What are designed word processors for

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A word processor (WP)^[1][2] is a device or computer program that provides for input, editing, formatting, and output of text, often with some additional features.

Early word processors were stand-alone devices dedicated to the function, but current word processors are word processor programs running on general purpose computers.

The functions of a word processor program fall somewhere between those of a simple text editor and a fully functioned desktop publishing program. However, the distinctions between these three have changed over time and were unclear after 2010.^[3][4]

Background[edit]

Word processors did not develop out of computer technology. Rather, they evolved from mechanical machines and only later did they merge with the computer field.^[5] The history of word processing is the story of the gradual automation of the physical aspects of writing and editing, and then to the refinement of the technology to make it available to corporations and Individuals.

The term word processing appeared in American offices in early 1970s centered on the idea of streamlining the work to typists, but the meaning soon shifted toward the automation of the whole editing cycle.

At first, the designers of word processing systems combined existing technologies with emerging ones to develop stand-alone equipment, creating a new business distinct from the emerging world of the personal computer. The concept of word processing arose from the more general data processing, which since the 1950s had been the application of computers to business administration.^[6]

Through history, there have been three types of word processors: mechanical, electronic and software.

Mechanical word processing[edit]

The first word processing device (a «Machine for Transcribing Letters» that appears to have been similar to a typewriter) was patented by Henry Mill for a machine that was capable of «writing so clearly and accurately you could not distinguish it from a printing press».^[7] More than a century later, another patent appeared in the name of William Austin Burt for the typographer. In the late 19th century, Christopher Latham Sholes^[8] created the first recognizable typewriter although it was a large size, which was described as a «literary piano».^[9]

The only «word processing» these mechanical systems could perform was to change where letters appeared on the page, to fill in spaces that were previously left on the page, or to skip over lines. It was not until decades later that the introduction of electricity and electronics into typewriters began to help the writer with the mechanical part. The term “word processing” (translated from the German word Textverarbeitung) itself was created in the 1950s by Ulrich Steinhilper, a German IBM typewriter sales executive. However, it did not make its appearance in 1960s office management or computing literature (an example of grey literature), though many of the ideas, products, and technologies to which it would later be applied were already well known. Nonetheless, by 1971 the term was recognized by the New York Times^[10] as a business «buzz word». Word processing paralleled the more general «data processing», or the application of computers to business administration.

Thus by 1972 discussion of word processing was common in publications devoted to business office management and technology, and by the mid-1970s the term would have been familiar to any office manager who consulted business periodicals.

Electromechanical and electronic word processing[edit]

By the late 1960s, IBM had developed the IBM MT/ST (Magnetic Tape/Selectric Typewriter). This was a model of the IBM Selectric typewriter from the earlier part of this decade, but it came built into its own desk, integrated with magnetic tape recording and playback facilities along with controls and a bank of electrical relays. The MT/ST automated word wrap, but it had no screen. This device allowed a user to rewrite text that had been written on another tape, and it also allowed limited collaboration in the sense that a user could send the tape to another person to let them edit the document or make a copy. It was a revolution for the word processing industry. In 1969, the tapes were replaced by magnetic cards. These memory cards were inserted into an extra device that accompanied the MT/ST, able to read and record users’ work.

In the early 1970s, word processing began to slowly shift from glorified typewriters augmented with electronic features to become fully computer-based (although only with single-purpose hardware) with the development of several innovations. Just before the arrival of the personal computer (PC), IBM developed the floppy disk. In the early 1970s, the first word-processing systems appeared which allowed display and editing of documents on CRT screens.

