WordPerfect is a
word processingWord processing is the creation of documents using a word processor. It can also refer to advanced shorthand techniques, sometimes used in specialized contexts with a specially modified typewriter.-External links:...
application, now owned by
CorelCorel Corporation from the abbreviation is a computer software company headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, that specializes in graphics processing, similar to Adobe Systems...
.
Bruce BastianBruce Wayne Bastian is an American computer programmer, businessman, philanthropist and social activist...
, a
Brigham Young UniversityBrigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
(BYU) graduate student, and BYU computer science professor Dr. Alan Ashton joined forces to design a word processing system for the city of
OremOrem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the north-central part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is about south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the principal cities of the Provo-Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Utah and...
's
Data General Corp.Data General was one of the first minicomputer firms from the late 1960s. Three of the four founders were former employees of Digital Equipment Corporation. Their first product, the Data General Nova, was a 16-bit minicomputer...
minicomputer system in 1979. Bastian and Ashton kept the rights to the WordPerfect software they designed for Orem, deciding to market it through their own company. Ashton and Bastian started Satellite Systems International (SSI) to sell WordPerfect in 1980.
WordPerfect 1.0 represented a significant departure from the previous Wang standard for word processing. At the height of its popularity in the early to mid 1980s, it was a dominant player in the word processor market, but has long since been eclipsed in number of users by Microsoft Word. While available in
DOSDOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
and
Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
versions, its popularity was based in part on the fact that it was available for a wide variety of computers and operating systems, including
Mac OSMac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface...
,
LinuxLinux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
, the
Apple IIeThe Apple IIe is the third model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The e in the name stands for enhanced, referring to the fact that several popular features were now built-in that were only available as upgrades and add-ons in earlier models...
, a separate version for the
Apple IIgsThe Apple , the fifth and most powerful model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The "GS" in the name stands for Graphics and Sound, referring to its enhanced graphics and sound capabilities, both of which greatly surpassed previous models of the line...
, most popular versions of
UnixUnix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
,
VMSOpenVMS , previously known as VAX-11/VMS, VAX/VMS or VMS, is a computer server operating system that runs on VAX, Alpha and Itanium-based families of computers. Contrary to what its name suggests, OpenVMS is not open source software; however, the source listings are available for purchase...
,
Data GeneralData General was one of the first minicomputer firms from the late 1960s. Three of the four founders were former employees of Digital Equipment Corporation. Their first product, the Data General Nova, was a 16-bit minicomputer...
,
System/370The IBM System/370 was a model range of IBM mainframes announced on June 30, 1970 as the successors to the System/360 family. The series maintained backward compatibility with the S/360, allowing an easy migration path for customers; this, plus improved performance, were the dominant themes of the...
,
AmigaOSAmigaOS is the default native operating system of the Amiga personal computer. It was developed first by Commodore International, and initially introduced in 1985 with the Amiga 1000...
,
Atari STThe Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
,
OS/2OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal...
, and
NeXTSTEPNeXTSTEP was the object-oriented, multitasking operating system developed by NeXT Computer to run on its range of proprietary workstation computers, such as the NeXTcube...
.
The common file name extension of WordPerfect document files is
.wpd. Older versions of WordPerfect also used file extensions
.wp, .wp7, .wp6, .wp5, .wp4, and originally, no extension at all.
WordPerfect for DOS
Alan Ashton and Bruce Bastian founded Satellite Systems International, Inc. of
Orem, UtahOrem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the north-central part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is about south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the principal cities of the Provo-Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Utah and...
, which later changed its name to WordPerfect Corporation. Originally written for
Data GeneralData General was one of the first minicomputer firms from the late 1960s. Three of the four founders were former employees of Digital Equipment Corporation. Their first product, the Data General Nova, was a 16-bit minicomputer...
minicomputers, in 1982 the developers ported the program to the IBM PC as WordPerfect 2.20, continuing the version numbering of the Data General series.
The program's popularity took off with the introduction of WordPerfect 4.2 in 1986, with automatic paragraph numbering (important to the law office market), and the splitting of a lengthy
footnoteA note is a string of text placed at the bottom of a page in a book or document or at the end of a text. The note can provide an author's comments on the main text or citations of a reference work in support of the text, or both...
and its partial overflow to the bottom of the next page, as if it had been professionally typeset (valuable to both the law office and academic markets). WordPerfect 4.2 became the first program to overtake the original market leader (
WordStarWordStar is a word processor application, published by MicroPro International, originally written for the CP/M operating system but later ported to DOS, that enjoyed a dominant market share during the early to mid-1980s. Although Seymour I...
, the leading word processing program) in a major application category on the
DOSDOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
platform.
On 6 November 1989, WordPerfect Corporation released the program's most successful version ever, WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS, which was the first version to include
MacintoshThe Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
-style pull-down menus to supplement the traditional
function keyA function key is a key on a computer or terminal keyboard which can be programmed so as to cause an operating system command interpreter or application program to perform certain actions...
combinations, as well as support for
tablesA table is a means of arranging data in rows and columns.Production % of goalNorth 4087102%South 4093110% The use of tables is pervasive throughout all communication, research and data analysis. Tables appear in print media, handwritten notes, computer software, architectural...
, a
spreadsheetA spreadsheet is a computer application that simulates a paper accounting worksheet. It displays multiple cells usually in a two-dimensional matrix or grid consisting of rows and columns. Each cell contains alphanumeric text, numeric values or formulas...
-like feature.
The data format used by WordPerfect 5.1 was, for years, the most portable format in the world. All word processors could read (and convert) that format. Many conferences and magazines insisted that people ship their documents in 5.1 format. Unlike previous DOS versions, WordPerfect 6.0 for DOS could switch between its traditional text-based editing mode and a graphical editing mode that
showed the document as it would print outWYSIWYG is an acronym for What You See Is What You Get. The term is used in computing to describe a system in which content displayed onscreen during editing appears in a form closely corresponding to its appearance when printed or displayed as a finished product...
