Date   : Sun, 02 Apr 2006 11:25:42 +0100
From   : Joel Rowbottom <joel@...>
Subject: Re: Basic & BBC Basic

At 11:15 02/04/2006, David Hunt wrote:

>If programming was deemed as really important, I would
>encourage the use of C++ (C++ Builder/VS.NET 2005) or Pascal (Delphi),
>although poor teaching can really screw up a budding C++ developer!

I learned on BBC BASIC, and it set me on a road of pretty bad 
programming practice which I only resolved when I went to Uni and was 
taught Modula-2. Looking back at some of the "code" I wrote back then 
I cringe at the unmaintainability of it.

Mod-2 as a teaching language is excellent, since it *forces* you to 
good practice and by the time you graduate to other languages it's 
become second nature.

That said, for very basic (no pun intended) procedures, BBC BASIC is 
better than say VB or C++.

(C++ as a teaching language? What are you on? Crack? ;))