During this era, these early stand-alone word processing systems were designed, built, and marketed by several pioneering companies. Linolex Systems was founded in 1970 by James Lincoln and Robert Oleksiak. Linolex based its technology on microprocessors, floppy drives and software. It was a computer-based system for application in the word processing businesses and it sold systems through its own sales force. With a base of installed systems in over 500 sites, Linolex Systems sold 3 million units in 1975 — a year before the Apple computer was released.^[11]

At that time, the Lexitron Corporation also produced a series of dedicated word-processing microcomputers. Lexitron was the first to use a full-sized video display screen (CRT) in its models by 1978. Lexitron also used 51⁄4 inch floppy diskettes, which became the standard in the personal computer field. The program disk was inserted in one drive, and the system booted up. The data diskette was then put in the second drive. The operating system and the word processing program were combined in one file.^[12]

Another of the early word processing adopters was Vydec, which created in 1973 the first modern text processor, the «Vydec Word Processing System». It had built-in multiple functions like the ability to share content by diskette and print it.^{[further explanation needed]} The Vydec Word Processing System sold for $12,000 at the time, (about $60,000 adjusted for inflation).^[13]

The Redactron Corporation (organized by Evelyn Berezin in 1969) designed and manufactured editing systems, including correcting/editing typewriters, cassette and card units, and eventually a word processor called the Data Secretary. The Burroughs Corporation acquired Redactron in 1976.^[14]

A CRT-based system by Wang Laboratories became one of the most popular systems of the 1970s and early 1980s. The Wang system displayed text on a CRT screen, and incorporated virtually every fundamental characteristic of word processors as they are known today. While early computerized word processor system were often expensive and hard to use (that is, like the computer mainframes of the 1960s), the Wang system was a true office machine, affordable to organizations such as medium-sized law firms, and easily mastered and operated by secretarial staff.

The phrase «word processor» rapidly came to refer to CRT-based machines similar to Wang’s. Numerous machines of this kind emerged, typically marketed by traditional office-equipment companies such as IBM, Lanier (AES Data machines — re-badged), CPT, and NBI. All were specialized, dedicated, proprietary systems, with prices in the $10,000 range. Cheap general-purpose personal computers were still the domain of hobbyists.

Japanese word processor devices[edit]

In Japan, even though typewriters with Japanese writing system had widely been used for businesses and governments, they were limited to specialists who required special skills due to the wide variety of letters, until computer-based devices came onto the market. In 1977, Sharp showcased a prototype of a computer-based word processing dedicated device with Japanese writing system in Business Show in Tokyo.^[15][16]

Toshiba released the first Japanese word processor JW-10 in February 1979.^[17] The price was 6,300,000 JPY, equivalent to US$45,000. This is selected as one of the milestones of IEEE.^[18]

The Japanese writing system uses a large number of kanji (logographic Chinese characters) which require 2 bytes to store, so having one key per each symbol is infeasible. Japanese word processing became possible with the development of the Japanese input method (a sequence of keypresses, with visual feedback, which selects a character) — now widely used in personal computers. Oki launched OKI WORD EDITOR-200 in March 1979 with this kana-based keyboard input system. In 1980 several electronics and office equipment brands entered this rapidly growing market with more compact and affordable devices. While the average unit price in 1980 was 2,000,000 JPY (US$14,300), it was dropped to 164,000 JPY (US$1,200) in 1985.^[19] Even after personal computers became widely available, Japanese word processors remained popular as they tended to be more portable (an «office computer» was initially too large to carry around), and become necessities in business and academics, even for private individuals in the second half of the 1980s.^[20] The phrase «word processor» has been abbreviated as «Wa-pro» or «wapuro» in Japanese.

Word processing software[edit]

The final step in word processing came with the advent of the personal computer in the late 1970s and 1980s and with the subsequent creation of word processing software. Word processing software that would create much more complex and capable output was developed and prices began to fall, making them more accessible to the public. By the late 1970s, computerized word processors were still primarily used by employees composing documents for large and midsized businesses (e.g., law firms and newspapers). Within a few years, the falling prices of PCs made word processing available for the first time to all writers in the convenience of their homes.

The first word processing program for personal computers (microcomputers) was Electric Pencil, from Michael Shrayer Software, which went on sale in December 1976. In 1978 WordStar appeared and because of its many new features soon dominated the market. However, WordStar was written for the early CP/M (Control Program–Micro) operating system, and by the time it was rewritten for the newer MS-DOS (Microsoft Disk Operating System), it was obsolete. Suddenly, WordPerfect dominated the word processing programs during the DOS era, while there was a large variety of less successful programs.

