	O
updated	O
Microsoft	O
MSDN	O
Web	O
site	O
that	O
included	O
a	O
full	O
teacher	O
curriculum	O
,	O
a	O
Getting	O
Started	O
Guide	O
,	O
and	O
several	O
e-books	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Small	B-Language
Basic	I-Language
exists	O
to	O
help	O
students	O
as	O
young	O
as	O
age	O
eight	O
learn	O
the	O
foundations	O
of	O
computer	O
programming	O
and	O
then	O
graduate	O
to	O
Visual	B-Language
Basic	I-Language
via	O
the	O
downloadable	O
software	O
,	O
Visual	B-Application
Studio	I-Application
Express	I-Application
,	O
where	O
they	O
can	O
continue	O
to	O
build	O
on	O
the	O
foundation	O
by	O
learning	O
Visual	O
C#	O
,	O
VB.NET	B-Language
,	O
and	O
Visual	B-Application
C++	I-Application
.	O
</s>
