Learn to Program with Liberty BASIC v5.0 - Free Download and Tutorials
- riarujodun1986
- Aug 1, 2023
- 10 min read
Liberty Basic 5 Download: A Beginner's Guide to a Powerful Programming Language
If you are looking for a simple yet versatile programming language that can run on multiple operating systems, you might want to check out Liberty Basic. Liberty Basic is a commercial computer programming language and integrated development environment (IDE) that has an interpreter, developed in Smalltalk, which recognizes its own dialect of the BASIC programming language. It is designed to be easy to learn and use, while also offering advanced features such as database functionality, graphics capability, DLL calling, and object-oriented programming. In this article, we will show you how to download and install Liberty Basic 5, the latest version of the software, and how to get started with your first program.
What is Liberty Basic?
Liberty Basic is a programming language that was created by Carl Gundel and published by his company, Shoptalk Systems, in 1991. It has evolved steadily since then, with the last published update being version 4.5.1 in June 2018. However, alpha testing of Liberty Basic 5 is underway, with versions that run on Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Raspberry Pi.
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A brief history of Liberty Basic
Liberty Basic was inspired by QuickBASIC, a popular programming language for DOS that was developed by Microsoft in the 1980s. Gundel wanted to create a similar language that could run on Windows and OS/2, and that could support graphical user interfaces (GUIs) and event-driven programming. He also wanted to make it easy for beginners to learn and use, while also providing advanced features for experienced programmers. He wrote the first version of Liberty Basic in Smalltalk, an object-oriented programming language that he learned at his previous job at Digitalk. He then released it as a shareware product, which gained popularity among hobbyists and educators.
The features and benefits of Liberty Basic
Liberty Basic has many features and benefits that make it a powerful and flexible programming language. Some of them are:
It supports both procedural and event-driven programming styles, using a default "main window" that displays formatted text and accepts user input, as well as several types of windows that may contain standard controls such as buttons, menus, textboxes, etc.
It has a visual development tool called FreeForm, written in Liberty Basic itself, that allows users to create GUIs by dragging and dropping controls onto a form.
It has a source level debugger that helps users find and fix errors in their code.
It can call DLLs and application programming interfaces (APIs) from Windows and other operating systems, allowing users to access external functions and libraries.
It has color graphics capability that can create games with sprite animation, sound, music, and joystick control.
It has database functionality such as ODBC and SQLite (possibly also Postgres and MySQL in version 5), allowing users to store and manipulate data in various formats.
It has an easy and clean object model that enables users to create modular programs using classes and objects.
It has improved performance compared to previous versions, thanks to the use of native code compilation for some parts of the interpreter.
It has a tabbed code editor that allows users to work on multiple files at once.
It has more than one sprite surface per running program, allowing users to create complex animations and effects.
How to download and install Liberty Basic 5
If you are interested in trying out Liberty Basic 5, you can download the latest alpha builds from the official website. However, keep in mind that these are not stable releases and may contain bugs or errors. You should also backup your existing Liberty Basic files before installing the new version, as it may overwrite them. Alternatively, you can wait for the official release of Liberty Basic 5, which is expected to be sometime in 2023.
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The system requirements and compatibility of Liberty Basic 5
Liberty Basic 5 has the following system requirements and compatibility:
Operating System
Minimum Requirements
Windows
Windows XP or later, 32-bit or 64-bit, with .NET Framework 4.0 or later installed
Mac OS X
Mac OS X 10.6 or later, Intel-based Mac only
Linux
Linux with GTK+ 2.0 or later installed, 32-bit or 64-bit
Raspberry Pi
Raspberry Pi with Raspbian OS installed, ARMv6 or ARMv7 processor
The steps to download and install Liberty Basic 5 on different platforms
The steps to download and install Liberty Basic 5 on different platforms are as follows:
Windows
Download the Liberty Basic 5 installer for Windows from the official website. The file name should be something like libertybasic5setup.exe.