, including fonts and text effects like bold,
underlineAn underline, also called an underscore, is one or more horizontal lines immediately below a portion of writing. Single, and occasionally double , underlining was originally used in hand-written or typewritten documents to emphasise text...
, and
italicsIn typography, italic type is a cursive typeface based on a stylized form of calligraphic handwriting. Owing to the influence from calligraphy, such typefaces often slant slightly to the right. Different glyph shapes from roman type are also usually used—another influence from calligraphy...
. The previous text-based versions used different colors or text color inversions to indicate various markups, and (starting with version 5.0) used a graphic mode only for an uneditable print preview that used generic fonts rather than the actual fonts that appeared on the printed page.
Key characteristics
To this day, WordPerfect's three major characteristics that have differentiated it from other market-leading word processors are its streaming code architecture, its Reveal Codes feature, and its unusually user-friendly macro/scripting language, PerfectScript.
The ease of use of tools like 'Merge' (combine form documents with data from any data source), 'Print as booklet' and tables (with spreadsheet capabilities and possibility to generate graphs) are also remarkable.
The concept of the WordPerfect document format allows continuous extending of functionality without jeopardizing backwards and forward compatibility. Despite the fact that the newer version is extremely rich in functionality, WordPerfect X5 documents are fully compatible with WordPerfect 6.0a documents in both directions. The older program simply ignores the 'unknown' property while rendering the known elements of the document. WordPerfect users were never forced to upgrade for compatibility reasons, for more than two decades.
Streaming code architecture
A key to WordPerfect's design is its streaming code architecture that parallels the formatting features of
HTMLHyperText Markup Language is the predominant markup language for web pages. HTML elements are the basic building-blocks of webpages....
and
Cascading Style SheetsCascading Style Sheets is a style sheet language used to describe the presentation semantics of a document written in a markup language...
. Documents are created much the same way that raw HTML pages are written, with text interspersed by tags (called "codes") that trigger treatment of data until a corresponding closing tag is encountered, at which point the settings active to the point of the opening tag resume control. As with HTML, tags can be nested. Some data structures are treated as objects within the stream as with HTML's treatment of graphic images, e.g., footnotes and styles, but the bulk of a WordPerfect document's data and formatting codes appear as a single continuous stream. A difference between HTML tags and WordPerfect codes is that HTML codes can all be expressed as a string of plain text characters delimited by greater-than and less-than characters, e.g. <bold>text</bold> whereas WordPerfect formatting codes consist of
hexadecimalIn mathematics and computer science, hexadecimal is a positional numeral system with a radix, or base, of 16. It uses sixteen distinct symbols, most often the symbols 0–9 to represent values zero to nine, and A, B, C, D, E, F to represent values ten to fifteen...
characters.
Styles and style libraries
The addition of styles and style libraries in WP 5.0 provided greatly increased power and flexibility in formatting documents, while maintaining the streaming-code architecture of earlier versions. Prior to that, WordPerfect's only use of styles (a particular type of programming object) was the Opening Style, which contained the default settings for a document.
After the purchase of the desktop publishing program Ventura, Corel enhanced the WordPerfect styles editor and styles behavior with the majority of Ventura's capabilities. This improved the usability and performance of graphic elements like text boxes, document styles, footer and header styles.
Since WordPerfect has been enriched with properties from CorelDraw Graphics suite, graphic styles are editable. The Graphics Styles editor enables customizing the appearance of boxes, borders, lines and fills and store the customized design for reuse. The possibilities include patterns and color gradients for fills; corner, endpoint, pen-type and thickness for lines. Box styles can be used as container style, including a border, lines, fill, text and caption; each with its separate style. A text box style shows that WordPerfect cascades its styles.
Around the same time Corel included WordPerfect, with its full functionality, in CorelDraw Graphics Suite as the text editor.
Reveal codes
The Reveal Codes feature is a second editing screen that can be toggled open and closed at the bottom of the main editing screen. Text is displayed in Reveal Codes interspersed with tags and the occasional objects, with the tags and objects represented by named tokens. The scheme makes it far easier to untangle coding messes than with styles-based word processors, and object tokens can be clicked with a pointing device to directly open the configuration editor for the particular object type, e.g. clicking on a style token brings up the style editor with the particular style type displayed. WordPerfect users forced to change word processors by employers frequently complain on WordPerfect on-line forums that they are lost without Reveal Codes. Because of their style dependencies, efforts to create the equivalent of Reveal Codes in other word processors have produced dissimilar results. Note that WordPerfect had this feature already in its DOS incarnations: it could be brought forward by pressing the keys
AltThe Alt key on a computer keyboard is used to change the function of other pressed keys. Thus, the Alt key is a modifier key, used in a similar fashion to the Shift key. For example, simply pressing "A" will type the letter a, but if you hold down either Alt key while pressing A, the computer...
and
F3A function key is a key on a computer or terminal keyboard which can be programmed so as to cause an operating system command interpreter or application program to perform certain actions...
together.
Macro languages
WordPerfect for DOS was notable for its
Alt- Abbreviations :* Altbier, German beer* Alternate route, a type of highway designation* Alternate character, in online gaming* Alternative rock* Altitude* Altimeter- Acronyms :* Alanine transaminase, a liver enzyme...
-keystroke macro facility, which was expanded with the addition of macro libraries in WP 5.0 that also allowed for Ctrl-keystroke macros, and remapping of any key as a macro. This enabled any sequence of keystrokes to be recorded, saved, edited, and recalled. Macros could examine system data, make decisions, be chained together, and operate recursively until a defined 'stop' condition was met. This capability provided an amazingly powerful way to rearrange data and formatting codes within a document, where the same sequence of actions needed to be performed repetitively, e.g., for tabular data. Macros can also be edited using WordPerfect Program Editor. This facility, however, could not be ported easily to the subsequent Windows versions.
