James,
"By the way, LET a,b,c=0 would be nice as well."
read data from $$ to a,b,c,iol=nomadsVars$,tmp$
read data from "" to a,b,c ,iol=nomadsVars$,tmp$
Suppressing the "highly practical" LET is an option too.
Personally I find them distracting, and suspect they are a prime reason for BASIC disdain.