Run the installer and follow the instructions on the screen. You may need to accept the license agreement and choose the installation directory.
After the installation is complete, you can launch Liberty Basic 5 from the Start menu or the desktop shortcut.
Mac OS X
Download the Liberty Basic 5 installer for Mac OS X from the official website. The file name should be something like libertybasic5.dmg.
Open the disk image file and drag the Liberty Basic 5 icon to the Applications folder.
Eject the disk image and open Liberty Basic 5 from the Applications folder.
Linux
Download the Liberty Basic 5 installer for Linux from the official website. The file name should be something like libertybasic5.tar.gz.
Extract the contents of the archive file to a folder of your choice.
Open a terminal window and navigate to the folder where you extracted Liberty Basic 5.
Type ./libertybasic5.sh and press Enter to run Liberty Basic 5.
Raspberry Pi
Download the Liberty Basic 5 installer for Raspberry Pi from the official website. The file name should be something like libertybasic5-rpi.tar.gz.
Extract the contents of the archive file to a folder of your choice.
Open a terminal window and navigate to the folder where you extracted Liberty Basic 5.
Type ./libertybasic5.sh and press Enter to run Liberty Basic 5.
How to get started with Liberty Basic 5
Once you have downloaded and installed Liberty Basic 5, you can start writing your first program. Here are some tips on how to get started with Liberty Basic 5:
The basics of Liberty Basic syntax and commands
The syntax of Liberty Basic is similar to other BASIC dialects, but with some differences. Here are some of the basic rules and conventions of Liberty Basic syntax:
A line of code can contain one or more statements, separated by colons (:).
A statement can be a command, a function call, an assignment, a variable declaration, a comment, or a label.
A command is a word that tells Liberty Basic what to do, such as print, input, windowoutput, etc.
A function is a word that returns a value, such as sqr(), rnd(), len(), etc.
An assignment is an expression that assigns a value to a variable, such as x = 10 + y * z / w ^ 2 - sin(a).A variable is a name that represents a value, such as x, y, z, w, a, etc. Variables can be of different types, such as numeric, string, array, or object.
A comment is a line or part of a line that is ignored by Liberty Basic, and is used to explain or document the code. Comments start with an apostrophe (') or the word rem.
A label is a name that marks a location in the code, and is used to jump to that location using the goto or gosub commands. Labels end with a colon (:).
Here are some examples of Liberty Basic commands and their syntax:
print: This command displays a value or a message on the output window. The syntax is print [expression], where expression can be a variable, a function, a string literal, or a combination of them. For example: print "Hello, world!", print x + y, print "The square root of 25 is " + str$(sqr(25)).
input: This command prompts the user to enter a value or a message on the input window. The syntax is input [prompt]; variable, where prompt is an optional string literal that displays before the input cursor, and variable is the name of the variable that will store the user's input. For example: input "Enter your name: "; name$, input "Enter a number: "; num.
windowoutput: This command sets the output window to be a specific window that was created using the windowopen command. The syntax is windowoutput windowname$, where windowname$ is the name of the window. For example: windowoutput "My Window".
windowopen: This command creates a new window with a given name, size, position, and style. The syntax is windowopen windowname$, x, y, width, height [, style], where windowname$ is the name of the window, x and y are the coordinates of the upper left corner of the window, width and height are the dimensions of the window, and style is an optional parameter that determines the appearance and behavior of the window. For example: windowopen "My Window", 100, 100, 400, 300, "resize".
button #windowname$, caption$, x, y, width, height [, style]: This command creates a button control on a window that was created using the windowopen command. The syntax is similar to the windowopen command, except that caption$ is the text that appears on the button, and style is an optional parameter that determines how the button reacts to mouse clicks. For example: button #mywin, "Click Me", 50, 50, 100, 50.
[windowname$].close: This command closes a window that was created using the windowopen command. The syntax is simply the name of the window followed by a dot and the word close. For example: [mywin].close.
end: This command terminates the execution of the program. The syntax is simply the word end. For example: end.
