Mallard BASIC: A Comprehensive Overview of an Early Business-Oriented Interpreter
Mallard BASIC is an interesting example of an interpreter that emerged during a pivotal time in computing history—the 1980s. Developed by Locomotive Software, it was tailored for the CP/M operating system and distributed with a variety of computing systems, including the Amstrad PCW, ZX Spectrum +3 version of CP/M Plus, and the Acorn BBC Micro Z80 second processor. Despite the presence of other BASIC implementations for CP/M during this period, Mallard BASIC was unique due to its integrated design, optimized for small business use and for non-standard screen formats. This article explores the features, history, and influence of Mallard BASIC in the computing landscape.
Origins and Background
Mallard BASIC was developed by Locomotive Software, a company known for its focus on making computing more accessible for small businesses and individuals. Locomotive Software’s branding and product names were often inspired by trains and railways, which is evident in the choice of the name “Mallard.” The name refers to the LNER A4 class 4468 Mallard, the fastest steam locomotive in the world. The company’s affinity for this theme was reflected in many of its products, although Mallard BASIC itself was the only one to bear a direct railway reference.
The early 1980s saw an increasing demand for personal computers in the small business sector. Businesses needed affordable systems that could handle basic word processing and database management tasks. The Amstrad PCW was a notable example of such a machine, bundled with Mallard BASIC as a way to provide users with an easy-to-use programming environment. This BASIC interpreter was designed to allow users to write programs quickly without needing the separate text editor and compiler workflow that was typical of many CP/M BASIC implementations, such as Digital Research’s CBASIC.
Key Features of Mallard BASIC
One of the distinguishing features of Mallard BASIC was its approach to BASIC programming. Unlike other CP/M-based interpreters that were more traditional and required a separate text editor, Mallard BASIC provided an integrated editor. This was especially important for users of the Amstrad PCW, which utilized a 90-column screen—quite different from the more standard 80-column displays used by many systems at the time. Mallard BASIC was optimized for this unique screen format, ensuring that users could code with ease and efficiency.
The software was also heavily tailored for business use. While most other BASIC interpreters of the time lacked robust support for database management, Mallard BASIC was designed to address this gap. Notably, it featured full ISAM (Indexed Sequential Access Method) random-access file support. This made it much easier to write database applications—a crucial task for small businesses that required simple yet effective data storage and retrieval solutions. The addition of ISAM made Mallard BASIC an invaluable tool for users wanting to manage inventories, client records, or any other business-related data.
Another critical aspect of Mallard BASIC was its focus on speed. Its performance was optimized to make the most of the limited processing power available on small business computers of the era. As its namesake, the Mallard locomotive, suggested, this interpreter was designed to run fast and efficiently. This focus on performance meant that programs written in Mallard BASIC could execute quickly, providing a more responsive user experience than many other alternatives on the market.
Integration with CP/M and Other Systems
Mallard BASIC was developed for the CP/M operating system, which was a popular OS for microcomputers before the rise of MS-DOS and Windows. CP/M, however, did not originally include built-in support for graphics, which limited the kinds of applications that could be easily developed with BASIC. While Mallard BASIC excelled in its core business functions, it was not designed with graphics in mind. Unlike other systems, such as the IBM PC, which had more advanced graphics capabilities, the PCW and other machines running Mallard BASIC did not offer built-in graphics support.
To address this limitation, Mallard BASIC users could load the GSX extension to CP/M, but this was cumbersome for programmers who wanted to include graphics in their applications. The lack of graphical support led to the development of several third-party BASIC toolkits, including one of the most popular: LEB (Lightning Extended BASIC). This extension allowed Mallard BASIC users to replace the LET keyword with LEB, enabling more sophisticated graphics capabilities, such as drawing on-screen, saving images to disk, and printing graphical content.
The Acorn BBC Micro Version
In addition to being bundled with the Amstrad PCW, Mallard BASIC was also adapted for the Acorn BBC Micro when paired with the Z80 second processor. This version of the interpreter was designed to work with small business accounting software, a major selling point for Acorn as they targeted the business sector with their Z80 processor. One of the key innovations in this version of Mallard BASIC was the addition of the Jetsam B*-tree keyed access filing system. This system provided features similar to those of Miksam, a product originally designed by Compact Software, making Mallard BASIC more suitable for businesses that required organized, indexed data management.
Mallard BASIC in the Commercial Ecosystem
The Amstrad PCW, which shipped with Mallard BASIC, was marketed primarily as a word processor, but the machine’s ability to run CP/M and Mallard BASIC expanded its potential beyond just document editing. The PCW was popular among small businesses, and Mallard BASIC helped solidify its place as a versatile, all-in-one business tool. However, Mallard BASIC’s utility extended far beyond simple word processing. The interpreter allowed for the development of more complex applications, including those for inventory management, simple accounting, and other tasks integral to running a business in the 1980s.
The text editor RPED (Roland Perry’s EDitor), supplied with the PCW, is one example of an application that utilized Mallard BASIC. Initially developed in response to the lack of a full-screen editor for CP/M-80, RPED was a simple but powerful tool that allowed users to edit configuration files. Though RPED was written in 8086 assembler for MS-DOS systems, it served a similar purpose on the Amstrad PCW, where Mallard BASIC provided the necessary scripting environment.
Mallard BASIC’s role in the broader computing ecosystem also included its use in educational settings and as a prototype platform for early business applications. As CP/M systems started to fade into obsolescence, Mallard BASIC was part of a wave of technologies that made business computing more accessible and user-friendly.
Mallard BASIC Today
Though Mallard BASIC was a product of its time, its legacy continues to be appreciated by computing enthusiasts. The PC version of Mallard BASIC is still available from LocoScript Software as an MS-DOS program, which can be run under Windows in a disc-only version with a valid license or with the full introduction and reference manual.
In the decades following its release, the market for personal computing and business applications has evolved significantly. The early limitations of Mallard BASIC, particularly its lack of native graphics support, were eventually overcome by more modern development environments. Nonetheless, Mallard BASIC’s emphasis on integrated programming environments and database management set it apart as an early example of business-oriented software that focused on user-friendliness, speed, and functionality.
Conclusion
Mallard BASIC, while no longer a widely used interpreter, remains a fascinating chapter in the history of business computing. Its design, optimization for speed, and integrated editor were groundbreaking for their time. By providing small businesses with the tools to develop their own applications, Mallard BASIC played a crucial role in making computers more accessible and practical for everyday use. As computing technology advanced, the innovations behind Mallard BASIC, particularly its focus on business applications and fast execution, paved the way for future developments in programming environments and software design.
The software’s place in computing history is secured not only by its technical features but also by its connection to the early days of personal computing, where business applications were at the forefront of innovation. Even today, Mallard BASIC’s influence is still felt in the tools and frameworks that followed, and it serves as an excellent reminder of how early computing technologies shaped the future of the industry.