Q(uick)Basic Syntax Conventions

How to Read On-line Help Syntax Notation in QBasic and QuickBasic.

Shows how to read the syntax information that is displayed in the on-line help for BASIC language keywords.

Useful and cross-version information about the programming environments of QBasic and QuickBasic.

KEYWORDS	Items in capital letters indicate BASIC keywords. Keywords are a required part of the statement syntax, unless they are enclosed in brackets. You must spell keywords correctly.
placeholders	Items in lowercase are placeholders for information you must supply in the statement, such as a filename.
[optional item]	Items inside square brackets do not need to be used in the statement.
{choice1 \| choice2}	Braces and a vertical bar indicate a choice between two or more items. You must use one of the items in the statement unless the braces are enclosed in square brackets.
! IMPORTANT:	The uppercase and lowercase syntax notation conventions are used to help you read the syntax rules for a statement, and are NOT capitalization rules you must type in.
Another notation convention used is the three-dot ellipsis:
item, item, …	Means more of the preceding items can be used in a single-line statement.
beginning KEYWORD ⋮ ending KEYWORD	used to describe multi-line statements (or block-structured statements). Means that other statements can be used between the beginning and the end of the block.