It is finally done! One year of hard work is behind me. Version 1 (more exactly 1.0.1) of R-BASIC is finished.
Download: http://www.rbettsteller.de
Direct link: http://www.rbettsteller.de/BASIC/BASICDLE.HTM#DownIDE
With R-BASIC you can write programs for PC/GEOS in a very easy way, no matter if you just want to program for fun for yourself or if you want to share your program with others. The BASIC syntax is easy to learn and in many cases self-explanatory.
The R-BASIC editor supports syntax highlighting. BASIC commands are highlighted in color and style. Colors and style can be adjusted to your own preferences.
Unique features, like the management of project notes and a more than 100 step undo chain, which is not lost when saving the program, make programming in R-BASIC very comfortable. The help system consists of the GEOS-typical online help, a documentation of more than 1000 pages, almost 200 examples and a "quick help", which can be reached via the F2 key
The integrated compiler translates the program so that it can be executed. A debugger helps to find errors. With the debugger you can view and change values of variables, check the calling order of routines and much more.
After everything is finished you can create a standalone program (an R-App). This program is then indistinguishable from a program written with the SDK and can be run on all other GEOS systems without R-BASIC having to be installed there. R-BASIC supports you by automatically creating an installer package for the Universal-Installer, which contains all necessary files.
R-BASIC supports most of the classical BASIC commands, like INPUT, FOR, GOTO and GOSUB, so that porting programs from other BASIC dialects is supported comfortably. At its core, however, R-BASIC is a modern, object-oriented programming language.
You have access to the powerful GEOS object system. Among the objects are menus, lists and several objects for text output, including a LargeText object that can contain arbitrarily large amounts of text. There are also several objects for graphics output, including an Image object that can play animations without the programmer's assistance, and an extremely universal Bitmap object.
You also have access to GEOS System Services such as the clipboard, timers, date and time, keyboard, mouse, printer, and of course the file system.
For larger projects, you can outsource code to a BASIC library. SDK programmers can even extend R-BASIC with functions not foreseen in the initial concept of R-BASIC. Some of these libraries are already available on the R-BASIC website. Among them is a library that allows you to work with the powerful GEOS VM files that all major applications, including GeoWrite and R-BASIC itself, use for their documents.
Where to start?
Start R-BASIC and open the Help menu. Under " Fundamental Topics" you will find a list of help pages where a beginner can start.
I wish everyone a lot of fun and success!
Rainer Bettsteller
