This study compared the effectiveness of the BASIC programming language and the HyperCard authoring language on promoting problem-solving skills and the reduction of computer anxiety. Two groups of students participated in the study. One group (N=13) received instruction on BASIC and the other (N=8) on HyperCard. Students in both groups responded to the same 61-item problem-solving instrument and 20-item computer anxiety instrument during the first and 12th meetings. During the second through the ninth meetings, they received instruction on one of the programming languages; during the 10th meeting they took either the BASIC or the HyperCard test; and during the 11th meeting, the evaluated tests were returned and answers were explained. Analyses of the data indicated that the problem solving skills of the BASIC group improved from the beginning of the treatment to the end whereas the problem solving skills of the HyperCard group did not; computer anxiety decreased for both groups; the HyperCard group outperformed the BASIC group on both the programming and debugging exercises; and a negative relationship between computer anxiety and debugging emerged when dealing only with the BASIC group. It is concluded that, while HyperCard is superior to BASIC for software construction, BASIC appears to be the language of choice when the purpose is to develop problem-solving skills. The programming portions of the BASIC and HyperCard tests and exercises for debugging in the two languages are appended. (Contains 40 references.) (BBM)