Learn to Program BASIC, Jr. Edition

PC version requires:
Win95, Pentium 90, 16M RAM, 40M hard drive, Cdx2

Mac version requires:
PowerPC, System 7.5 or later, QT 2.5 or later, 8MB free memory, 40MB HD, 2x CD-ROM

Description:

Learn to Program BASIC, Jr. Edition is a "teen friendly" program that introduces middle school kids to the beginning concepts of computer programming using BASIC, a computer language. The commands are the same as used in BASIC, with some new additions thrown in to spice it up.

Many kids and their parents are either intimidated, or bored by the mention of "computer programming". Visions of geeky guys glued to their computers in their basements, never to be seen in daylight hours again, may come to mind. Presage, the designers of this software, seeks to dispel these misconceptions with this unique product that aims to teach simple programming terms, all the while giving out a subtle message that it's "cool" to program.

Media Man, and his sidekick Goo, introduces kids to BASIC through 10 lessons, complete with step-by-step exercises. The interface is split-screen, with the "code window" in the left window, and the "run window" in the right. The command buttons are on the top of the windows, with many of the common commands having a button assigned to them. During each lesson, the user will be prompted to execute a command, then hit the "run" button to see how it looks while running. If users want a more indepth explanation of key terms, they can go to an online reference glossary for additional definitions. Hints are also available during each lesson.

Besides the 10 lessons, there are also 10 projects for further practice. These projects are programs that can be modified by changing the commands and seeing how the different commands then affect the gameplay. Despite the same numbers in both lessons and projects, these are not really designed to be concurrent. At least the first few lessons should be gone through, before attempting the projects. A freestyle mode is also available, for those brave people who just want to program!

When all the lessons and at least a few of the projects have been done, then there is an additional workbook with a step-by-step algorithm for the game "hangman", plus 14 exercises after that. The workbook has hints for the exercises, and a glossary for the command definitions. There are also more exercises which can be accessed by either the (!) button, or through the Freestyle mode.

Features:

• Lessons/projects
• Separate exercises on the CD-ROM
• Code that can be changed
• On-line reference glossary of terms
• Visual demonstrations of commands
• Can import sounds and graphics
• Excellent workbook for additional work
• Games can be posted on the Internet, or traded with friends

Technical Aspects:

Learn to Program BASIC installed easily, and ran with no problems. The manual is helpful and descriptive, plus the workbook is excellent! The interface was easily navigable, but I would have preferred that the "freestyle mode" could have been ran at the same time as the lessons. This would have helped in understanding the lessons, if when the lesson was displayed, the user could experiment with the additional exercises on the CD-ROM without leaving the lesson, and pop back and forth between freestyle and lesson to check the terms, commands, etc.

Report and Conclusions:

Learn to Program BASIC, Jr. Edition is an impressive program, and since it is the only one like it, unique. The material is presented well, with a "hip" guide to lead you along the way, and there are lots of great games to play around with as your projects. However, the lessons could have had more exercises and examples in the course of each lesson, which would help in understanding the new commands' functions better. With the short lessons, it is easy to run through the lessons, but still not have a good understanding of all the terms at the end of the 10 lessons. This may not hinder the student who is a quick study, but the average one will need more time and practice to assimilate the information. If the user works through each lesson several times before moving on, and makes sure to study each reference definition of the commands, then he/she will have a better understanding of the new terms.

The workbook is truly amazing, with a great amount of information and exercises to work on, and the ability to mess around with the code in the projects is fun and educational, too! Interplay has a web site for LTPB, with FAQ's, a message board that the game's programmers and producers sometimes visit, and a place for gamers to post their homemade games. Currently, the games can only be played on other LTPB programs, but Interplay is promising a downloadable option that will allow these games to be played without the LTPB system.

This is definitely an innovative and exciting way to introduce early teens to programming, but one that may work better as an enhancement to a programming course, rather than a stand-alone teaching tool.