A few of our favorite things: the editors point to 21 products that make their work easier

Home Office Computing, Dec, 1990 by Steve Chen, Crystal Waters, David Hallerman, Ted Stevenson, Lance Paavola, Bernadette Grey, Steve Morgenstern, Henry F. Beechhold, Edward P. Stevenson

Is it better than a Filofax? You bet. It's smaller, neater, and smarter. Does it outorganize a software package? No contest. It's with me everywhere I go, whenever I need it. While my Wizard hasn't eliminated the pressures of having too much to do, at least I no longer worry about forgetting things.

--BERNADETTE GREY

THE BEST MONITOR MONEY CAN BUY

Zenith ZCM-1492 ($999)

(VGA monitor)

Zenith Data Systems; (708) 699-4800

Do you ever have too much light reflecting off your monitor screen? I had such a lighting problem; after working in front of my monitor for an extended period of time, I suffered severe eyestrain.

The solution to my problem turned out to be the Zenith ZCM-1492, which uses flat-tension mask (FTM) technology. The result is amazing. Very little light bounces off the flat screen. The color is vivid and text is sharp. I can work in front of the screen all day without worrying about straining my eyes. The Zenith ZCM-1492, compatible with VGA output, costs about $200 more than a standard VGA monitor. But that's a small price to pay for rested eyes.

--STEVEN C. M. CHEN

SOFTWARE

POSTSCRIPT FOR THE MASSES

QMS UltraScript PC ($195)

(MS-DOS PostScript utility)

QMS, Inc.; (408) 986-9400

Before I got a PostScript printer, I used a wonderful software utility called UltraScript. It can emulate a PostScript printer on a 24-pin dot-matrix printer, ink-jet printer (like the HP DeskJet series), or HP LaserJet laser printer. UltraScript takes a PostScript print file (created by printing a file to disk in your application) and sends it to your printer. The resulting printout looks very close to a printout from a real PostScript printer.

I set up UltraScript as a memory-resident program, which requires 1MB of extended memory. In that form, the printing process was almost transparent to me. I used UltraScript with some of the most demanding applications, such as Ventura Publisher, with excellent results. The main drawback is UltraScript's slowness; it virtually requires a 386SX computer. Nonetheless, for people who need to supercharge a non-PostScript printer, especially a dot-matrix or an ink-jet, UltraScript is an excellent choice.

--STEVEN C. M. CHEN

ON-LINE SERVICE WITH A SMILE

America Online ($5.95 per month, plus $10 per daytime hour, $5 per evening hour)

(Macintosh/Apple II on-line network)

Quantum Computer Services; (703) 448-8700; (800) 227-6364

Most on-line services make me feel panicky because I know the meter is running as I'm groping my way around. America On-line, specifically for Macintosh and Apple II owners, is so easy to use I never worry about getting lost and running up a big bill. Forums, e-mail, shopping, share/freeware, and news and reference (including HOME-OFFICE COMPUTING reviews and information) all run under the familiar Macintosh point-and-click interface. Downloading a file is as simple as clicking on "Download." Because I don't have to worry about file-transfer protocols, I download much more software than I do on other systems.

The people are what I enjoy most about America Online. Passing through the Lobby, I almost find 20 others chatting on topics ranging from desk accessories to "Star Trek." When I worked on my own, I found this a good way to stay connected to the world. There's always a Guide present in the Lobby to help with questions about the system, and plenty of on-line help. I also read the message boards for information and advice on word processing and desktop publishing. With America Online's friendly atmosphere and valuable service, I've finally grown comfortable with telecommunications.