Early word processing software was not as intuitive as word processor devices. Most early word processing software required users to memorize semi-mnemonic key combinations rather than pressing keys such as «copy» or «bold». Moreover, CP/M lacked cursor keys; for example WordStar used the E-S-D-X-centered «diamond» for cursor navigation. However, the price differences between dedicated word processors and general-purpose PCs, and the value added to the latter by software such as “killer app” spreadsheet applications, e.g. VisiCalc and Lotus 1-2-3, were so compelling that personal computers and word processing software became serious competition for the dedicated machines and soon dominated the market.

Then in the late 1980s innovations such as the advent of laser printers, a «typographic» approach to word processing (WYSIWYG — What You See Is What You Get), using bitmap displays with multiple fonts (pioneered by the Xerox Alto computer and Bravo word processing program), and graphical user interfaces such as “copy and paste” (another Xerox PARC innovation, with the Gypsy word processor). These were popularized by MacWrite on the Apple Macintosh in 1983, and Microsoft Word on the IBM PC in 1984. These were probably the first true WYSIWYG word processors to become known to many people.
Of particular interest also is the standardization of TrueType fonts used in both Macintosh and Windows PCs. While the publishers of the operating systems provide TrueType typefaces, they are largely gathered from traditional typefaces converted by smaller font publishing houses to replicate standard fonts. Demand for new and interesting fonts, which can be found free of copyright restrictions, or commissioned from font designers, occurred.

The growing popularity of the Windows operating system in the 1990s later took Microsoft Word along with it. Originally called «Microsoft Multi-Tool Word», this program quickly became a synonym for “word processor”.

From early in the 21st century Google Docs popularized the transition to online or offline web browser based word processing, this was enabled by the widespread adoption of suitable internet connectivity in businesses and domestic households and later the popularity of smartphones. Google Docs enabled word processing from within any vendor’s web browser, which could run on any vendor’s operating system on any physical device type including tablets and smartphones, although offline editing is limited to a few Chromium based web browsers. Google Docs also enabled the significant growth of use of information technology such as remote access to files and collaborative real-time editing, both becoming simple to do with little or no need for costly software and specialist IT support.

See also[edit]

• List of word processors
• Formatted text

References[edit]

1. Microsoft Word

2. Google Docs

5. WordPerfect

These all are types of word processor software.

A
word processor (more formally known as document preparation system)
is a computer application used for the production (including
composition, editing, formatting, and possibly printing) of any sort
of printable material.

Word
processor may also refer to a type of stand-alone office machine,
popular in the 1970s and 1980s, combining the keyboard text-entry and
printing functions of an electric typewriter with a dedicated
processor (like a computer processor) for the editing of text.
Although features and design varied between manufacturers and models,
with new features added as technology advanced, word processors for
several years usually featured a monochrome display and the ability
to save documents on memory cards or diskettes. Later models
introduced innovations such as spell-checking programs, increased
formatting options, and dot-matrix printing. As the more versatile
combination of a personal computer and separate printer became
commonplace, most business-machine companies stopped manufacturing
the word processor as a stand-alone office machine. As of 2009 there
were only two U.S. companies, Classic and AlphaSmart, which still
made stand-alone word processors.[1] Many older machines, however,
remain in use.

Word
processors are descended from early text formatting tools (sometimes
called text justification tools, from their only real capability).
Word processing was one of the earliest applications for the personal
computer in office productivity.

Although
early word processors used tag-based markup for document formatting,
most modern word processors take advantage of a graphical user
interface providing some form of What You See Is What You Get
editing. Most are powerful systems consisting of one or more programs
that can produce any arbitrary combination of images, graphics and
text, the latter handled with type-setting capability.

Microsoft
Word is the most widely used word processing software. Microsoft
estimates that over 500,000,000 people use the Microsoft Office
suite,[2] which includes Word. Many other word processing
applications exist, including WordPerfect (which dominated the market
from the mid-1980s to early-1990s on computers running Microsoft’s
MS-DOS operating system) and open source applications OpenOffice.org
Writer, AbiWord, KWord, and LyX. Web-based word processors, such as
Google Docs, are a relatively new category.

