Once upon a time, knowing how to use a computer was virtually synonymous with knowing how to program one. And the thing that made it possible was a programming language called BASIC.

The language that made that all possible. They called it the Beginner’s All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code— BASIC. Before BASIC, life in the computer programming world was complicated.

The BASIC programming language turns 60 Easy-to-use language that drove Apple, TRS-80, IBM, and Commodore PCs debuted in 1964.

Thomas E. Kurtz, a Dartmouth College professor who co-created the novice-friendly computer code known as Basic during the 1960s and helped make it the industry standard for programmers during the ...

This is why I’ve long argued that BASIC is the most consequential language in the history of computing. It’s a language for noobs, sure, but back then most everyone was a noob.

The programming language, developed five decades ago, didn't require code to be entered on punch cards. It also allowed computer novices to begin programming without a lot of academic training.

Thomas E. Kurtz, a Creator of BASIC Computer Language, Dies at 96 At Dartmouth, long before the days of laptops and smartphones, he worked to give more students access to computers.