| ★ APPLICATIONS ★ BUREAUTIQUE ★ TASWORD 6128 ★ |
| TASWORD 6128 (Cahier de l'Amstrad) | TASWORD 6128 (Amstrad Action) | TASWORD 6128 the re-re-vamped word processor from Tasword (Amtix) | TASWORD 6128 (Amstrad User) |
Now there are as many versions of TASWORD as there are Amstrad computers. TASWORD 6128 is the third upgrade of this highly successful word processor from Tasman software. The very first version of Tasword was a cassette based system that boasted a wide range of respectable features. Apart from a comprehensive range of cursor and delete controls, the original package also possessed powerful cut and paste options. The TAB and margin commands also helped to produce very complex documents with ease. Entering text using Tasword is a delight. The program supports the word wrap feature so that the writer can forget about the edge of the screen, the program makes sure that any words that will not fit onto a line are transported to the beginning of the next. Depending on your taste, text can be set as ragged right or justified. A single document can be produced with paragraphs using a variety of margin widths and justifications. From the beginning Tasman have tried to make their word processors 'open plan'. A wide variety of features may be customised, from the mundane-like cursor shape to the definition of printer control codes enabling Tasword to be used with a wide variety of printers. A history of gradual enlargement The first Tasword allowed just over 13K of text storage. The next, Tasword 464-D, had room for an extra 6000 characters, but to achieve this, Tasman removed the main menu from the edit program. This meant waiting for an overlay file to be loaded before saving a file or printing it. This slowed down the program operation and forced people with only one drive to keep text files on the same disk as the program files. But there was one advantage of the split, it meant Tasman could increase the size and complexity of the two programs. They took advantage of this by adding a very powerful data merge Facility which enabled the same letter to be sent to a large number of different addresses. The data merge program also allowed conditional printing, ie a letter would be printed only if predetermined conditions had been satisfied. And now... Robin Thomson saw the 6128 as a means of sneaking the main menu and the data merge program back into the edit program, while at the same time satisfying his desire for large open text areas. The newest version of Tasword offers a massive 65,000 characters, that's enough room for 10,000 words — just how are we meant to fill all this Robin? Apart from simply being able to go directly to the edit page from the main menu, Tasword 6128 is a lot more than the 464-D version squeezed back into one program. There are a number of small but important changes. To begin with the only way you could add text within a line was by opening up the text first. The new version has an auto insert feature ensuring that no characters are over-typed, instead they are chuntered along to make way for the new text. Auto insert does not work as quickly as some of the expensive CP/M based systems but it does offer a much neater means of inserting text than previous versions. However, while it ensures that the paragraph into which you are inserting text is kept in the appropriate format, any deletions still demand you re-form manually. However the speed at which the program reforms text has been greatly improved, mostly because the user can select a mode which does not display the characters moving about the screen, instead the task is done off screen so the newly shaped paragraph appears as if by magic. In fact text movement in general has been speeded up, lines of text scroll up and down the screen much more smoothly than on the previous disk version. Especially lor doodlers Another new feature is the inclusion of notepads, four of them. The notepads are bolted onto the end of the help screens, to reach them you simply scroll past the last help page and into the first notepad. The user can either write directly onto a notepad or move a section of the edit screen into it. You could set up a letter or invoice heading and then save it out with the Tasword program. The next time you load the program in the template can be moved into the text area. However, the only way the contents of the notepads can be saved with a text file is by unloading the notepads into the edit screen before you save the file. Some further refinements The find and replace options have received a much needed face-lift, so that it is now possible to ignore the case of a word as well as veto individual replacements. While the find and replace commands are a significant improvement it still lacks the flexibility and power offered by the likes of Wordstar. You cannot, for example, look for a comma because they are invariably attached to the end of a word and Tasword can only find whole words. The other versions of Tasword always seemed to get lost when they returned to a text file after performing an exterior operation such as a mid-file save. Now all of that's in the past. When you return to the text the cursor is in exactly the same place that it was when you left. Line Delete was a necessary command but it was easy to invoke accidentally. I am glad to say that it has met its match with Line Un-Delete, that should reduce the profanities. One extra that isn't mentioned in the excellent handbook is Delete Bak file. This command was present on the 464-D version but it appeared more as a bug than a feature. Invoking it is still a strange affair. When you have selected the SAVE FILE option, enter an illegal file name, perhaps one with 15 characters. After the error report has appeared you notice the words 'Press DEL to erase all BAK files'. Very useful for those with crowded disks. More power less strain Tasword has truly grown up. While it falls behind some other word processors with its FIND AND REPLACE and AUTO INSERT commands, it still offers powerful features for less brain drain. This is mostly because it has so many user defined features that are very easy to set up. One could, for example, very easily set up complex documents with many different font styles and line pitches. To add to this printing power, all fourfonts can be used in the main body of the program and still leave a substantial text area. For £24.95 you get a powerful and easy to use word processor and a superb data merge program. Once you have a copy you may be knocking off 10,000 word letters by the dozen. Jeremy Spencer, Amtix |
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