A new and even more powerful interpreted token-based macro recording and scripting language was introduced for both DOS and Windows 6.0 versions, and that became the basis of the language named PerfectScript in later versions. PerfectScript has remained the mainstay scripting language for WordPerfect users ever since. PerfectScript was designed specifically to be user-friendly, thus avoiding far less user-friendly methods of scripting languages implemented on other word processing programs that require education in advanced programming concepts such as Object Oriented Programming in order to produce useful yet sophisticated and powerful macros.
An important property of WordPerfect macros is that they are not embedded in a document. As a result, WordPerfect is not prone to
macro virusesIn computing terminology, a macro virus is a virus that is written in a macro language: that is to say, a language built into a software application such as a word processor...
or
malwareMalware, short for malicious software, consists of programming that is designed to disrupt or deny operation, gather information that leads to loss of privacy or exploitation, or gain unauthorized access to system resources, or that otherwise exhibits abusive behavior...
, unlike MS Word. Despite the term "macro", the language has hundreds of commands and functions and in fact creates full-fledged programs resident on and executed on the user's computer. In WPDOS 6 the source code is generated using the same interface used to edit documents. A WordPerfect macro can create or modify a document or perform tasks such as displaying results of a calculation such as taking a date input, adding a specific number of days and displaying the new date in a dialog box. Documents created or edited by a WordPerfect macro are no different from those produced by manual input; the macros simply improve efficiency or automate repetitive tasks and also enabled creating content-rich document types which would hardly be feasible manually.
What makes the PerfectScript macro language especially versatile, is its ability to deploy every function that exists in the entire office suite; no matter if that function was designed for WordPerfect, Quattro Pro or Presentations. The macro development wizard presents and explains all of these functions.
The amazing amount of functions available through PerfectScript is unparalleled in the office market.
On top of the functions available in the main components of the office suite, PerfectScript also provides the user with tools to build dialogs and forms. Widgets like buttons, input fields, drop-down lists and labels are easily combined to build user friendly interfaces to custom office applications.
An example: a Dutch housing company (VZOS, Den Haag, several thousands of apartments) had its mutation administration build with WordPerfect.
Beginning with WordPerfect Office 10, the suite also included the Microsoft Office Visual Basic macro language as an alternative, meant to improve compatibility of the suite with Microsoft Office documents.
Function keys
Like its mid-1980s competitor,
MultiMateMultiMate was a word processor developed by Softword Systems Inc. for IBM PC MS-DOS computers in the early 1980s. Wilton H. Jones, a programmer turned entrepreneur MultiMate was a word processor developed by Softword Systems Inc. (later renamed Multimate International) for IBM PC MS-DOS computers...
, WordPerfect used almost every possible combination of
function keyA function key is a key on a computer or terminal keyboard which can be programmed so as to cause an operating system command interpreter or application program to perform certain actions...
s with
CtrlCTRL may refer to several things:*Channel Tunnel Rail Link, a high-speed railway line opened in the 2000s in Britain*Control key, an input button present on most computer keyboards*Ctrl, an American comedy web series from NBC...
,
AltThe Alt key on a computer keyboard is used to change the function of other pressed keys. Thus, the Alt key is a modifier key, used in a similar fashion to the Shift key. For example, simply pressing "A" will type the letter a, but if you hold down either Alt key while pressing A, the computer...
, and
ShiftThe shift key is a modifier key on a keyboard, used to type capital letters and other alternate "upper" characters. There are typically two shift keys, on the left and right sides of the row below the home row...
modifiers. (
See example help screen on this pageWordPerfect 4.1 for DOS was released in 1985.WordPerfect 4.1 for Atari ST and Commodore Amiga was released in 1987. WordPerfect is known for its clean, uncluttered interface....
.) This was in contrast to early versions of
WordStarWordStar is a word processor application, published by MicroPro International, originally written for the CP/M operating system but later ported to DOS, that enjoyed a dominant market share during the early to mid-1980s. Although Seymour I...
, which used only Ctrl, in conjunction with traditional typing keys. Many people still know and use the
function keyA function key is a key on a computer or terminal keyboard which can be programmed so as to cause an operating system command interpreter or application program to perform certain actions...
combinations from the DOS version, which were originally designed for Data General Dasher VDUs that supported two groups of five plain, shift, control, and control shift function keys. This was translated to the layout of the 1981
IBM PC keyboardThe keyboards for IBM PC compatible computers are standardized. However, during the 3-plus decades of PC architecture being constantly updated, multiple types of keyboard layout variations have been developed....
, with two columns of function keys at the left end of the keyboard, but worked even better with the 1984 PC
AT keyboardThe AT keyboard was a keyboard with 84 keys introduced with the IBM PC/AT computer. It succeeded the 83-key PC/XT keyboard and therefore did not have many of the features seen on modern keyboards such as arrow keys and dual ctrl and alt keys. It was later replaced with the 101-key Enhanced keyboard...
with three groups of four function keys across the top of the keyboard. With the 1981 PC keyboard, the
Tab keyTab key on a keyboard is used to advance the cursor to the next tab stop.- Origin :The word tab derives from the word tabulate, which means "to arrange data in a tabular, or table, form"...
and the related F4 (
Indent) functions were adjacent. This plethora of keystroke possibilities, combined with the developers' wish to keep the user interface free of "clutter" such as on-screen menus, made it necessary for most users to use a keyboard template showing each function. WordPerfect used F3 instead of F1 for
Help, F1 instead of Esc for
Cancel, and Esc for
Repeat (though a configuration option in later versions allowed these functions to be rotated to locations that later became more standard).
Printer drivers
WordPerfect for DOS shipped with an impressive array of
printer driverIn computers, a printer driver or a print processor is a piece of software that converts the data to be printed to the form specific to a printer...
s — a feature that played an important role in its adoption — and also shipped with a
printer driverIn computers, a printer driver or a print processor is a piece of software that converts the data to be printed to the form specific to a printer...
editor called PTR, which features a flexible macro language and allows technically inclined users to customize and create printer drivers.
