Word. (MS Word 97)

Member Name: johnsy32

Product:	MS Word 97
Date:	20/02/05 (111 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great for word processing

Disadvantages: This version is dated

Microsoft Word 97 is a great word processing application released by the giant corporation Microsoft. It is everything a word processing program should be and it really sets the standards for other programs that want to do the same. This is the first version of Word that has taken a massive leap from the previous versions like Word 6.0. It is the beginning of all the later versions and this release is still used today, as it is still as good as when it was first available. All the latest versions use this version as their basis. Notably the spelling and grammar checking system is excellent and when I first used this, I wondered what all the red and green lines under my words meant, I thought it was some sort of attribute like the italic, bold and underline options! More explained below!

-- What is Microsoft Word --

Microsoft Word is a word processing program.

-- Installation --

Installation is very easy, but can be lengthy. Microsoft Word 97 usually comes bundled within Microsoft Office 97 so you have to install other applications at the same time. You just need to follow the on screen instructions, agree to some terms and conditions, enter a little bit of personal data and then you are ready to use the program.

-- Help Files --

As with all Microsoft Applications the help files are always excellent and everything is always covered. Sometimes you need to do a bit of trial and error to find out how things work. Word has a great help file that is categorised, can be searched etc, there is also a companion that you can have sit on your screen and you type in questions and it finds matches for you. But, be warned this feature can become annoying but luckily it can be turned off!

--My Experience --

I have been using Microsoft Word 97 since 1998, and in the beginning I would use Word for

- Letters
- Newsletters
- Coursework
- Posters
- Mail merging with other Office Applications
- Writing a CV

And more recently I have been using Word for

- Mailing Labels
- Reports
- Letters
- Invoicing
- Fax covering letters
- Memo's
- Diagrams
- Writing Reviews!

Microsoft Word has lots of uses with just a few highlighted above. It can do anything that includes a bit of text you can even design a web page, but I don't recommend it.

-- Conclusion --

I love using Microsoft Word, and it must be one of the most used applications that I use. It is very easy to use. It can be put to lots of uses, reading my experiences you can see some of the things that it can carry out.

The spell and grammar check that is included with Word is excellent, as you go a long if a sentence has any grammar or spelling mistakes it will be underlined; red for a spelling mistake and green for a grammar mistake. I always waited until the end of writing a document to do a spell check, but the great thing is with Word 97, you can right click on the word with a mistake and it automatically pops up a list of corrections and selecting one will change it for you. This is the most useful feature.

This is pretty old now, so it is quite cheap to get hold of for personal use. Ebay very often offers many packages that include Word and are at low prices. If you are going to install the program on lots of computers that is still when the license fees can really add up.

I've never really had a problem with the reliability of Microsoft Word and it's always very quick and stable. Depending on the memory of your computer the open and closing speeds can change slightly. The one problem I have had is when I wanted to open a file, I went to the open a file menu and set the references to preview so that you can take a preview of the file you wanted to open before you actually open it. Sometimes when I clicked on a file that wasn't in word format the program crashed and called for a Ctrl +Alt +Delete.

The interface of Word 97 is excellent, the toolbars and menu are easily accessible and all customisable.

Comparing Word 97 to a later version, like Microsoft Word 2000 (I use this one at home) they are very a like and do the same job, I prefer 97 to the later one because I have used a it a lot more, I use it on a daily basis.

Microsoft Word 97 is an ideal application.

Summary: