Re: [tlug] Re: Why Vista Sucks

[CL <az.4tlug@example.com>]

Stephen J. Turnbull wrote:
> scott writes:
>
>  > This made me laugh out loud. I agree- I never thought Word was all that
>  > user friendly anyway after using word perfect during my formative years
>  > (remember that software?). Also, is word the most popular editor?
>
> You're missing the point.  Word is the most popular editor because it
> works well enough more comprehensively than any other product, not
> because it's the best at anything it does.

Agreed.  Being a WordPerfect user since 1987,

Word is an abomination of common sense that makes use of absolutely 
senseless commands and processes.  It still cannot do simple things that 
WP has done since v.4.0 for DOS.  If you ever want to see a programming 
nightmare, pull a Word file into WP and hit the Reveal Codes
command.  The means it uses to adjust type spacing, line leading, 
kerning, and other simple typesetting functions defy description.

Word only became "popular" (sic) because MS deliberately broke WP (and 
other word processors') ability to work with their OS; it caused earlier 
WIN versions to send spurious error messages to users of non-Word word 
processing products saying that their word processing software was 
non-WIN compliant, required the bundling of Word software with WIN OS by 
PC makers, and offered it free to large users. 

This has been the finding of every court which has heard the Novel 
(previous WP owner) vs. MS case, right up to the US Supreme Court.  MS 
did not win a single round of the battle.  Unfortunately, the ruling 
comes about 15 years too late to be of any use to the industry. 

> > Not saying that it isn't, but in Japan, everyone was using that
> > incomprehensible ichitaro forever,
>
> Every bilingual body who had a choice stopped using ichitaro as soon
> as a Japanese-capable Word was released on a Windows that didn't need
> double booting.  I doubt that any other country has anything similar
> to Ichitaro.

A subsidiary of Marubeni -- I forget the name (Media ... something) -- 
tried to use that importer's superior bribe giving ability to get J-GOV 
(Monbu-sugoku-bakka-shou and Wairou-shou [sorry, Kensetsu-shou], in 
particular) to adopt a Japanese language version of WP Office without 
success.  There have only been two; one for WIN 95 and another for WIN 
98) around 2000. I have the latter and am installing an Innotek Virtual 
Box for XP-J just so I can keep using it.  But, it is also easier to use 
than OOo in Japanese mode as you can do most major formatting on the fly 
without removing your hands from the keyboard.

>  > reason Word got so popular was because of the success of Windows 95 and
>  > 98 in the workplace at the expense of lotus and those other
>  > alternatives, not necessarily because it is in itself better software.
>
> ??  That's basically the point, but don't you mean Office, not
> Windows?
>   

No.  Not at all.  Several Federal, Federal District and the US Supreme 
Court all disagree with the statement, finding instead that it was 
connected to nothing other than unfair business practices. 


--
CL