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- Path: grafix.xs4all.nl!rdingem
- Date: Fri, 16 Feb 96 00:23:35 GMT+1
- Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.applications
- Distribution: world
- Subject: Re: Can Final Writer do tables?
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- Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
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- From: rdingem@grafix.xs4all.nl (Ruud Dingemans)
- Message-ID: <rdingem.4enu@grafix.xs4all.nl>
- Organization: Grafix Attack BBS Holland
-
- In a message of 12 Feb 96 Nhan Nguyen wrote to All:
-
- NN> On 12 Feb 1996, David Meyer wrote:
- >> David Jarvis (djarvis@u.washington.edu) wrote:
-
- >> When will both of you get your act together and catch up with
- >> Microsoft: Word 5 for Mac?
-
- NN> I've been using Final Copy II for maybe two years, and then recently
- NN> got Final Writer 4. As a student, I have little need for even all the
- (deleted)
- NN> But today I saw MS Word 6.0 for PowerMacs, and was blown away. We
- NN> definitely still have a ways to go, and if I could program, I'd help
- NN> Softwood get their FW to that level or better...
-
- Yes, let's get FW under the GNU public license and make it a
- community product like Linux ;) Somehow I don't think this
- will happen anytime soon.
-
- I guess the only way people can help with that is voice their
- criticisms and suggestions ('more file formats' has been ignored
- way too long) and get more ARexx macros out for both FW and WW.
-
- (Here are two oldies I converted from ProWrite, BTW; they
- enable you to select a calculation - like 2341*342 - and
- they print the outcome right behind it.)
-
- ==============================
- (FW4:)
-
- /* Select calculation, computes and pastes */
- Options results
- Extract
- If RC ~= 0 Then Exit RC
- result=Insert('a=',result)
- Interpret result
- Cursor Right
- Type '='a
- ============
- (WW5:)
-
- /* Evaluate math expression and paste */
- Options results
- GetText
- If RC ~= 0 Then Exit RC
- result=Insert('a=',result)
- Interpret result
- Cursor Right
- Text '='a
- ===================
-
- NN> But I thought that cross-platform compatibility on PCs was not that
- NN> important because they're the ones dominating the market. But they
- NN> should at least have Mac compatibility, even just file-handling.
-
- They should, but they won't. They can afford to ignore the rest.
-
- NN> The way I see it, the smaller your slice of the computer pie, the more
- NN> important it is to have compatibility with the more popular platforms.
-
- Definitely. FW4 is sorely lacking in that department, IMHO. WW5 is
- a bit better there (WordPerfect, RTF).
-
- NN> compatibility and SoftWindows. And for us, with a tiny market share,
- NN> we have Emplant, PC-Task, A-Max IV, and Shapeshifter...
-
- Indeed, and Mac Word and WordPerfect run very nicely on any
- 5 Mb 32-bit Amiga under Shapeshifter. Since this is a potential threat
- to both WW and FW, I think both companies should gear up instead of
- poking at each other, or they might lose out.
-
- NN> It almost seems like the more independently-minded
- computer owners must
- NN> emulate the computers of the people with more of a herd mentality, just
- NN> to stay afloat.
-
- True, but the alternative (not being able to emulate) would be
- even worse.
-
- NN> popular productivity apps, optimized for the efficient AmigaOS. Oh
- NN> yeah, and redo the AmigaOS interface and add more features.
-
- I'd bet AT would like to do that, but it costs time. Look at how
- long it took Microsoft to turn MS-DOS into Windows95, or Apple's
- efforts with Copland.
-
- Regards, Ruud
- rdingem@grafix.xs4all.nl
-
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