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I would not say JavaScript is anything like Basic - Python might be a better analogy now.

• projectramo 8y ago
  I would say the main thing that basic had going for it is that everyone seemed to have it on their desktop. In that sense, Javascript is a worth heir because it is right there in everyone's browser. I think BASIC felt simple because you got used to it but, when it came down to it, was it really that much "simpler" than Pascal or C?
• reallydude 8y ago
  The environment similarities of javascript and Basic are important to note. If I started up an Apple X (without a disk), I would have access to an environment where I could run code. Javascript is accessible from my (ubiquitous) browser today. This seems to be an important factor in first language selection. The symbols used in javascript () {} [] and spreading it among multiple files are are a major cognitive barrier. Basic was barely approachable by non-techies because it seemed closer to a word processor, at a glance. PHP, ironically, was more similar to Basic if you knew something about FTP and weren't scared of lots and lots of dollar symbols. GET PYTHON ON THE BROWSER and it will become the first language for at least a generation.