Announcing Chipmunk Basic 3.6.4(b1), an update to the
only freeware cross-platform interactive Basic interpreter
available in ready-to-run form for Mac OS X, MSWindows
and Linux/x86.  The Mac OS X build is now a Universal
application which will run on either Intel or PowerPC
(G3/G4/G5) based Macs.

Chipmunk Basic is available here:
  http://www.nicholson.com/rhn/basic

Chipmunk Basic is an old-fashioned Basic language interpreter
which runs on multiple OS platforms.  Chipmunk Basic has
a vintage classic command-line console, supporting classic
style Basic with line numbers.  The Chipmunk Basic language
is mostly compatible with books on programming in BASIC
which were written circa mid 1970's thru the late 1980's.
However Chipmunk Basic also has extensions allowing it to
also run more contemporary structured Basic programs without
line numbers, when used with an external program editor.
Chipmunk Basic also includes support for some simple
graphics commands which work on all 3 OS platforms.

The Mac OS X and Windows downloads include both an
independent application, with graphics support, as well
as a command-line utility version of the Basic interpreter.

Supported features under Mac OS X additionally include
sound commands (including some Quicktime MIDI voices,
plus speech and Morse code synthesis), support for serial
port I/O, AppleScript, network sockets, pipes, and even some
rudimentary OOP (object oriented programming) capabilities.

This release adds the det() function to compute 2D matrix
determinants, as well as several other minor enhancements
and bug fixes.

Shortened version change history:

Version 3.6.4(b1):
 * added det() function to calculate 2d matrix determinants
 * added fn dot(a,b) to calculate 1d vector dot product
 * allow comments at beginning of if-endif statement blocks
 * allow if-then else syntax without a colon :
 * added some legacy for-next syntax support
 * allow mat inv of larger matrices
 * allow larger bload/bsave file sizes
 * fixed some bugs in format$() and the print using statement
...

Give it a try.

--
rhn A.T nicholson d.0.t C-o-M

Just to give more complete disclosure, it now appears
that Decimal Basic, at this web site:
 http://hp.vector.co.jp/authors/VA008683/english/
is another interpreter that also comes in ready-to-run
form for Mac OS X, MSWindows and Linux.  When run in
binary floating point precision mode (not Decimal),
it also seems to be faster than Chipmunk Basic.  The
only classic Basic aspect I couldn't find was a true
interactive interpretive mode (e.g. print this and
gosub that directly from a command line).  Also the
Mac OS X build seems to be currently missing a Universal
or PPC build, which would be more appropriate for Mac's
currently in use in the educational market.

In any case, Decimal Basic seems to be a very nice
cross-platform implementation of Basic.

RealBasic is also cross-platform, but costs a bit
more, and is a compiler, not a classic interactive
interpreter.  There are also several open source
Basic implementations, but most seem to require one
to install a development environment on Macs to build.

IMHO. YMMV.
--
rhn A.T nicholson d.0.t C-o-M