Word processing

Characteristics

Word
processing typically implies the presence of text manipulation
functions that extend beyond a basic ability to enter and change
text, such as automatic generation of:

• batch
mailings using a form letter template and an address database (also
called mail merging);

• indices
of keywords and their page numbers;

• tables
of contents with section titles and their page numbers;

• tables
of figures with caption titles and their page numbers;

• cross-referencing
with section or page numbers;

• footnote
numbering;

• new
versions of a document using variables (e.g. model numbers, product
names, etc.)

Other
word processing functions include «spell checking»
(actually checks against wordlists), «grammar checking»
(checks for what seem to be simple grammar errors), and a «thesaurus»
function (finds words with similar or opposite meanings). Other
common features include collaborative editing, comments and
annotations, support for images and diagrams and internal
cross-referencing.

Word
processors can be distinguished from several other, related forms of
software:

Text
editors (modern examples of which include Notepad, BBEdit, Kate,
Gedit), were the precursors of word processors. While offering
facilities for composing and editing text, they do not format
documents. This can be done by batch document processing systems,
starting with TJ-2 and RUNOFF and still available in such systems as
LaTeX (as well as programs that implement the paged-media extensions
to HTML and CSS). Text editors are now used mainly by programmers,
website designers, computer system administrators, and, in the case
of LaTeX by mathematicians and scientists (for complex formulas and
for citations in rare languages). They are also useful when fast
startup times, small file sizes, editing speed and simplicity of
operation are preferred over formatting.

Later
desktop publishing programs were specifically designed to allow
elaborate layout for publication, but often offered only limited
support for editing. Typically, desktop publishing programs allowed
users to import text that was written using a text editor or word
processor.

Almost
all word processors enable users to employ styles, which are used to
automate consistent formatting of text body, titles, subtitles,
highlighted text, and so on.

Styles
greatly simplify managing the formatting of large documents, since
changing a style automatically changes all text that the style has
been applied to. Even in shorter documents styles can save a lot of
time while formatting. However, most help files refer to styles as an
‘advanced feature’ of the word processor, which often discourages
users from using styles regularly.

Document
statistics

Most
current word processors can calculate various statistics pertaining
to a document. These usually include:

• Character
count, word count, sentence count, line count, paragraph count, page
count.

• Word,
sentence and paragraph length.

• Editing
time.

Errors
are common; for instance, a dash surrounded by spaces — like either
of these — may be counted as a word.

Typical
usage

Word
processors have a variety of uses and applications within the
business world, home, and education.

Business

Within
the business world, word processors are extremely useful tools.
Typical uses include:

• legal
copies

• letters
and letterhead

• memos

• reference
documents

Businesses
tend to have their own format and style for any of these. Thus,
versatile word processors with layout editing and similar
capabilities find widespread use in most businesses.

Education

Many
schools have begun to teach typing and word processing to their
students, starting as early as elementary school. Typically these
skills are developed throughout secondary school in preparation for
the business world. Undergraduate students typically spend many hours
writing essays. Graduate and doctoral students continue this trend,
as well as creating works for research and publication.

Home

While
many homes have word processors on their computers, word processing
in the home tends to be educational, planning or business related,
dealing with assignments or work being completed at home, or
occasionally recreational, e.g. writing short stories. Some use word
processors for letter writing, résumé creation, and card creation.
However, many of these home publishing processes have been taken over
by desktop publishing programs specifically oriented toward home use.
which are better suited to these types of documents.

History

Toshiba
JW-10, the first word processor for the Japanese language (1971-1978
IEEE milestones)

Examples
of standalone word processor typefaces c. 1980-1981

Brother
WP-1400D editing electronic typewriter (1994)

The
term word processing was invented by IBM in the late 1960s. By 1971
it was recognized by the New York Times as a «buzz word».[3]
A 1974 Times article referred to «the brave new world of Word
Processing or W/P. That’s International Business Machines talk…
I.B.M. introduced W/P about five years ago for its Magnetic Tape
Selectric Typewriter and other electronic razzle-dazzle.»

