Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.milw.wisc.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!portal!cup.portal.com!Ordania-DM
From: Ordania-DM@cup.portal.com (Charles K Hughes)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.8bit
Subject: Re: BASIC XE
Message-ID: <20854@cup.portal.com>
Date: 30 Jul 89 04:17:45 GMT
References: <43476@bbn.COM>
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 26

RE: Comparison of Basic XE versus the other Basics...

  Atari Basic - I refuse to even do a comparison.  Comparing Atari Basic to 
Basic XE is like comparing a model T to the Batmobile. :)

  Microsoft - does anyone really use this in the Atari world?  Basic XE does 
everything Microsoft does and does it better, faster, quicker and with 
compatibility.

  Turbo Basic - Ok, here we have a contender.  The only reason to buy Basic XE
is because: A) you can't find Turbo Basic, B) you want to support ICD [admit
it there are some of you out there, I'm one.], C) you need Spartados 
3.2 and lower compatibility, D) you write HUGE programs.
  I have both Basic XE and Turbo Basic.  Turbo Basic is very nice, but since 
I also have SpartaDos I use Basic XE.
  Basic XE has all the commands that Turbo does, plus several more the most 
important of which is the EXTEND command.  When issued this command moves your
BASIC program into the extra rambanks freeing up main memory for variable 
storage.  
  I prefer Basic XE but there is one very good reason to use Turbo Basic...
you can compile your programs.  
  There is only one command I can think of that Basic XE doesn't have, and 
that is the TIME, TIME$ commands.  I have the RTIME8 cartridge so this is
no big loss to me.

Ordania-DM