Internally, WordPerfect used an extensive WordPerfect character set as its
internal codeThe term internal code is a word-for-word translation of the Chinese term neima . The term is primarily used by Chinese people....
. The precise meaning of the characters, although clearly defined and documented, can be overridden in its customizable printer drivers with PTR.
The relationship between different type faces and styles, and between them and the various sections in the WordPerfect character set, were also described in the printer drivers and can be customized through PTR.
An interesting feature of the DOS 5.0 version was its Type-Through feature. It allowed a user with certain compatible printers to use Word Perfect as a conventional typewriter. This functionality was removed in the DOS 5.1 version. (Word Perfect Made Easy, Mincberg, 1990, p485)
WordPerfect Library/Office
WordPerfect Corporation produced a variety of ancillary and spin-off products. WordPerfect Library (introduced in 1986 and later renamed
WordPerfect OfficeWordPerfect Office is an office suite developed by Corel Corporation. As of March 2010, the latest version is WordPerfect Office X5 , which is available in three editions: Home & Student, Standard and Professional....
) was a package of network and stand-alone utilities for use with WordPerfect, primarily developed for offices running
Novell NetWareNetWare is a network operating system developed by Novell, Inc. It initially used cooperative multitasking to run various services on a personal computer, with network protocols based on the archetypal Xerox Network Systems stack....
. WordPerfect Library/Office included the DOS antecedents of what is now known as
Novell GroupWiseGroupWise is a messaging and collaborative software platform from Novell that supports email, calendaring, personal information management, instant messaging, and document management. The platform consists of the client software, which is available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, and the server...
, a shareable package of contact management, calendaring, and related word processing utilities. WordPerfect Library/Office — a brand name later revived by Corel after it acquired ownership of WordPerfect and other programs still bundled under that product name as of this writing — included amongst other utilities a local area network (LAN) email facility, and was the most popular such package in its day.
LetterPerfect
In 1990 WordPerfect Corporation also offered LetterPerfect, which was a reduced-functionality version of WP-DOS 5.1 intended as an entry-level product for students and home users. It did not support macros, tables, labels, sorting, equation editing or styles. It sold for about US$100 but did not catch on and was soon discontinued.
History
WordPerfect was late in coming to market with a Windows version. The first mature version, WordPerfect 5.2 for Windows, was released in November 1992. Prior to that, there was a WordPerfect 5.1 for Windows, introduced a year earlier. That version had to be installed from DOS and was largely unpopular due to serious stability issues. By the time WordPerfect 5.2 for Windows was introduced,
Microsoft Word for WindowsMicrosoft Word is a word processor designed by Microsoft. It was first released in 1983 under the name Multi-Tool Word for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other platforms including IBM PCs running DOS , the Apple Macintosh , the AT&T Unix PC , Atari ST , SCO UNIX,...
version 2 had been on the market for over a year and had received its third interim release, v2.0c.
WordPerfect's function-key-centered user interface did not adapt well to the new paradigm of mouse and pull-down menus, especially with many of WordPerfect's standard key combinations pre-empted by incompatible keyboard shortcuts that Windows itself used; for example, Alt-F4 became
Exit Program, as opposed to WordPerfect's
Block Text. The DOS version's impressive arsenal of finely tuned printer drivers was also rendered obsolete by Windows' use of its own printer device drivers.
Internally, WordPerfect for Windows still used the WordPerfect character set as its internal code. This caused WordPerfect for Windows to be unable to support some languages — for example
ChineseThe Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
— that were natively supported by Windows.
WordPerfect Office Suite
WordPerfect became part of an
office suiteIn computing, an office suite, sometimes called an office software suite or productivity suite is a collection of programs intended to be used by knowledge workers...
when the company entered into a co-licensing agreement with
Borland Software CorporationBorland Software Corporation is a software company first headquartered in Scotts Valley, California, Cupertino, California and finally Austin, Texas. It is now a Micro Focus subsidiary. It was founded in 1983 by Niels Jensen, Ole Henriksen, Mogens Glad and Philippe Kahn.-The 1980s:...
in 1993. The offerings were marketed as Borland Office, containing Windows versions of WordPerfect,
Quattro ProQuattro Pro is a spreadsheet program developed by Borland and now sold by Corel, most often as part of Corel's WordPerfect Office.Historically, Quattro Pro used keyboard commands similar to Lotus 1-2-3. It is commonly said to have been the first program to use tabbed sheets. Actually, Boeing Calc...
, Borland Paradox, and a LAN-based groupware package called WordPerfect Office (not to be confused with the complete applications suite of the same name later marketed by Corel).
Originally based on the WordPerfect Library for DOS, the Novell / WordPerfect Office suite was integrated by 'middleware'. The most important 'middleware'-suite, still active in current versions of WordPerfect Office, is called PerfectFit (developed by WordPerfect). The other 'middleware' (developed by Novell) was called AppWare.
Novell buys WordPerfect Company
The WordPerfect product line was sold twice, first to
NovellNovell, Inc. is a multinational software and services company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Attachmate Group. It specializes in network operating systems, such as Novell NetWare; systems management solutions, such as Novell ZENworks; and collaboration solutions, such as Novell Groupwise...
in June 1994, who then sold it to
CorelCorel Corporation from the abbreviation is a computer software company headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, that specializes in graphics processing, similar to Adobe Systems...
in January 1996. However, Novell kept the WordPerfect Office technology, incorporating it into its GroupWise messaging and collaboration product.
Microsoft vs Novell
Compounding WordPerfect's troubles were issues associated with the release of the first
32-bitOn the x86 architecture, a 32-bit application normally means software that typically uses the 32-bit linear address space possible with the 80386 and later chips...
version, WordPerfect 7, intended for use on
Windows 95Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. It was released on August 24, 1995 by Microsoft, and was a significant progression from the company's previous Windows products...
