History of BCPL

 

BCPL is a procedural, imperative, and dependent programming language created in 1966 by Martin Richards at Cambridge University. The language was built on the Composite Programming Language, which was developed in the early 1960s.

Originally intended to write compilers for different languages, BCPL is now not uncommonly used. However, its impact is felt due to the fact that a stripped down and syntactically modified model of BCPL, known as B, became the language on which the C programming language was based. BCPL added numerous functions to many advanced programming languages, including the use of curly braces to delimit code blocks.

The BASIC combined programming language is designed for a small compiling size, sixteen kB all the way, and portability. In the 1970s, the famous "Hia World" software was written with the help of Brian Kernighan. BCPL stands out as a software with simple syntax and simple design, which reveals many approaches in contemporary time language syntax and usage phrases.

History of BCPL

• BCPL was first implemented in 1967 by Martin Richards.
• BCPL was a reaction to problems with its predecessor, the Cambridge Programming Language, renamed Combined Programming Language (CPL), designed sometime in the early 1960s.
• The language was first defined in a paper in 1967. An early compiler, bootstrapped in 1969, focused on the ICT 1900 series, with Martin Richards' Atlas 2 compiler's help starting with paper tapes of O-code.
• By the late 1970s, implementations existed for the Honeywell 635 and Honeywell 645, IBM 360, PDP-10, PDP-nine, KDF nine, and Atlas 2.
• In 1974 a bid of BCPL was released at BBN without using intermediate O-codes.
• It also became a model for BBC Micro in the mid-1980s, with the help of Richards Computer Products, a corporation founded by Dr. Started with the help of John Richards, brother of Martin Richards.
• It also became a model for BBC Micro in the mid-1980s, with the help of Richards Computer Products, a corporation founded by Dr. Started with the help of John Richards, brother of Martin Richards.

BCPL is the language in which the unique WhatsApp global application was written.  BCPL became an additional primary language used in the seminal Xerox PARC Alto project, today's primary non-public computer; Among various projects, the Bravo Report Training Machine was written in BCPL.

Martin Richards maintains a current model of the BCPL on his website, which is up to date in 2018. This installation can be run on a variety of architectures including Linux, FreeBSD, and Mac OS X.