Meet BASIC

A greeting becomes a story

Start with one instruction. Store a small program, change it, ask someone for words, then turn their answers into a story. Each lesson grows from the last, with complete listings and clear instructions for the lines to add or replace.

These four lessons form a complete first project. No previous programming is needed, and Foundations is optional: its pseudocode explanations provide another way to explore the ideas we use here.

Use the Spectrum in the page

Every lesson has a 48K Spectrum you can use in the page. Press Run it here, then press Start in the panel that opens. The Sinclair copyright message appears, and the Spectrum is ready for BASIC. The 48K ROM is included with the player, so there is nothing to install and no firmware to find. Run this lesson loads the lesson’s finished program instead, which is useful for comparing with your own.

Typing needs a physical keyboard. Click the Spectrum’s screen so it receives your keys; Tab returns to the page. The Spectrum has two shift keys of its own, and the page gives each one a key on your keyboard:

• Shift is CAPS SHIFT. Hold it for capital letters and for the editing keys printed above the number row: Shift+0 is DELETE and Shift+1 is EDIT.
• Alt (Option on a Mac) is SYMBOL SHIFT. Hold it to type the red symbol or word printed on a key. " is SYMBOL SHIFT+P, for example.

Backspace deletes the character before the cursor, the arrow keys move along a line, and Enter finishes it. These are the symbols our listings use:

The lessons introduce keywords such as THEN (SYMBOL SHIFT+G) as they need them.

The page’s Spectrum starts afresh on each lesson page, and leaving the page clears it. Each lesson gives a complete listing to enter if you are starting there. Remember a name; keep the program shows how to keep your program as a tape file.

Optional: work locally

The browser Spectrum is all these lessons need. If you would rather use a desktop emulator, Emu198x has a Spectrum build for macOS, Windows and Linux. Download the emu198x-spectrum archive for your computer from the latest release, whose notes include checksums, and extract it into a folder you can find again.

The desktop emulator needs a lawfully obtained 48K Spectrum ROM; the ROM guide explains what firmware is and how to obtain it. Open a terminal in the extracted folder and start the Spectrum:

On macOS or Linux:

./emu198x-spectrum --rom "path/to/48.rom"

In Windows PowerShell:

.\emu198x-spectrum.exe --rom "C:\path\to\48.rom"

Replace the quoted path with your ROM file’s location, keeping the quotes if the path contains spaces. The desktop emulator’s Host Keyboard mode, the default, also accepts punctuation from your computer’s usual keys. The SYMBOL SHIFT chords in these lessons still work there with the left Alt or Option key. Its Tape menu can export a recording made with SAVE as a .tap file; Remember a name; keep the program gives the steps.

Build Lucky Number

Give a useful clue begins a new program with a known secret. Compare a numeric guess and choose a response. Keep guessing adds repetition, an attempt count and checks for the promised range. Complete listings let you begin there if you are already comfortable entering BASIC.

Choose a new secret adds chance; Feedback and another round completes the game with short sounds and replay.

Make Oracle Stone

Choose an answer starts a writing toy whose replies are selected, not reasoned out. Give the answer a rhythm explores pauses and counted repetition. Write the repeated job once gives a shared heading one routine and finishes the toy.

Move a marker

Put it somewhere turns position into a row and column. Make it move compares drawing a trail with erasing the old position. Let the player steer reads the keyboard and checks the edges. One press, one step compares held input with fresh presses and gives the experiment a clear ending.

Beyond Meet BASIC

The wider route leads towards Bright Spark and Touchdown. You can also browse the BASIC reference lessons for individual commands and machine features. They remain available independently of this sequence.