. In the lawsuit
'Novell v. Microsoft', Novell argued that these problems were due to anti competitive acts by Microsoft.
While WordPerfect 7 contained notable improvements over the
16-bitA 16 bit application is any software written for MS-DOS, OS/2 1.x or early versions of Microsoft Windows which originally ran on the 16-bit Intel 8088 and Intel 80286 microprocessors. Such applications used a 20-bit or 24-bit segment or selector-offset address representation to extend the range of...
WordPerfect for Windows 6.1, it was released in May 1996, nine months after the introduction of Windows 95 and Microsoft Office 95 (including Word 95). The initial release suffered from notable stability problems. WordPerfect 7 also did not have a Microsoft "Designed for Windows 95" logo. This was important to Windows 95 software purchasers as Microsoft set standards for application design, behavior, and interaction with the operating system. To make matters worse, the original release of WordPerfect 7 was incompatible with
Windows NTWindows NT is a family of operating systems produced by Microsoft, the first version of which was released in July 1993. It was a powerful high-level-language-based, processor-independent, multiprocessing, multiuser operating system with features comparable to Unix. It was intended to complement...
, hindering its adoption in academia. The "NT Enabled" version of WordPerfect 7, which Corel considered to be Service Pack 2, was not available until Q1-1997, over six months after the introduction of
Windows NT 4.0Windows NT 4.0 is a preemptive, graphical and business-oriented operating system designed to work with either uniprocessor or symmetric multi-processor computers. It was the next release of Microsoft's Windows NT line of operating systems and was released to manufacturing on 31 July 1996...
, a year and a half after the introduction of Office 95 (which supported Windows NT out of the box), and shortly after the introduction of Office 97.
Market share
While WordPerfect retained a majority of the retail shelf sales of word processors, Microsoft gained market share by including
Word for WindowsMicrosoft Word is a word processor designed by Microsoft. It was first released in 1983 under the name Multi-Tool Word for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other platforms including IBM PCs running DOS , the Apple Macintosh , the AT&T Unix PC , Atari ST , SCO UNIX,...
in its Windows product on new PCs. Microsoft gave discounts for Windows to OEMs who included Word on their PCs. When new PC buyers found Word installed on their new PC, Word began to dominate market share of desktop word processing.
Application integration and middleware
While Microsoft offered something that looked like a fully integrated office suite in
Microsoft OfficeMicrosoft Office is a non-free commercial office suite of inter-related desktop applications, servers and services for the Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, introduced by Microsoft in August 1, 1989. Initially a marketing term for a bundled set of applications, the first version of...
, a common complaint about early Windows versions of WordPerfect Office was that it looked like a collection of separate applications from different vendors cobbled together, with inconsistent user interfaces from one application to another.
In fact, enabling applications from various software developers working together on every platform was part of the Novell strategy. Novell had acquired WordPerfect for Windows from WordPerfect Corporation, Paradox from Borland, and various peripheral utilities from other companies and had started to evangelize the Novell 'middleware' -
Appware - as a means for others to run their programs on every operating system. This 'middleware' strategy would make software vendors and customers independent from operating system vendors, like Microsoft, thus posing a real threat.
Contrary to Microsoft with its MS Office however, starting with WordPerfect Office 9, Corel successfully integrated the components of WordPerfect Office almost seamless. PerfectScript and the middleware PerfectFit play the major role here. Elements of applications like CorelDraw and Ventura desktop publishing were also integrated and enriched the document format.
Faithful customers
Among the remaining avid users of WordPerfect are many law firms and academics, who favor WordPerfect features such as macros and reveal codes, the ability to access a large range of formatting options such as left-right block indent directly with key combinations rather than having to click through several layers of submenus as MS Word often requires, the fact that the user interface has stayed almost identical from WPWin 6 through WP X5 (2010) and that file formats have not changed, as incompatible new formats would require keeping both obsolete software versions and obsolete hardware around just to access a few old documents. Corel now caters to these markets, with, for example, a major sale to the
United States Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
in 2005.
Antitrust lawsuit Novell against Microsoft
In November 2004, Novell filed an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft for alleged anti-competitive behavior (viz, tying Word to sales of Windows) that Novell claims led to loss of WordPerfect market share.. That law suit, after several delays, is continuing as of November 2011.
.
The documents, filed in this lawsuit, display abundant information on the essence, importance, history and development of WordPerfect
Corel WordPerfect
Since its acquisition by
CorelCorel Corporation from the abbreviation is a computer software company headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, that specializes in graphics processing, similar to Adobe Systems...
, WordPerfect for Windows has officially been known as
Corel WordPerfect. Unlike MS-Word, it is not available as a standalone product and is only available as part of WordPerfect Office, which includes the Quattro Pro spreadsheet and Corel Presentations programs.
Unicode and Asian language editing
WordPerfect lacks support for
UnicodeUnicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...
, which limits its usefulness in many markets outside North America and Western Europe. Despite pleas from long-time users, this feature has not yet been implemented.
For users in WordPerfect's traditional markets, the inability to deal with complex character sets, such as Asian language scripts, can cause difficulty when working on documents containing those characters. However, later versions have provided better compliance with interface conventions, file compatibility, and even Word interface emulation.
"Classic Mode"
Corel added "Classic Mode" in WordPerfect 11. Although this displays the "classic" cyan Courier text on medium blue background, it is not a true emulation of the DOS version. For instance, WP-DOS 5.x macros literally recorded keystrokes. WP-DOS 6 and WPWin record functionality instead. As an example, a WP-DOS 5 macro could search for particular text, turn select-mode on, and then search backward or forward for other text. Everything from the turn-on location to the new location would be highlighted and could then be deleted, copied, replaced, etc. This behavior and functionality has not yet been replicated in any Windows based version of WordPerfect.
