---
title: "Base Conversion"
type: "article"
slug: "base-conversion"
url: "http://localhost/article/base-conversion/"
markdown_url: "http://localhost/article/base-conversion.md"
published_at: "2025-11-30T07:52:20+00:00"
modified_at: "2026-06-21T23:37:30+00:00"
featured_image:
  url: "http://localhost/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/20230809-041332.jpg"
excerpt: "In some postings in on Usenet, there have been some conversations about converting from different bases. I found this task interesting and thought I'd give it a try. I did fairly well in writing a routine that would convert from Base X to Base 10. Converting from base 10 to base X was more difficult.…"
category:
  - name: "QL Hacker's Journal"
    slug: "ql-hackers-journal"
    taxonomy: "category"
    url: "http://localhost/category/periodicals/ql-hackers-journal/"
post_tag:
  - name: "Full Text"
    slug: "fulltext"
    taxonomy: "post_tag"
    url: "http://localhost/tag/fulltext/"
  - name: "QL"
    slug: "ql"
    taxonomy: "post_tag"
    url: "http://localhost/tag/ql/"
  - name: "Superbasic (programming language)"
    slug: "superbasic-programming-language"
    taxonomy: "post_tag"
    url: "http://localhost/tag/superbasic-programming-language/"
  - name: "Type-in program"
    slug: "type-in-program"
    taxonomy: "post_tag"
    url: "http://localhost/tag/type-in-program/"
model:
  - name: "Sinclair QL"
    slug: "sinclair-ql"
    taxonomy: "model"
    url: "http://localhost/model/sinclair-ql/"
indiv:
  - name: "Tim Swenson"
    slug: "tim-swenson"
    taxonomy: "indiv"
    url: "http://localhost/indiv/tim-swenson/"
publication_r:
  id: 33686
  title: "QL Hacker’s Journal"
  type: "periodical"
  url: "http://localhost/periodical/ql-hackers-journal/"
authors_r:
  - name: "Tim Swenson"
    slug: "tim-swenson"
    taxonomy: "indiv"
    url: "http://localhost/indiv/tim-swenson/"
issue: "15"
issues_articles:
  - id: 61551
    title: "QL Hacker’s Journal 15"
    type: "issue"
    url: "http://localhost/issue/ql-hackers-journal-15/"
pubdate: "October 1993"
archive_link: true
---

# Base Conversion

In some postings in on Usenet, there have been some conversations about converting from different bases. I found this task interesting and thought I’d give it a try. I did fairly well in writing a routine that would convert from Base X to Base 10. Converting from base 10 to base X was more difficult. It got the the point that I decided to give up (my programming time is limited these days, so I hate to bang my head against a programming wall). As a textbook would say “I’ll leave it as an exercise for the reader.”

```
100 DEFine FuNction base_ten(num$,origin_base)
110 LOCal x,y,z,total
120   total = 0
130   FOR x = LEN(num$) TO 1 STEP -1
140     y = CODE(num$(x))
150     IF y<65 THEN z = num$(x)
160     IF y>=65 AND y<=90 THEN z = y-54
170     IF y >97 AND y<=122 THEN z = y-86
180     total = total+(z*(origin_base^(LEN(num$)-x)))
190   NEXT x
200   RETurn total
210 END DEFine
```