CPM Mbasic

I am interested in computer field and learning the computer course came to know about the CPM Mbasic want to know more about this. Will you please provide me all details related to CPM Mbasic and tell me what the Importance of this MBASIC?

[Kiran Chandar]

About CPM Mbasic:

MBASIC is the Microsoft BASIC implementation of BASIC for the CP/M operating system.

MBASIC is a descendant of the original Altair BASIC interpreters that were among Microsoft's first products.

MBASIC was one of the two versions of BASIC bundled with the Osborne 1 computer.

Environment Required:

MBASIC version 5 required a CP/M system with at least 28 kB of random access memory (RAM) and at least one diskette drive.

Variables and data types:

MBASIC supported the following data types:

8-bit character data, in strings of length 0 to 255 characters;
16-bit integers;
32-bit floating point (single precision), equivalent to six decimal digits, with a two-digit exponent;
64-bit floating point (double precision), equivalent to sixteen decimal digits, with a two-digit exponent.

Importance of MBASIC:

MBASIC was an important tool during the era of 8-bit CP/M computers.

Exchange of useful MBASIC programs was a common function of computer users' groups.

Keying in long BASIC listings from a magazine article was one way of "bootstrapping" software into a new CP/M system.

MBASIC is also the name of a commercial BASIC compiler for the Microchip Technology PIC microcontroller family developed by Basic Micro, Inc., unrelated to the CP/M interpreter.