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From: halp@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu (Bruce P. Halpern)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: appleworks: what is it?
Message-ID: <2085@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>
Date: Tue, 20-Jan-87 15:03:52 EST
Article-I.D.: batcompu.2085
Posted: Tue Jan 20 15:03:52 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 21-Jan-87 22:08:58 EST
References: <8701191307.aa00354@SPARK.BRL.ARPA>
Reply-To: halp@batcomputer.UUCP (Bruce P. Halpern)
Organization: Theory Center, Cornell University, Ithaca NY
Lines: 41

Sender:B.P. Halpern, Psychology and Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell, Ithaca


In article <8701191307.aa00354@SPARK.BRL.ARPA> LYMAN@IASSNS.BITNET writes:
>I have figured out that it is an integrated spreadsheet, word processor,
>and that it has more accessories than your average cuisinart.  What I'd
>like to know is:
>
>1) How does it's word processor compare with my old favorites such as
>emacs (absolute favorite) vi, or the Apple Pascal editor.
>

If you use the normal Pascal editor, even v1.3, AppleWorks will be a big 
improvement. If you use Volition System's ASE 1.0 modification of the 
Pascal editor (which unfortunately won't run under V1.3), there are fewer 
improvements, and some loses with vanilla AppleWorks 2.0. However, by adding 
macros and a mouse thru a program such as SuperMacroWorks (Appleworks 2.0 
only; use MacroWorks for earlier versions), a rather good word processor 
results.

[By the way, if anyone knows the present location of Volitions Systems or 
their successors, and/or a way to get a Apple Pascal compatible version 
of the Advanced System Pascal Editor, please let  halp@batcomputer.UUCP
or D57J@CORNELLA or D57J@CRNLVAX5 {all = B.P. HALPERN) know about it]


>2) Bearing in mind that I am a quiet academic sort, whose only possible
>use for spreadsheets, is that it would make the end of term averages
>easier to compute, does AppleWorks have any features that would make it
>attractive to someone who has no interest in mail merging etc. (my wife
>has forbidden me to computerize our Christmas card list).
>

The database may prove to be very useful to you. Almost everyone has many 
sorting tasks. The data base allows input in any format you like, and then 
sorting using boolean operators (e.g., AND, OR, INCLUDES, EQUALS, DOES NOT 
CONTAIN, etc.), as well as alphabetically or by date in any of the categories 
that you have created. After a sort (or before if you want to look at a whole 
data base), find operations can be done. A few mathematical operations exist 
in the data base; more, of course, in the spreadsheet (try the latter for 
your income tax). Transfer from database to wordprocessor is easy.           

                            Bruce P. Halpern