Word Processing — Word and WordPerfect
A screenshot of Microsoft Word 5.0 for DOS. Used with permission from Microsoft.
This is the first word processor I ever used. It was in the late 1980s and it ran on DOS and it was a miracle program where you could edit on the screen before printing.
Before that the state of the art, for me anyway, was the IBM Selectric typewriter with removable typeface balls.
I had seen a word processor in the early 1980s. A local businessman was selling them for about $8,000. They were big consoles about the size of a small refrigerator with a screen that was about 14 inches wide. I think the letters were black on green or grey.
My car had cost me $5,000 new so this technology was out of my league. But I wanted one.
WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS
Around the same time that I was using Word 5.0, I discovered WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS
<– Screenshot of WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS
I loved WordPerfect 5.1. It even had the ability to have 2 files opened at once and you could flip from one to the other with a simple key code.
I’m not going to get into the history of these word processors and why Microsoft Word won the battle of the word processors. I just wanted to let you know that I began in the days of DOS. I know wordprocessors pretty well.
Here’s a video of Microsoft Word 2007 functions that I did — in 2007.
If you want to get in touch with me with a specific question, just send me a note. The contact form makes it really easy to ask questions:
Or if you prefer, just post a comment. I check in often.
