Last Updated and Links Checked 9 December 2002
Installing QB4.5 Instructions (from www.sdservices.net/students/qbasic_download.htm)
If any one has any suggestions or items that they would like added to this section please contact me at webmaster@sdservices.net.
Here it goes. If anyone needs Qbasic you can download it and install the necessay files using the the intructions provided on this page. Make sure you read the following information and follow it exactly when loading to your computer.
If you miss a step it probably will not work for you.
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Download the file at the bottom of this page to a directory on your computer. Make sure you remember exactly where you download the file to. After you download the file double click on it to unzip the file. Remember exactly were it unzips the file to.
When it unzips you should have two files, "_qb45(1).exe" and "ReadME.txt".
If you do not have Winzip or if the file does not unzip go to www.winzip.com and download the utility.
Double Click on "_qb45(1).exe" and a set of 13 files will be placed on your hard drive. Following is a list of files that will open when you click on the "_qb45(1).exe":
Bc.exe
Bcom45.lib
Bqlb45.lib
Brun45.exe
Brun45.lib
Lib.exe
Link.exe
Qb.exe
Qb.ini
Qb.lib
Qb.pif
Qb.qlb
Qb45qck.hlp
Make sure you remember were these files are on your hard drive. If you try to run Qbasic now it will cause error's when you try to run it because it thinks that all it's other files are in C:\TOOLS\Qbasic\. Which they aren't! So create a dir called C:\TOOLS\Qbasic\ in your main directory. Then Copy\Paste or Move all of the Qbasic files into the dir you created. After you have moved those files you are done. Hopefully Qbasic will run fine.
Enjoy!
Download Qbasic 4.5 (Make sure you remember what directory you download to.)
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What happened 2 Oct 2002 ..
I first I created a folder qbsds on my C drive.
Then I double clicked on DOWNLOAD QBASIC and downloaded Qbasic45.zip into the qbsds folder. The down load was 560Kb (which was less than the 700 or 800Kb I expected for zipped QB4.5).
Unzipping resulted in the two files, "_qb45(1).exe" (560Kb) and "ReadME.txt" (Negligble size). The ReadME was a text file of the
www.sdservices.net/students/qbasic_download.htm Download Section above. I unzipped both these files into the qbsds folder alongside the downloaded Qbasic45.zip
Double click on "_qb45(1).exe" caused a further 13 "Qbasic" files (listed above) to be placed in it.
As per instructions I created a C:\tools\qbasic directory (ie tools folder with a qbasic folder in it) and moved these 13 "Qbasic" files into it.
I then moved the qbsds folder (with the zip and the 2 files unzipped from it) into the tools folder alongside the operational qbasic folder.
I also put a copy of this html file in the tool folder.
Double clicking on Qb.exe in the tools\qbasic folder caused a small Qbasic Editor window to open (similar to but not the same QBasic1.1 Editor window I am use to). Pressing Alt and Enter expanded the Editor window to full screen size (it was the "32 bit" window that does not give the more comfortably proportioned "16 bit" look). The Mouse worked and I was able to write and run a classic "Hello World" program.
In retrospect it I might be better to create the tools\qbasic folder at the outset and download the Qbasic.zip into it, expand it there and double click on the resulting_qb45(1).exe so the "qbasic" files went into the right place from the outset (then have 3+13=16 files in same qbasic folder!).
But..
Problem with newbies (and very nearly me) is that files might download or unzip to the wrong place no matter what you set out to do (considering the options offered to create new favourite zip folders and presence of existing recent downloads or unzips giving a history that influences the current process). So considering this maybe it is best to just get people to bring get the download zip in, expand it somewhere and place the files anywhere (as long as they know where it all is) then put everything where it should be after!! That's obviously what the person who drafted the instructions was thinking.
Definitely an error magnet trying to put it in place from the outset (you'd still have to give insruction to newbies on how to move them in the event of it going wrong anyway!) and whose to say it's good file management to store the Qbasic45.zip and/or the _qb45(1).exe and ReadME.txt in that operational folder any way! ..should be an independant folder (plus they should be stored on disks for the future ..and uploaded on another website).
o0o