Skip to Main Content
Idaho State University home

Glossary

Filter:
# A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z All
B
B
B1
B2
B3
BBS
BCC
BCD
BCI
Bd
BER
Bit
BIU
BPI
BPS
BR
BSA
BSE
Bug
Bus
BW
BASIC*
  • n. [acronymBeginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code] A programming language, originally designed for Dartmouth's experimental timesharing system in the early 1960s, which has since become the leading cause of brain-damage in proto-hackers. Edsger Dijkstra observed in "Selected Writings on Computing A Personal Perspective" that "It is practically impossible to teach good programming style to students that have had prior exposure to BASIC as potential programmers they are mentally mutilated beyond hope of regeneration."