Re: BASIC predates microcomputers!
Took up programming late 70’s as a machinist/tool maker taking on programming 4 CNC machines. One “perk” a tool purchase program by employer deducted 10% of cost off bi-weekly paycheck. When I moved on from my personal hobby VIC20 (learned BASIC including a Commadore ca$$ette tape!) bought as a tool Apple IIe loaded with printer, mouse card and mouse, 140K floppy drive, color monitor. Justified by finding bare-bones software for geo and trig calculation for work.
Then got a Z80 card so I could run CP/M and Turbo Pascal when I enrolled for a night class in Pascal. School equipped with MSDOS PCs only but a working guy with two very young kids, horrible commutes had no time to hang out in the labs. I would develop my school assignments at home then take my printout/listing in and re-enter and compile my Pascal to submit. There was no way I could have submitted online. Awkward but it worked. And the machining? Eventually convinced cheapskate employer to go with a machine programming package running on Windows.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
