130XE VERSUS ST
Most ST owners who have not previously owned an Atari
will naturally think that their 16 bit computer is superior to the
8-bit Atari. Those who have 'upgraded' to an ST will also probably
feel obliged to defend their decision and many existing 8-bit owners
will feel under increasing pressure to sell up and buy an ST. But
why? Is the ST really superior to the Atari XL or XE in all
respects? Much depends on the software available and whilst in some
areas the ST is certainly superior, in other, quite surprising,
areas the good old 130XE is more than a match for the ST!
One of those areas is quite surprising – word
processing! Now most people will think that word processing on the
ST must be infinitely superior but it just ain't the case! This
issue of PAGE 6 is the first where the word processing has been done
entirely on the ST and it may well be the last! The reason for going
over to the ST was the advent of Word Perfect, hailed as the
ultimate word processor, which can certainly do some amazing things
but which,in its current version, has a number of bugs and
deficiencies and, unbelievably, can't do the one thing I need which
is to save pure ASCII text! The two features I need from a word
processor are keyboard macros and the ability to save ASCII text
with no added carriage returns, line feeds or control codes. I want
exactly what I type to be saved on the disk but, despite the claims,
there does not appear to be one word processor on the ST which can
do this and which also supports keyboard macros. On the 130XE I know
of three word processors which can achieve this and which also
contain 95% (or more) of the features that any average user will
require. These programs are Superscript, Paperclip and, the biggest
bargain of all, TextPro which is available in the public domain. Is
it not truly amazing that an Atari 8-bit public domain program can
out-perform many commercial programs on one of the world's most
powerful home computers?
A CONTINUING PROBLEM
This lack of software support really highlights one
of the main problems with the ST and a problem which has plagued
Atari all along. Despite the wealth of software released, much of it
is not up to the standard available on other machines and the ST is
just not supported in the way it should be. A stroll round the
recent Which Computer Show proved the point. There was hardly an ST
to be seen anywhere. You could find one here and there brought in by
those companies who have supported Atari for some time such as
Mirrorsoft and HB Marketing but most visitors, unless they were
looking hard, would have gone away completely unaware that an Atari
ST can be used for serious applications. Even companies like Word
Perfect Corporation and Cashlink Software, who both produce top
business software for the ST didn't have an ST on their stands!
AND THE WINNER IS ...
Back to the ST versus the XE. For my money the 130XE
is the outright winner as far as word processing goes. All the
features that I need in a word processor are available on the 130XE
and those extras that are on the ST I don't really need. Add to that
the ease of programming the 130XE and in using DOS 2.5 (there are
times when GEM can be more of a hindrance than a help) and there is
no contest. The 130XE is friendlier, easier to use and, in this area
at least, just as capable as the ST. Controversial comments? Yes,
but these are the facts. If any ST users can come up with a
compelling argument the other way I would be pleased to hear it.
Better still, maybe someone could come up with some software that is
as good as Superscript or TextPro!
When you think about it, the reason why the Amstrad
is so successful, is that it does exactly what people need and no
more. It is certainly not as powerful a computer as the ST but it
does its job and so does the 130XE. If you are thinking of dumping
that XL or XE, think again! Unless there is something you really
need that you know the ST can do and your 130XE can't, don't bother
buying an ST. Just stick with one of the best home computers ever
produced. You probably don't realise just how good it is!
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