#ProWrite vs. excellence!
16 messages in this thread
I'll be buying an A3000 and DeskJet 500 next month, and would like
some advice on which word processor will give me the most flexibility and
quality on the DJ500. So far ProWrite and excellence! seem the best
programs, but the reviews don't go into much depth. Any thoughts?
Blaq!
Charles,
For both graphics and character based printing, ProWrite gives you more
much more flexibility than excellence.
For graphics printing, with ProWrite you can specify arbitrary enlargements
or reductions, which lets you do things like print using double (or more)
size fonts at 1/2 size (or less) for exceptional output using bitmap fonts.
For character printing, ProWrite lets you mix Pica, Elite, Condensed, and
wide printer fonts on the same page, whereas excellence limits you to a
single pitch for the entire document.
If you have any questions about ProWrite, we have a support section in the
AMIGAVENDOR forum. Feel free to ask any questions.
James Bayless
New Horizons Software, Inc.
I've got excellence! 2.0 at home (just out) and I'm fairly happy with it.
Only thing it won't do is wrap text around graphics. Other than that, it
can't be beat for writing aids: good spell-checker, built-in thesaurus AND
built-in grammar checker. New multi-font capabilities in 2.0, and there are
utilities to move stuff over to Postscript and to make use of metric fonts
through a conversion utility. I also use Professional Page and the two
marry very well. ProWrite I am not familiar with but also gets glowing
reviews.
Hmmmm. I'm having a real hard time figuring out which word processor
to buy. Especially since, although I haven't mentioned it, WordPerfect is
also in the picture; I know it well from the PC side and love the way it
lets me edit files with ease. The biggest problem is, I'll be buying a
Deskjet 500 and it seems like none of the 3 word processors supports it
that well. My guess is WordPerfect will give me the most support since I
just have to download the new drivers from WPSGB here on CIS, and it will
be able to deal with the Deskjet's proportional fonts — an important point
for me. I'd rather have great fonts on paper even if I don't see those
fonts onscreen. Of course, WYSIWYG is great too, especially if you can
print in 24-pin mode. Do excellence or ProWrite print out in 24-pin mode,
and does the DeskJet emulate 24-pin mode with the Epson cart?
I guess the main problem is, I'd like to have good font support
without having to invest in a desktop publishing program.
Blaq!
Excuse me for interupting but aren't you also on the Atari 8-bit
forum?
Leslie,
yeppers! I chose the 8-bit Atari in the early 80's because they had
the most interesting graphics hardware, and I'm now moving on to the Amiga
for the exact same reason.
Blaq! (sound familiar?)
So, what do you think of the Amiga and PC's? Like you I got an Atari (first
an 800, then a 130XE) because of their, then, advanced graphics. Given the
state of that market I'm thinking of an Amiga or, having just seen VGA
graphis on a 386 machine, maybe a PC clone. Any thoughts?
Best – Bruce P.
the answer was easier a year or two ago: Amiga all the way. These
days, however, all the cheap PC's have VGA capabilities which make HAM mode
almost look like our beloved 130XE. They all have speedy 386 chips and
cheap hard disks, and enough software to cover half the continent.
But if graphics is what you want, I believe the Amiga still holds a
slight edge. 3-D programs such as Imagine offer IFF brush wrapping, texture
mapping, even bump mapping for Heaven's sake! The machine is
well-integrated, the special chips still provide a performance edge and
above all, the Amiga has years of multitasking behind it. If I had to wait
another year, my decision might be different; but at this point, I'm buying
an Amiga. P.S. you want VGA graphics _and_ a blitter? Look into the HAM-E.
It provides high-quality graphics that come straight from the normal sreen
memory, so full-speed animation is supported. It's one way for your Amiga
to keep its edge.
Many Thanks. Would that I had the $$$ to buy both. I caught Computer
Cronicles today, about the Amiga 3000. It looks like the more "fun" machine
– you know, where you feel that whatever you want to do with it, the
computer will let you do it. The IBM is good, but always leaves me feeling
a little "flat", at least before VGA. I haven't done anything with a 386
or better with VGA so I don't know if that would still hold true.
Best – Bruce P.
Yes! I remember you now! Which Amiga did you buy? (Your reasoning
for buying an Amiga was the same as mine. I still love my Atari 8-bit but
the Amy is also something special.) One suggestion: Download WHAP! the CI$
terminal program. It will make life on ComupServe easier and cheaper!
Leslie,
I haven't bought an Amiga yet; next month is when I'll take the
plunge. And what a plunge it will be! I broke down and decided to get an
A3000. Some giant leap from the ole 8-bit, huh? 🙂
Blaq!
You certainly aren't doing this half hearted are you?!! <g> If you
buy any games for an A3000 try before you buy! Some games use short cuts
and won't run properly with a computer usig a 68030 CPU.
The DeskJet is supported. AmigaDos 1.3 has a DeskJet driver and there are
several PD and a commercial driver for DeskJet Plus which will also work
with the 500.
Steven,
the DeskJet drivers you refer to will basically give me
screen-resolution graphic dumps, no? What I meant was more along the lines
of a program which knows about the DeskJet's internal fonts and uses them
to their full extent. For example, WprdPerfect 5.0 on the PC knows about
the LaserJet's various font cartridges, its font width tables etc. so even
though you don't see the actual font onscreen, text placement and line
breaks will be the same as on the printed page. The document will print out
using the 300 DPI cartridge fonts. I'm hoping for that kind of support for
the Deskjet.
Of course, if the word processor also excels at mixing bitmap fonts
and graphics, so much the better. <wink>
Blaq!
Charles,
There's a commercial driver which, I believe, will do that. I
cannot recall the name, but they have a PD version (doesn't do that) called
BetterDJ. I think the company is Creative Solutions, or some such thing,
but if you check in the PD file, their name and address is provided. I
believe they have several other products for the HP printers. As far as
I'm aware, none of the PD drivers can select internal fonts other than
whatever is default from the printer's keyboard. The commercial driver
also boasts the ability to select from softfonts, as well.
Charles,
re msg 5056, I have excellence! 2.0 and I believe it can chang fonts
including point size and line spacing on a paragraph by paragraph basis,
not only for the entire document. Note that paragraphs are bouneded by
linefeeds (or carriage returns) and thus could acutally be used to set
fonts line by line.
wmc