From: jim.richards65@yahoo.com   
      
   On Tue, 4 Dec 2012 15:00:11 -0500, "Jim Wilkins"   
    wrote:   
      
   >"mike"  wrote in message   
   >news:k9lgra$ob5$1@dont-email.me...   
   >> On 12/4/2012 8:25 AM, Jim Wilkins wrote:   
   >>> ...   
   >>   
   >> I'm sure professional C programmers don't have the problem...but   
   >> for the occasional hobby program, I like BASIC-like languages.   
   >> If I have the algorithm right, I can usually make it work easily   
   >> with BASIC.  With C, I spent more time being hassled by the compiler   
   >> than I did debugging the algorithm.  I exceeded my frustration   
   >> limit and attention span.   
   >   
   >Agreed. I started with Pascal on a mainframe, then wrote a lot of   
   >QBasic under DOS on the lab test systems I mentioned. QBasic has   
   >nearly the same structure as c but it's wordier and requires explicit   
   >definitions of functions and variable types, which makes it easier to   
   >understand and modify two months later if you aren't a full-time   
   >programmer.   
   >   
   >I'm still looking for a good open-source replacement for QBasic with   
   >its simple power and interpret/compile flexibility and a real Windows   
   >interface. Visual Basic dropped the INP and OUT statements that talk   
   >to the hardware registers, so I can't write low-level device drivers   
   >in it.   
   >jsw   
   >   
   Jim,   
      
   It's a BIG programming No-No, to address hardware directly in Windows,   
   you're support to API calls, I may still have a VB serial port API   
   Library laying around somewhere on my system if you're interested in   
   it.   
      
   Curbie   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)