WordPerfect for Macintosh
Development of WordPerfect for Macintosh did not run parallel to versions for other operating systems, and used version numbers unconnected to contemporary releases for DOS, Windows, etc. The first release reminded users and reviewers of the DOS version, and was not especially successful in the marketplace. Version 2 was a total re-write, adhering more closely to Apple's UI guidelines. Version 3 took this further, making extensive use of the technologies Apple introduced in Systems 7.0–7.5, while remaining fast and capable of running well on older machines. Corel released version 3.5 in 1996, followed by the improved version 3.5e. It was never updated beyond that, and the product was eventually discontinued. , Corel has reiterated that the company has no plans to further develop WordPerfect for Macintosh (such as creating a native Mac OS X version).
For several years, Corel allowed Mac users to download version 3.5e from their website free of charge, and some Mac users still use this version. The download is still available at
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/wordperfectmac/, along with the necessary OS 8/9/Classic Updater that slows scroll speed and restores functionality to the Style and Window menus. Like other Mac OS applications of its age, it requires the Classic environment on
PowerPCPowerPC is a RISC architecture created by the 1991 Apple–IBM–Motorola alliance, known as AIM...
Macs. While Intel Macs do not support Classic, emulators such as
SheepShaverSheepShaver is an open source PowerPC Apple Macintosh emulator originally designed for BeOS and Linux. The name is a play on ShapeShifter, a Macintosh II emulator for AmigaOS , which is in turn not to be confused with a third-party preference pane for Mac OS X with the same name...
,
Basilisk IIBasilisk II is an open source software emulator which emulates the 680x0-based Apple Macintosh computer on a variety of operating systems, including BeOS, Linux, AmigaOS, Windows NT, Mac OS X and even on the Sony PSP....
and
vMacvMac was an open source emulator for Mac OS, Windows, MS-DOS, OS/2, NeXTSTEP, Linux / Unix, and other platforms. Although vMac has been abandoned, Mini vMac, an improved spinoff of vMac, is currently developed. vMac and Mini vMac emulate a Macintosh Plus and can run Apple Macintosh System versions...
allow users to run WordPerfect on any Macintosh computer. Users wishing to use a current release of WordPerfect can run the Windows version through Boot Camp or a Windows emulator, and through
DarwineDarwine was a port of the Wine libraries to Darwin and Mac OS X . The Darwine project intended to port and develop Wine as well as other supporting tools that would allow Darwin and Mac OS X users to run Windows applications and to provide a Win32 API compatibility at application source code...
or CrossOver Mac with mixed results.
WordPerfect for Atari ST
Like the Macintosh version, development of WordPerfect for the Atari ST did not run parallel to the DOS versions. However the Atari ST version number aligned with contemporary DOS releases. In 1987, WordPerfect Corp. released version 4.1. This was the only Atari version ever released, but numerous patches and updates ensured that the Atari version of WordPerfect ran on all Atari ST, STe, TT, and Falcon computers.
WordPerfect ST differs from the DOS version most notably in speed and number of windows a user can open. On the Atari ST version, a user can open up to 4 windows (compared to DOS' 2) and the application runs 3 to 5 times faster than the DOS version (depending on which update or patch the user has). This was possible because WordPerfect for the Atari ST was designed from the ground up and was optimized for the
Motorola 68000The Motorola 68000 is a 16/32-bit CISC microprocessor core designed and marketed by Freescale Semiconductor...
processor as well as Atari's GEM (
Graphical Environment ManagerGEM was a windowing system created by Digital Research, Inc. for use with the CP/M operating system on the Intel 8088 and Motorola 68000 microprocessors...
) operating system.
WordPerfect for the Atari ST retailed at US$395 with a student version for US$99. The price of WordPerfect was significantly higher than most of the other Atari word processors available at the time. Atari Corporation published a version of Microsoft Write (the Atari version of
Microsoft WordMicrosoft Word is a word processor designed by Microsoft. It was first released in 1983 under the name Multi-Tool Word for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other platforms including IBM PCs running DOS , the Apple Macintosh , the AT&T Unix PC , Atari ST , SCO UNIX,...
1.05 for the Macintosh) for US$129.95 (almost 3/4 off the suggested retail price of WordPerfect), which did not help WordPerfect's campaign to establish itself as the standard word processor on the Atari platform. In 1988 WordPerfect had plans to abandon the ST market after versions of the word processor were found on several pirate bulletin board systems.
A WordPerfect 5.1 version for the Atari ST was planned and in development but was later cancelled.
WordPerfect for the Amiga
In 1987 WordPerfect was ported to the
Amiga 1000The A1000, or Commodore Amiga 1000, was Commodore's initial Amiga personal computer, introduced on July 23, 1985 at the Lincoln Center in New York City....
and was upgraded through version 4.1 on the
AmigaThe Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
platform despite rumors of its discontinuation. The company's efforts were not well supported by Amiga users and it did not sell well. Though it could be started from either the
WorkbenchA workbench is sturdy table at which manual work is done. They range from simple flat surfaces to very complex designs that may be considered tools in themselves. Workbenches vary in size from tiny jewelers benches to the huge benches used by staircase makers...
or
CLI-Computing:* Command-line interface, sending commands to a computer by text typed into a command-line interpreter .* Call Level Interface, an SQL database management API...
, it remained a fundamentally text-oriented program and retained its DOS command structure. Satellite Software received criticism for releasing a non-graphical word processor on a graphically oriented system. Amiga WordPerfect was discontinued in 1992
WordPerfect for Linux
In 1995, WordPerfect 6.0 was made available for
LinuxLinux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
as part of
CalderaCaldera was a US-based software company founded in 1994 to develop Linux- and DOS-based operating system products.- Caldera :Caldera, Inc...
's internet office package. In late 1997, a newer version was made available for download, but had to be purchased to be activated.
In 1998 Corel released WordPerfect 8.0 for Linux. The full version was sold as a package. A cut-down version was made available for downloading.