These are just some of the basic commands of Liberty Basic. There are many more commands and functions that you can use to create various types of programs, such as games, utilities, simulations, etc. You can find a complete reference of Liberty Basic commands and functions in the online help file or the official website.
The resources and tutorials available for Liberty Basic learners
If you want to learn more about Liberty Basic and how to use it effectively, there are many resources and tutorials available for you. Some of them are:
The Liberty Basic online help file: This is a comprehensive guide that covers everything you need to know about Liberty Basic, from the installation and setup, to the syntax and commands, to the examples and tips. You can access it by pressing F1 on your keyboard or clicking on Help in the menu bar.
The Liberty Basic website: This is the official website of Liberty Basic, where you can find the latest news and updates, download the software and other files, join the community forums and mailing lists, read the FAQs and articles, and more. You can visit it at .
The Liberty Basic wiki: This is a collaborative website that contains user-generated content about Liberty Basic, such as tutorials, code snippets, projects, reviews, etc. You can browse it at .
The Liberty Basic newsletter: This is a monthly email newsletter that features news, tips, tricks, articles, and code samples about Liberty Basic. You can subscribe to it at .
The Liberty Basic books: There are several books that teach you how to program with Liberty Basic, such as Beginning Programming with Liberty BASIC by Carl Gundel, Liberty BASIC for Windows: The Easy Way to Program for Windows! by Carl Gundel, and Liberty BASIC Workshop: A Complete Guide to Programming with Liberty BASIC by Alyce Watson. You can find them on Amazon or other online bookstores.
Conclusion
In this article, we have introduced you to Liberty Basic 5, a simple yet powerful programming language that can run on multiple operating systems. We have shown you how to download and install Liberty Basic 5, how to get started with the basics of Liberty Basic syntax and commands, and how to find more resources and tutorials to learn more about Liberty Basic. We hope that you have enjoyed this article and that you will give Liberty Basic 5 a try. Happy coding!
FAQs
Here are some frequently asked questions about Liberty Basic 5:
Is Liberty Basic 5 free?
No, Liberty Basic 5 is not free. It is a commercial product that requires a license fee to use. However, you can download a trial version of Liberty Basic 5 that allows you to run programs up to 25 lines long for free. You can also download older versions of Liberty Basic for free from the official website.
What are the differences between Liberty Basic 5 and previous versions?
Liberty Basic 5 has many improvements and new features compared to previous versions, such as native code compilation for faster performance, multiple sprite surfaces for complex animations, improved database functionality with SQLite support (possibly also Postgres and MySQL), improved object model with inheritance and polymorphism, improved graphics capability with alpha blending and anti-aliasing, improved compatibility with Windows 10 and other operating systems, improved editor with tabbed interface and syntax highlighting, improved debugger with breakpoints and watch variables, improved FreeForm tool with grid alignment and resizing handles, improved documentation with search function and hyperlinks, improved installer with automatic updates, improved community support with forums and wiki, and more.
Can I run Liberty Basic programs on Android or iOS devices?
No, Liberty Basic does not support Android or iOS devices at the moment. However, you may be able to run some Liberty Basic programs on Android devices using an emulator such as DOSBox or QEMU. You may also be able to convert some Liberty Basic programs to Android or iOS apps using tools such as PhoneGap or Appcelerator.
Can I use Liberty Basic to create web applications or websites?
No, Liberty Basic does not support web applications or websites directly. However, you may be able to use Liberty Basic to create CGI scripts that can run on a web server and interact with web browsers. You may also be able to use Liberty Basic to create desktop applications that can communicate with web services or APIs using HTTP requests and responses.
Where can I find more examples of Liberty Basic programs?
You can find many examples of Liberty Basic programs in the online help file, the official website, the wiki, the newsletter, the books, and the forums. You can also search online for Liberty Basic programs that other users have shared or published. You can also create your own Liberty Basic programs and share them with others.
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