IBM
defined the term in a broad and vague way as «the combination of
people, procedures, and equipment which transforms ideas into printed
communications,» and originally used it to include dictating
machines and ordinary, manually-operated Selectric typewriters. By
the early seventies, however, the term was generally understood to
mean semiautomated typewriters affording at least some form of
electronic editing and correction, and the ability to produce perfect
«originals.» Thus, the Times headlined a 1974 Xerox product
as a «speedier electronic typewriter», but went on to
describe the product, which had no screen, as «a word processor
rather than strictly a typewriter, in that it stores copy on magnetic
tape or magnetic cards for retyping, corrections, and subsequent
printout.»

Electromechanical
paper-tape-based equipment such as the Friden Flexowriter had long
been available; the Flexowriter allowed for operations such as
repetitive typing of form letters (with a pause for the operator to
manually type in the variable information)[8], and when equipped with
an auxiliary reader, could perform an early version of «mail
merge». Circa 1970 it began to be feasible to apply electronic
computers to office automation tasks. IBM’s Mag Tape Selectric
Typewriter (MTST) and later Mag Card Selectric (MCST) were early
devices of this kind, which allowed editing, simple revision, and
repetitive typing, with a one-line display for editing single lines.

The
New York Times, reporting on a 1971 business equipment trade show,
said

The
«buzz word» for this year’s show was «word
processing,» or the use of electronic equipment, such as
typewriters; procedures and trained personnel to maximize office
efficiency. At the IBM exhibition a girl [sic] typed on an electronic
typewriter. The copy was received on a magnetic tape cassette which
accepted corrections, deletions, and additions and then produced a
perfect letter for the boss’s signature….

In
1971, a third of all working women in the United States were
secretaries, and they could see that word processing would have an
impact on their careers. Some manufacturers, according to a Times
article, urged that «the concept of ‘word processing’ could be
the answer to Women’s Lib advocates’ prayers. Word processing will
replace the ‘traditional’ secretary and give women new administrative
roles in business and industry.»

The
1970s word processing concept did not refer merely to equipment, but,
explicitly, to the use of equipment for «breaking down
secretarial labor into distinct components, with some staff members
handling typing exclusively while others supply administrative
support. A typical operation would leave most executives without
private secretaries. Instead one secretary would perform various
administrative tasks for three or more secretaries.» A 1971
article said that «Some [secretaries] see W/P as a career ladder
into management; others see it as a dead-end into the automated
ghetto; others predict it will lead straight to the picket line.»
The National Secretaries Association, which defined secretaries as
people who «can assume responsibility without direct
supervision,» feared that W/P would transform secretaries into
«space-age typing pools.» The article considered only the
organizational changes resulting from secretaries operating word
processors rather than typewriters; the possibility that word
processors might result in managers creating documents without the
intervention of secretaries was not considered—not surprising in an
era when few but secretaries possessed keyboarding skills.

In
the early 1970s, computer scientist Harold Koplow was hired by Wang
Laboratories to program calculators. One of his programs permitted a
Wang calculator to interface with an IBM Selectric typewriter, which
was at the time used to calculate and print the paperwork for auto
sales.

In
1974, Koplow’s interface program was developed into the Wang 1200
Word Processor, an IBM Selectric-based text-storage device. The
operator of this machine typed text on a conventional IBM Selectric;
when the Return key was pressed, the line of text was stored on a
cassette tape. One cassette held roughly 20 pages of text, and could
be «played back» (i.e., the text retrieved) by printing the
contents on continuous-form paper in the 1200 typewriter’s «print»
mode. The stored text could also be edited, using keys on a simple,
six-key array. Basic editing functions included Insert, Delete, Skip
(character, line), and so on.

The
labor and cost savings of this device were immediate, and remarkable:
pages of text no longer had to be retyped to correct simple errors,
and projects could be worked on, stored, and then retrieved for use
later on. The rudimentary Wang 1200 machine was the precursor of the
Wang Office Information System (OIS), introduced in 1976, whose
CRT-based system was a major breakthrough in word processing
technology. It displayed text on a CRT screen, and incorporated
virtually every fundamental characteristic of word processors as we
know them today. It was a true office machine, affordable by
organizations such as medium-sized law firms, and easily learned and
operated by secretarial staff.

