Quick Basic for Windows 7

[sportscout]

I have an old version of Microsoft Quick Basic and find now it will not work with the 64 bit Windows 7 operating system. Does the downloadable version on this website work with Windows 7?

[BurgerBytes]

Probably not. You will need DOSBOX to run fullscreen programs in QB.

SCREEN 0 windowed programs should run ok.

OR you could try QB64 compiler. It can run QB code to make an EXE file. Just write the code in the IDE or load a bas file. QB64 also has some features such as sound file playing, fast and easy picture file loading and font loading.

www.QB64.net

[sportscout]

Thanks for the tip. I downloaded QB64 and it seems to work great.

[sportscout]

If I type in a simple program it works fine. However if i try to run a program that I have run with QB45 some parts are jibberish, other parts seem to be fine.

[BurgerBytes]

What parts of the code? Let them know in the BUG reports Forum at QB64.NET or post the problems here and I will investigate.

Ted

[sportscout]

I tried to copy a short program here was unable to. A statement in one program seems to be fine but a similar one in another program is all nonsense with strange characters.[/img][/url]

[BurgerBytes]

You can't copy code here? Open the BAS file with Notepad or other text editor. Copy sections that are relevant problems first. Then open a new post and click the Code button at the top of the post area:

Code: Select all

Paste your code here!

Then click the Code* button again

I can't help if you can't tell me anything!

PS: ALWAYS save your BAS files as text readable in QB45! Just open the file in QB45 editor, click Save As, check the text readable option and save.

[sportscout]

My computer will not open QB45. Paste is not an available option when I try to paste the bad program into the reply box after (code).

[I Daniel]

DOSBOX 0.74 (the latests and always improving) supports 32 and 64 bit on Vista and Windows 7.
They have a FAQ and Compatibility Section on their site and the DOC files are good.

I don't have either so can't test, but what they claim is usually spot on. So fiddle with their config file for fullscreen etc, set the [autoexec] (under config almost the last line) to start QB or try any DOS.exe program.
I tried the following on XP PRO SP2 and it worked, I also tried a Menu1.BAT which runs 23 games and includes a call to menu2.BAT and menu3.BAT and it also worked. (I have a number of old shareware games on my D: drive). This meant I was running 69 games/programs and Using a MENU you can run just about every 16 bit program on your computer with only one invocation of DOSBox
*************************
The instruction to run them is remmed out #=REM
# mount c d:\Games
# c:
# Menu1.BAT
# exit

mount c c:\QB45
C:
QB /L
exit

*************************
BASIC lives on Come to think of it DOSBOX resembles a VM for 16 bit DOS programs.

[I Daniel]

Having looked around I found FBC - The Freebasic compiler - which compiles QB4.5 programs to 32 bit. I tried QB64 but wow what a monstrous program you end up with. One QB compiled to 818Kb plus a lot of dependencies, which added up to 6,2Mb which means it is not a stand-alone. The same program compiled to 107Kb as a stand-alone with FBC. The QB4.5 stand-alone compiled to 64Kb, the smaller size being attributable to the smaller LIB without all the FBC goodies.

QB64 does however eliminate the problems of SCREEN 7 and 13 which exist on new Nvidia cards. ie. No or a tiny little Screen on QB and FB. The dependencies are only loaded once and so should not really be a problem if other code is written for QB64.
Vista just says FULLSCREEN not available and your program does not run. DOSBox on VISTA is the only solution.

IMO I would say keep on programming in QB but use the added features of FBC. Most of the enhancements, BUT NOT ALL, if you search far and wide enough, are available in QuickLibraries that can be combined to give Mouse, Music, Modems etc.
Check out the downloads in QBC there you will already find some nice things.
Compiling with FBC may solve the problem where 32 bit systems are in use, but not the Nvidia related Screen 7 & 13 problem. I am not clued up but I think both Vista and Windows 7 come in 64 and 32 bit.

[I Daniel]

The config file is no longer in the same folder as DOSBOX (because of some WINDOWS security/convention)
I used SEARCH to find it and then used WORDPAD to make the changes.
Notepad or any other word processor will do but remember to save it as a DOS/ASCII file. (I without thinking just clicked SAVE and ended up with a RTF file which I then had to redo. (Stop laughing)

*EDIT: 07:00 GMT 2010-09-12
In the DOSBox 0.74 folder you will find "DOSBox 0.74 Options.bat"
This Batch file is the correct/much easier way to get to the Config file as it opens the Config file in Notepad.

**EDIT: 08:15 GMT 2010-09-12
KiyoteWolf on the FB forum uses a GUI - D-Fend - to set the options.
On 2010-07-02 there was a new release of D-Fend Reloaded (Version 1.0)
It can be downloaded from:

http://dfendreloaded.sourceforge.net/