[Info-vax] PDP-11 languages, was: Re: New VSI Roadmap (yipee!)

[David Froble]

Simon Clubley wrote:
> On 2015-03-05, Richard Maher <maher_rjSPAMLESS at hotmail.com> wrote:
>> On 3/6/2015 2:24 AM, Hunter Goatley wrote:
>>> VAX BASIC was *not* what most people think of when they think of BASIC.
>>> It was a real language. ;-)
>>>
>> But I think the loudest people here had their Genesis in RSTS/E Basic.
>>
>> CHR$(155%)+'[', 32767 END, IF RMS 16K + CHAIN, GOTO 1, ELSE RESUME 
>> ERRLINE, IF BURGER_COST 3.9412345678 etc.
>>
> 
> But even in those PDP-11 days there were alternatives such as DIBOL
> (and Google tells me COBOL was available from an early date as well).
> 
> Those early versions of DIBOL may have been very limited by today's
> language standards (especially the versions from before my time) but
> even then you still had an alternative to floating point numbers.
> 
> Simon. (Who started out in the DEC world with RSTS/E DIBOL for a few
> years).
> 
> PS: My former boss told me there was, in the very early PDP-11 days,
> a combined RSTS/E and DIBOL package called CTS-500 although that
> was before my time so I don't know the details.
> 

At one time I believe Basic Plus was the only language on RSTS/E.  Then 
some stuff was added to allow the stuff from other PDP-11 OSs, and we 
got the gift of TKB ...