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Thursday, September 14, 2006 12:00 AM

Why Johnny can't code

BASIC used to be on every computer a child touched -- but today there's no easy way for kids to get hooked on programming.
By David Brin

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  • Thursday, September 14, 2006 11:38 AM

    Basic is free - why don't you and other people help teachers with this resource.

    If you really want to have your child learn Basic, why not simply refer them to one of the many free basic interpreters. You can work with your teacher to find one that's easy to use for your children - or you can look yourself.

    http://www.thefreecountry.com/compilers/basic.shtml

    The reality is that good old BASIC is free of charge to anyone who wants to download one of the many implementations available. There are versions that run on Windows, Mac, Linux, etc., so there's no excuse for not having one available for your children once you know they're available.

    —BasicallyFree

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