"For millions of people in the late 1970s and early 1980s, variations of Microsoft's BASIC interpreter provided their first experience with programming. Users could type simple commands like "10 PRINT 'HELLO'" and "20 GOTO 10" to create an endless loop of text on their screens, for example-often their first taste of controlling a computer directly. The interpreter translated these human-readable commands into instructions that the processor could execute, one line at a time."
"At just 6,955 lines of assembly language-Microsoft's low-level 6502 code talked almost directly to the processor. Microsoft's BASIC squeezed remarkable functionality into minimal memory, a key achievement when RAM cost hundreds of dollars per kilobyte. In the early personal computer space, cost was king. The MOS 6502 processor that ran this BASIC cost about $25, while competitors charged $200 for similar chips. Designer Chuck Peddle created the 6502 specifically to bring computing to the masses,"
Microsoft released the complete source code for Microsoft BASIC for 6502 Version 1.1, posting 6,955 lines of assembly to GitHub under an MIT license. The interpreter powered machines such as the Commodore PET, VIC-20, Commodore 64, and Apple II through custom adaptations. Users entered simple BASIC commands to control computers directly, and the interpreter translated those human-readable lines into processor instructions executed one at a time. The 6,955-line assembly communicated closely with the MOS 6502 and packed significant features into minimal memory when RAM was extremely expensive. The MOS 6502 cost about $25 and was designed by Chuck Peddle to lower computing costs. Commodore licensed the BASIC for a flat $25,000 perpetual fee.
Read at Ars Technica
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