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| WordSmith: Best of Breed Word Processing |
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Rating:
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| Reviewed by: Jonathan I. Ezor |
| Summary:
Native Microsoft Word compatibility and advanced formatting options make Blue Nomad's WordSmith the best of breed Palm OS word processing application.
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| Product Details... |
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Text viewing and editing has historically been the least sophisticated of the built-in features of the Palm OS. For starters, the Memopad application has been limited from its creation until today to a 4k maximum file size for each memo--if you want to write or read something longer, you need to break the document into multiple files. Also, the formatting options have been limited to tabs and spacing--everything else is in pure ASCII, which makes for easy transferability among applications but little in the way of professional-looking documents. It also makes reading e-books a challenge.
The 4k limit was broken a few years ago by the development of the so-called DOC format, and many software publishers offer conversion utilities and DOC readers for the Palm OS. Sometime later, Visionary2000--with QED and other companies--finally made it possible to edit DOC format files on the Palm OS, but although the length limitations were overcome, the formatting was still pure ASCII and any transfer back-and-forth between the Palm handheld and a desktop word processing program sacrificed indenting, font changes, or other specific formatting desired. In fact, true word processing and Microsoft Word compatibility were two of the major advantages claimed by makers of handhelds running on the Microsoft operating systems (that is,WinCE and Pocket PC).
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All this changed recently with the publication of a number of programs that offer native Microsoft Word compatibility and advanced formatting options for word processing on Palm OS handhelds. The best of breed application may well be Blue Nomad's WordSmith.
WordSmith comprises three components:
- an enhanced DOC file editor for your Palm OS handheld,
- a desktop application (available for both MacOS and Win9X/NT/2000) for managing the files shared between your computer and Palm handheld, and
- a conduit that facilitates document transfer during HotSync.
WordSmith can also add an extra menu to Microsoft Word, for quick management of document sharing.
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Screenshot of WordSmith Windows Application | |
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| Formatting Options Galore |
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On Palm OS handhelds, WordSmith's formatting options are quite extensive. In addition to text enhancements like bold, underline, italics, super/subscript, and strikethrough, WordSmith also allows you to specify fonts from a list of four (Arial, Courier, Times New Roman, and Verdana) and sizes (although they do not necessarily display as WYSIWYG on your Palm).
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WordSmith Font Menu | |
You can also indent, justify (left, right, and center), and specify spacing and paragraph flow options, just as you can in Microsoft Word. On color Palm OS handhelds, WordSmith supports 16 text and 16 background colors.
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WordSmith Paragraph Formatting Menus | |
All changes get transferred over to the Microsoft Word file on your desktop, and changes you make on your computer are synchronized to your Palm on your next HotSync.
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| Superb Keyboard Integration |
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The real power of WordSmith is evident when you pair it with the Palm Portable Keyboard/Targus Stowaway Keyboard. Blue Nomad has not only provided keyboard shortcuts for almost every navigation and formatting option (other than a hard tab, which is unaccountably missing), but it also has fixed the keyboard's ability to access and manipulate the pull-down menus, which doesn't work properly in most standard Palm OS applications. With keyboard attached, a WordSmith-running Palm OS handheld becomes a true laptop replacement for writers, particularly with the edition of Bachmann Software's PrintBoy Deluxe, which enables printing of WordSmith-formatted documents directly from a Palm OS handheld.
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| Powerful Document Reader |
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Beyond its powerful editing features, WordSmith is also a DOC-file reader. In View mode, WordSmith enables the user to scroll a document screen-by-screen, line-by-line and even in forward or backward motion with adjustable scrolling speed. Text size in both View and Edit modes is user-selectable, from a very small typeface to a large one for easy reading in the car or at a distance. The program also contains enhanced security features for protecting your documents.
WordSmith reads and writes both Memopad and DOC-formatted files, and enables you to move between the two formats easily, enabling you to share a formatted document with a non-WordSmith user. Although other DOC-compatible programs can read WordSmith-formatted documents, the Rich Text Format (RTF) codes inserted by WordSmith appear on the screen, so the ability to "save down" to other formats is appreciated.
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| Conclusion |
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Everything about WordSmith demonstrates the same level of attention to detail and familiarity with the Palm OS user experience that has made Blue Nomad's flagship product BackupBuddy so successful among Palm users. Click here to purchase WordSmith or click here to have it pre-installed on a new handheld.
Jonathan I. Ezor is an attorney with an abiding interest in technology.
He is also the author of "Clicking Through: A Survival Guide for Bringing Your Company Online" (Bloomberg Press), which was largely written or edited on his Palm III using QED software. He currently uses a Palm IIIxe and Palm Portable Keyboard as his main PDA. Jonathan can be reached via e-mail at author@clickingthrough.com.
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