Do the write thing - review of seven word processors for Windows or the Macintosh - Software Review - includes related article briefly comparing the MS-DOS versions of WordPerfect for DOS 6.0 and Microsoft Word for DOS 6.0 - Evaluation

Home Office Computing, June, 1994 by Kay Yarborough Nelson

HOME OFFICE COMPUTING Reviews Nine Word Processors for Windows, Mac, and DOS

IF YOU'RE THINKING OF GETTING A NEW WORD PROCESsor, you have some hard choices in front of you. No matter whether you're running DOS, Windows, or a Macintosh, the array of advanced features in the current crop of word processors will astound you. Today's programs come with writing tools such as grammar- and spell-chedkers, thesauruses, and collapsible outliners. Many provide desktop publishing capabilities and can insert graphics into documents. And all have context-sensitive help, which means you'll rarely have to reach for the manual. Most let you custom-tailor their interfaces so your particular needs. You can move and resize toolbars, for example, or choose only those toolbars you want to display.

Amid all the fanfare and promises of enhanced productivity, we've put together a map to help you pick and choose what will be right for you. We'll look at Ami Pro, Word for Windows, and Word-Perfect for Windows. On the Mac side, we'll check out MacWrite Pro, Word for the Macintosh, Word-Perfect for the Macintosh, and Write-Now. And if you're a die-hard character-based DOS word processor fan, you'll find Word for DOS and WordPerfect for DOS compared in the accompanying sidebar "The DOS Giants."

Let's Get Real Chances are you already have a word processor that works fine--but if you're considering stepping up to one of the latest and greatest, there are a few ways to proceed. Obviously, if there's a new feature you really want, such as voice annotation or the ability to embed a video clip within a document, go for the program that offers those capabilities. But if you're not impressed by flashy wizards or built-in spreadsheet functions, consider this: What's the most basic thing you do with a word processor? Write...right? And check your spelling. A competent spell-checker can make a good program great. On the flip side, a poor one, such as WordPerfect's, can make using an otherwise great program a tedious experience. On this basis alone, Microsoft Word is the outstanding choice on all platforms. It speller is fast, and the Windows version can automatically expand abbreviations and corrects typos as you write.

The Windows Arena In the world of Windows, the heavyweight contenders are Word for Windows, WordPerfect for Windows, and Ami Pro. All are remarkably good at core word processing tasks. You can search and replace text, print in the background, generate tables of contents and indexes, create tables and charts, apply custom dictionaries, and set tabs and margins via rulers. All offer toolbars (or button bars), walk you through the process of doing a mail merge, and provide context-sensitive help systems and tutorials.

But as the lists of features grow, so do the storage and resouce requirements of the applications themselves. WordPerfect for Windows requires a monstrous 32MB for a complete installations, and Word for Windows needs 22MB. Ami Pro is the easiest on a hard disk, taking up a relatively conservative 15MB of space. And even though each of these programs offers the option of a minimal--or laptop--installation, we're still taking about devoting 6MB to 12MB to a hobbled word processor. Additionally, the more RAM you have, the better. Ami Pro requires 4MB, Word 4MB, and WordPerfect 6MB to 8MB--although 8MB is recommend by most publishers.

Ami Pro Rating: ***1/2 Version Reviewed: 3.01 List Price: $495 Average Street Price: $300 Publisher: Lotus Development, (404) 391-0011, (800) 831-9679

If you need a word processor that can accomplish desktop publishing projects, look closely at Ami Pro. Even though it isn't the most feature-rich program available, its frame-based interface excels at handling graphics. For example, you can wrap multiple lines of text around images anywhere within a document. All page layout and style options are logically grouped under separte Page and Style menus. You can build a table, turn it into a chart, and then spruce it up with the program's drawing tools. In order to accomplish the same thing in either Word or WordPerfect, you have to switch in and out of separate graphing, drawing, and charting modules. In addition, the program comes with a large selection of predesigned style sheets, such as newsletters, press releases, and fax forms--all you do is add your text.

If a clean interface is important to you, then Ami Pro wins again. Its status bar has pull-up menus that keep the screen uncluttered. Word and WordPerfect, on the other hand, often present busy screens, especially when displaying a ruler and a button bar or two. There are ways to clean up these editing screens and save them as defaults, but Ami Pro starts with a clean screen from the beginning.

If you need to design complex documents, you'll find that Word and WordPerfect have more features. But if you're just starting out in Windows, you'll find that Ami Pro is by far the easiest to use.

Word for Windows Rating: **** Version Reviewed: 6.0 List Price: $495 Average Street Price: $300 Publisher: Microsoft, (206) 882-8080, (800) 426-9400