Word processors, and office suites, as used in the modern computer, have an interesting background and history. In the beginning the word processor was the most sought after of all the programs. The heyday of the word processor was in the late 1970's-early 1980's when serious home computing was first getting started. Word processors were the first thing most people wanted to use on the home computer for the simple reason that they viewed the home computer as a replacement for the typewriter. If you wanted to write a letter, you needed a word processor.
It wasn't very long before we were inundated with a plethora of the pesky things, each claiming to be the best. How many can you recall? I recall PC Write, Rite Writer, Volkswriter, Word Star, Peachtree Text, and Perfect Writer. There were numerous others. The first one I used was PC Rite. It came with the computer a local computer guru built for me in 1982. The word processor was an extra and cost $20.00 as I recall. I had the first edition. At first it worked very well for me but I gradually discovered several bugs and problems. For example, it did not have an automatic "save" feature. I recall once I had typed several pages of a story which was somehow deleted. It was gone! I complained to the program's author that he needed to add the automatic "save" feature. He added it to the next version and gave me a free copy because I had made the suggestion. I suspect other word processors of the time had similar problems. Then along came Word Perfect. It was the most mature of them all, and also the most expensive. Word Perfect became the default word processor for business throughout the United States and its fame spread very rapidly. I can recall as recently as 15 years ago when our local University decided that Word Perfect was to be the only word processor to be used for administrative purposes by the University. At the time I warned them that Word Perfect was soon to be supplanted by Microsoft WORD but my warning was ignored. I wonder how much that blunder cost the University.
In the late 1970's, the addition of a spreadsheet and database made their appearance. I recall that Lotus 1-2-3 and VisiCalc as spread sheets and Dbase 3 as a database were popular early on.
Now to the question: Which suite should you be using today? The answer is to continue using the present one if you are pleased with it and if it handles all your situations.
But is that really the answer?
At present we have three champions in the field. Two are well known, Word Perfect Office and Microsoft Office. The third is hardly known at all, but it is out there and it should become known. I am referring to Open Office.org, V. 1.1.1. This latter suite is available as a free download, or can be purchased on a CD. It contains a word processor, a spreadsheet, a database, a draw program and a presentation program. Recently the Ziff Davis publication e-WEEK participated in a test to try to determine if, for example, Microsoft Office could be replaced by OpenOffice.org for use at a large business. One of the reasons for the test was potentially to save money; for example Word Perfect Office costs about $199.00, and Microsoft Office 2003 Professional is about $359.00. A business must purchase a license for a certain number of copies, and 100 licenses are not unusual. The cost becomes critical when the business decides it must upgrade.
The test they made is impressive. e-WEEK obtained as volunteers several large businesses, and also obtained volunteers from the same businesses who regularly used Microsoft Office. The information about the test and its results is contained in the e-WEEK April 26, 2004 edition. My interpretation of the results is that for ordinary work the free download is quite adequate. However, for more complicated functions, Microsoft Office is preferred.
How about the ordinary home user, like you and me? I think it boils down to money. If you have lots of it, use Microsoft Office, and upgrade it as needed. Depending on the version, you can have a word processor, database, spreadsheet, presentation program, and various other features, all at a price. Next on the list would be Word Perfect Office which is less costly but still a full featured suite. It contains a word processor, spreadsheet, database, presentation program, and Dragon Naturally Speaking, a voice recognition program.
If you want a word processor with the look and feel of Microsoft Word, and a not too complicated spreadsheet and database, the free OpenOffice.org will fill the bill and the price is right. Try it. You might like it. Go to www.openoffice.org and get the free download or purchase the CD.
Give it a try. Your results will make an interesting story for this publication. We would like to hear from you.