I Hate MicroSoft Word: A propos Jim Lindgren's post, have I ever mentioned how much I detest Microsoft Word? Word reformats paragraphs and everything else as it wishes and it is sometimes next to impossible to trick it into keeping it to the format you prefer. I assume that someone somewhere knows how to make all this work, but I have been word processing since I paid $4500 for an NBI standalone word processor in 1981, and word processing programs are simply not supposed to be that hard to figure out and control.

In contrast, WordPerfect is an amazingly elegant and transparent way to write. I know all about how it lost its market share. WordPerfect for Windows was initially awful (though some blame that on Microsoft too). I stuck with WordPerfect for DOS (requiring me to reboot into DOS whenever I wanted to word process) until WordPerfect for Windows 95 came along. From then on it was sweet and had gotten sweeter ever since.

The only thing that Word does better than WordPerfect (and it is substantially better) is "track changes" when editing a document. Here Word really shines. But I write all my articles and correspondence in WordPerfect and convert to PDF (which WordPerfect includes at no charge!) or Word when necessary. Thanks to PDF, I rarely need to convert to Word. I only use Word to read the documents of others, and deal with articles in press.

Do not bother to write with ways to learn how to make Word work properly. I know from experience that a word-processing program should not require any more time than I already have invested over the years to do simple document creation and formatting.

So long live WordPerfect (though one never knows how long it will survive)!

Word v. WordPerfect: I have received more responses to my brief post condemning Word and extolling the virtues of WordPerfect than I have to my week-long exchange with Cass Sunstein. Most wrote to express solidarity. A couple persons wrote to tell me about OpenOffice as an alternative to WordPerfect, though I am very happy with WordPerfect and do not really seek an alternative to what I think is a wonderful piece of software.

One person suggested that WordPerfect was the "libertarian" alternative to Word. I am not a Microsoft hater, and defended it vigorously when it was under attack by the government. I think Windows XP finally provided a smooth and stable GUI operating system. I just think Mocrosoft makes very clunky application software—and Word is the worst of the bunch. The problem for me is that, due to the network effect, I have to buy and use Word when I have dealings with others.

Finally, another reader send me the link to this article about the market rebound of WordPerfect and Corel, who publishes it: WordPerfect Selling Well, Thank You Very Much. I appreciated hearing the good news.

Thanks for all the replies.