Hoping to establish themselves in the nascent commercial Linux market, Corel also developed their
own distributionCorel Linux, also called Corel LinuxOS, was a Debian-based operating system made by Corel that was released in late 1999. Corel later discontinued the distribution, but did not remove the former Corel Open Source Development website until March 2002....
of Linux. This included WordPerfect 8.1 for Linux. Although the Linux distribution was fairly well-received, the response to WordPerfect for Linux was varied. Some Linux promoters appreciated the availability of a well-known, mainstream application for the operating system.
Once
OpenOffice.orgOpenOffice.org, commonly known as OOo or OpenOffice, is an open-source application suite whose main components are for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. OpenOffice is available for a number of different computer operating systems, is distributed as free software...
appeared in 1999, there was little sympathy for a proprietary, closed-source project like WordPerfect. On top of this, WordPerfect 9.0, which was released as part of the WordPerfect Office 2000 for Linux package, was not a native Linux application like WP 6-8, but derived from the Windows version using Corel's own version of the
WineWine is a free software application that aims to allow computer programs written for Microsoft Windows to run on Unix-like operating systems. Wine also provides a software library, known as Winelib, against which developers can compile Windows applications to help port them to Unix-like...
compatibility library, and hence had serious performance problems.
WordPerfect failed to gain a large user base, and as part of Corel's change of strategic direction following a (non-voting) investment by Microsoft, WordPerfect for Linux was discontinued and their Linux distribution was sold to
XandrosXandros is the name of both a line of operating systems and Xandros Corporation, the company which creates them. Xandros Desktop was a Linux distribution. The name Xandros is derived from the X Window System and the Greek island of Andros....
. In April 2004, Corel re-released WordPerfect 8.1 (the last Linux-native version) with some updates, as a "proof of concept" and to test the Linux market. , WordPerfect for Linux is not available for purchase.
Versions
| Year | Data General | DOS | Apple II | Atari ST | Amiga | VAX/VMS | Macintosh | NeXT | Windows | Unix | Linux | Java |
| 1980 |
1.0 |
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1981 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1982 |
2.0 |
2.2 |
|
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1983 |
|
3.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
|
| 1984 |
|
4.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1985 |
|
4.1 WordPerfect 4.1 for DOS was released in 1985.WordPerfect 4.1 for Atari ST and Commodore Amiga was released in 1987. WordPerfect is known for its clean, uncluttered interface....
|
1.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1986 |
|
4.2 |
1.1 / 2.0 |
|
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|
| 1987 |
|
|
|
4.1 WordPerfect 4.1 for DOS was released in 1985.WordPerfect 4.1 for Atari ST and Commodore Amiga was released in 1987. WordPerfect is known for its clean, uncluttered interface....
|
4.1 |
4.1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1988 |
4.2 |
5.0 |
|
|
|
4.2, Office* |
1.0 – 1.0.7 |
|
|
4.2 |
|
|
| 1989 |
?* |
5.1 |
2.1e (final) |
|
|
5.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1990 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
2.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
| 1991 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1.0.1 |
5.1 |
|
|
|
| 1992 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
2.1 |
|
5.2 |
5.1 |
|
|
| 1993 |
|
6.0 |
|
|
|
|
3.0 |
|
6.0 |
|
|
|
| 1994 |
|
5.1+ |
|
|
|
|
3.1 |
|
5.2+, 6.1 |
6.0 |
|
|
| 1995 |
|
6.1 |
|
|
|
|
3.5 |
|
|
|
|
|
| 1996 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7.0 (32-bit) |
|
6.0 |
|
| 1997 |
|
6.2 |
|
|
|
|
3.5e |
|
8.0, 7.0 (16-bit) |
|
|
WordPerfect for Java |
| 1998 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7.0 |
8.0 |
|
| 1999 |
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
9.0* |
|
8.1 |
|
| 2000 |
|
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|
|
9.0 |
|
| 2001 |
|
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|
10.0* |
|
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|
| 2003 |
|
|
|
|
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11.0* |
|
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| 2004 |
|
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12.0* |
|
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|
| 2006 |
|
|
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|
|
X3* (13.0) |
|
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|
| 2008 |
|
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X4* (14.0) |
|
|
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| 2010 |
|
|
|
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|
|
|
|
X5* (15.0) |
|
|
|
(*Part of
WordPerfect OfficeWordPerfect Office is an office suite developed by Corel Corporation. As of March 2010, the latest version is WordPerfect Office X5 , which is available in three editions: Home & Student, Standard and Professional....
)
Known versions for VAX/VMS include 5.1, 5.3 and 7.1, year of release unknown.
Known versions for SUN include 6.0, requiring SunOS or Solaris 2, year of release unknown.
Known versions for IBM System/370 include 4.2, released 1988.
Known versions for OS/2 include 5.0, released 1989, and 5.2, released 1993.
Known versions for the DEC Rainbow 100 include version (?), released November 1983.
In addition, versions of WordPerfect have also been available for Apricot, DEC Rainbow, Tandy 2000, TI Professional, Victor 9000, and Zenith Z-100 systems, as well as around 30 flavors of Unix, including AT&T, NCR, SCO Xenix, Microport Unix, DEC Ultrix, Pyramid Tech Unix, Tru64, AIX, Motorola 8000, and HP9000 and SUN 3.
Current versions
On January 17, 2006, Corel announced WordPerfect X3. Corel is an original member of the
OASISThe Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards is a global consortium that drives the development, convergence and adoption of e-business and web service standards...
Technical Committee on the
OpenDocumentThe Open Document Format for Office Applications is an XML-based file format for representing electronic documents such as spreadsheets, charts, presentations and word processing documents....
Format, and Paul Langille, a senior Corel developer, is one of the original four authors of the OpenDocument specification.
In January 2006, subscribers to Corel's electronic newsletter were informed that WordPerfect 13 was scheduled for release later in 2006. The subsequent release of X3 (identified as "13" internally and in registry entries) has been met with generally positive reviews, due to new features including a unique PDF import capability,
metadata removal toolMetadata removal tool or Metadata scrubber is a type of privacy software built to protect the privacy of its users by removing potentially privacy-compromising metadata from files before they are shared with others Metadata removal tool or Metadata scrubber is a type of privacy software built to...
s, integrated search and online resources and other features.
