Hans-Georg Eßer is professor for operating systems at South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences. Previously he worked in magazine publishing, most recently as editor-in-chief of EasyLinux.
There was a time when almost everyone used DOS. While Windows, Linux, macOS, and maybe Android and iOS are the dominant operating systems for today’s consumer market, you can still get DOS.
To write programs in BASIC, you just need a machine that can run a BASIC interpreter. We showcase a few options, from old home computers to FPGA-based machines to emulator programs, to get you started running BASIC.
Emulator apps let you play pinball at home, but that isn’t the same as throwing coins into a real machine. Sharpin’s virtual pinball machines might be a compromise.
Of all the current mass-produced computers, the Raspberry Pi 400 is the closest you can get to the wedge-shaped home computers of the 1980s. Add a C64 emulator, and the combination of new and old lets you dive into old-school BASIC programming and gaming.