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What next?


Congratulations! You've finished part 1 of this tutorial. The remaining chapters cover additional topics, and don't have to be read in sequence (one after another).

If you want, you can move on to a more advanced programming language. The rest of this chapter briefly explains how you can start using the most popular ones.

One reason you may want to move on, at least at some point, is because QBasic has minimal capabilities. One example of this is that you can't create executable programs (EXE files) in QBasic. (QuickBasic 4.5 can create these files, but this product is no longer on the market.)


Other programming languages

Information about the below programming languages can be found at ProgrammingTutorials.com.


C and C++

You can learn C by going to www.cm.cf.ac.uk/Dave/C/CE.html, www.strath.ac.uk/CC/Courses/NewCcourse/ccourse.html, or www.programmingtutorials.com/tutorial.asp?id=C.

Before you can create an EXE file in C, you must have a compiler. I recommend downloading the DJGPP compiler. This program is free, however, the author does accept donations.

See below for information on getting DJGPP.

You may also want to get the Allegro programming library. This library is useful for creating games in C.

(NOTE: C++ is a more powerful version of C. It introduces "object oriented" programming. I recommend learning C++ before moving on to Visual C++.)


Visual C++

With Visual C++, you can create Windows 95 programs, instead of DOS. It costs about $100 for the standard version.

For more information, click here.

To purchase Visual C++, click here.


Visual Basic

Visual Basic is similar to QBasic. So, if you are highly involved in QBasic, then you may want to switch directly to Visual Basic, instead of learning C/C++ or Visual C++.

With Visual Basic, like Visual C++, you can create Windows 95 programs. It costs about $100 for the "learning" edition.

For more information, click here.

To purchase Visual Basic, click here.





Getting DJGPP


Since the installation instructions for DJGPP are a little confusing, I've provided my own below.

For more information about DJGPP, visit the DJGPP website at www.delorie.com/djgpp.


Installing DJGPP

  1. Create a new folder called DJGPP in drive C.

  2. Download and save each of the following to the DJGPP folder:

    (If any of the links below are out of date, or if you want to download more DJGPP packages, you can find the most current files here.)


  3. Unzip each of the files to the DJGPP folder.

    If you are using UNZIP32.EXE:

    1. Go to the Start Menu

    2. Click Run...

    3. Type the following (this loads MS-DOS):

        command  <Enter>

    4. Enter the following in DOS:

        cd c:\djgpp

        unzip32 -n *.zip


  4. Edit your AUTOEXEC.BAT file.

    1. Go to the Start Menu

    2. Click Run...

    3. Type the following (you can "copy and paste" it):

        notepad c:\autoexec.bat

    4. Add the following lines to the end of the file (you can "copy and paste" this also):

        set DJGPP=C:\DJGPP\DJGPP.ENV
        set PATH=C:\DJGPP\BIN;%PATH%

    5. Go to the File menu.

    6. Click Save.

    7. Close the program.

  5. Restart your computer.

  6. Run a program called RHIDE.EXE in the c:\djgpp\bin folder.


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