Version X3 was described by
CNETCNET is a tech media website that publishes news articles, blogs, and podcasts on technology and consumer electronics. Originally founded in 1994 by Halsey Minor and Shelby Bonnie, it was the flagship brand of CNET Networks and became a brand of CBS Interactive through CNET Networks' acquisition...
in January, 2006 as a "winner", "a feature-packed productivity suite that's just as easy to use — and in many ways more innovative than — industry-goliath Microsoft Office 2003." CNET went on to describe X3 as "a solid upgrade for long-time users", but that "Die-hard Microsoft fans may want to wait to see what Redmond has up its sleeve with the radical changes expected within the upcoming Microsoft Office 12."
While the notable if incremental enhancements of WordPerfect Office X3 have been well received by reviewers, a number of online forums have voiced concern about the future direction of WordPerfect, with long-time users complaining about certain usability and functionality issues that users have been asking to have fixed for the last few release versions.
Although the released version of X3 at the time did not support the OOXML or
OpenDocumentThe Open Document Format for Office Applications is an XML-based file format for representing electronic documents such as spreadsheets, charts, presentations and word processing documents....
formats, a beta was released that supported both.
Reports surfaced late in January 2006 that Apple's
iWorkiWork is an office suite of desktop applications created by Apple for the Mac OS X and iOS operating systems. The first version of iWork, iWork '05, was released in 2005. The suite originally bundled Keynote, a presentation program which had previously been sold as a standalone application, and...
had leapfrogged WordPerfect Office as the leading alternative to Microsoft Office. This claim was soon debunked after industry analyst Joe Wilcox described JupiterResearch usage surveys that showed WordPerfect as the No. 2 office suite behind Microsoft Office in the consumer, small and medium businesses, and enterprise markets with a roughly 15 percent share in each market.
In April 2008 Corel released their WordPerfect Office X4
office suiteIn computing, an office suite, sometimes called an office software suite or productivity suite is a collection of programs intended to be used by knowledge workers...
containing the new X4 version of WordPerfect which includes support for PDF editing,
OpenDocumentThe Open Document Format for Office Applications is an XML-based file format for representing electronic documents such as spreadsheets, charts, presentations and word processing documents....
and Office Open XML. However, X4 does not include support for editing PDF's containing images in JPEG2000 format, a format used by
Adobe AcrobatAdobe Acrobat is a family of application software developed by Adobe Systems to view, create, manipulate, print and manage files in Portable Document Format . All members of the family, except Adobe Reader , are commercial software, while the latter is available as freeware and can be downloaded...
9.
In March 2010 Corel released their WordPerfect Office X5 office suite, which contains the new X5 version of WordPerfect. This version includes improved support for PDF, Microsoft Office 2007,
OpenDocumentThe Open Document Format for Office Applications is an XML-based file format for representing electronic documents such as spreadsheets, charts, presentations and word processing documents....
, and Office Open XML. The new release includes integration with Microsoft SharePoint and other web services geared towards government and business users.
See also
- Comparison of word processors
-General information:This table provides general information about selected word processors.-Characteristics:This table gives characteristics of each word processor.-Operating System Compatibility:...
- List of word processors
- Office Open XML software
This is an overview of software support for the Office Open XML format, a Microsoft document file format for saving and exchanging editable office documents.The list here is not exhaustive.-ECMA-376 1st edition implementations:...
- OpenDocument software
This is an overview of software support for the OpenDocument format, an open document file format for saving and exchanging editable office documents.-Current support:...
External links
- Corel home page
- WordPerfect Universe — a moderated, user-supported community of thousands of dedicated fans of WordPerfect, with forums where visitors can ask questions, read FAQs, tips, news, and more. Free to join.
- WordPerfect for DOS Updated — New printer drivers, updates, and added features for WordPerfect for DOS 5.1 and 6.x (with pages on WP on the Mac and Linux). All you need to know about WPDOS 5.1, 6.0, 6.1, and 6.2 on modern computers.
- WordPerfect Mac — free program download, hundreds of third-party files and links, support and discussion group for the Macintosh program, both PPC and Intel and any Mac OS version, using the SheepShaver
SheepShaver is an open source PowerPC Apple Macintosh emulator originally designed for BeOS and Linux. The name is a play on ShapeShifter, a Macintosh II emulator for AmigaOS , which is in turn not to be confused with a third-party preference pane for Mac OS X with the same name...
or Basilisk IIBasilisk II is an open source software emulator which emulates the 680x0-based Apple Macintosh computer on a variety of operating systems, including BeOS, Linux, AmigaOS, Windows NT, Mac OS X and even on the Sony PSP....
emulators
- WordPerfect vs. Word — detailed version-by-version, feature-by-feature comparison of Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word is a word processor designed by Microsoft. It was first released in 1983 under the name Multi-Tool Word for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other platforms including IBM PCs running DOS , the Apple Macintosh , the AT&T Unix PC , Atari ST , SCO UNIX,...
and WordPerfect
- "Almost Perfect", a book by W.E. "Pete" Peterson, chronicling the early history of WordPerfect Corporation and the WordPerfect program
- "How Did WordPerfect Go Wrong?" — A December 2007 InfoWorld
InfoWorld is an information technology online media and events business operating under the umbrella of InfoWorld Media Group, a division of IDG...
Gripe Line article and discussion on WordPerfect.
- WordPerfect Writer — Texts about WordPerfect.
- Barry MacDonnell's Toolbox for WordPerfect — Tips and trics.
- NovellvMSUtah2-302.pdf — 11/18/2011 - 302 - MEMORANDUM in Opposition re 297 MOTION for Judgment as a Matter of Law filed by Plaintiff Novell. (English, Maralyn) (Entered: 11/18/2011)