The
Wang was not the first CRT-based machine nor were all of its
innovations unique to Wang. In the early 1970s Linolex, Lexitron and
Vydec introduced pioneering word-processing systems with CRT display
editing. A Canadian electronics company, Automatic Electronic
Systems, had introduced a product with similarities to Wang’s product
in 1973, but went into bankruptcy a year later. In 1976, refinanced
by the Canada Development Corporation, it returned to operation as
AES Data, and went on to successfully market its brand of word
processors worldwide until its demise in the mid-1980s. Its first
office product, the AES-90, combined for the first time a CRT-screen,
a floppy-disk and a microprocessor,[citation needed] that is, the
very same winning combination that would be used by IBM for its PC
seven years later. The AES-90 software was able to handle French and
English typing from the start, displaying and printing the texts
side-by-side, a Canadian government requirement. The first eight
units were delivered to the office of the then Prime Minister, Pierre
Elliot Trudeau, in February 1974. Despite these predecessors, Wang’s
product was a standout, and by 1978 it had sold more of these systems
than any other vendor.

In
the early 1980’s, AES Data Inc. introduced a networked word processor
system, called MULTIPLUS, offering multi-tasking and up to 8
workstations all sharing the resources of a centralized computer
system, a precursor to today’s networks. It followed with the
introduction of SuperPlus and SuperPlus IV systems which also offered
the CP/M operating system answering client needs. AES Data word
processors were placed side-by-side with CP/M software, like
Wordstar, to highlight ease of use.

The
phrase «word processor» rapidly came to refer to CRT-based
machines similar to Wang’s. Numerous machines of this kind emerged,
typically marketed by traditional office-equipment companies such as
IBM, Lanier (marketing AES Data machines, re-badged), CPT, and
NBI.[13] All were specialized, dedicated, proprietary systems, with
prices in the $10,000 ballpark. Cheap general-purpose computers were
still the domain of hobbyists.

Some
of the earliest CRT-based machines used cassette tapes for
removable-memory storage until floppy diskettes became available for
this purpose — first the 8-inch floppy, then the 5-1/4-inch (drives
by Shugart Associates and diskettes by Dysan).

Printing
of documents was initially accomplished using IBM Selectric
typewriters modified for ASCII-character input. These were later
replaced by application-specific daisy wheel printers (Diablo, which
became a Xerox company, and Qume — both now defunct.) For quicker
«draft» printing, dot-matrix line printers were optional
alternatives with some word processors.

With
the rise of personal computers, and in particular the IBM PC and PC
compatibles, software-based word processors running on
general-purpose commodity hardware gradually displaced dedicated word
processors, and the term came to refer to software rather than
hardware. Some programs were modeled after particular dedicated WP
hardware. MultiMate, for example, was written for an insurance
company that had hundreds of typists using Wang systems, and spread
from there to other Wang customers. To adapt to the smaller PC
keyboard, MultiMate used stick-on labels and a large plastic clip-on
template to remind users of its dozens of Wang-like functions, using
the shift, alt and ctrl keys with the 10 IBM function keys and many
of the alphabet keys.

Other
early word-processing software required users to memorize
semi-mnemonic key combinations rather than pressing keys labelled
«copy» or «bold.» (In fact, many early PCs lacked
cursor keys; WordStar famously used the E-S-D-X-centered «diamond»
for cursor navigation, and modern vi-like editors encourage use of
hjkl for navigation.) However, the price differences between
dedicated word processors and general-purpose PCs, and the value
added to the latter by software such as VisiCalc, were so compelling
that personal computers and word processing software soon became
serious competition for the dedicated machines. Word Perfect,
XyWrite, Microsoft Word, Wordstar, Workwriter and dozens of other
word processing software brands competed in the 1980s. Development of
higher-resolution monitors allowed them to provide limited WYSIWYG —
What You See Is What You Get, to the extent that typographical
features like bold and italics, indentation, justification and
margins were approximated on screen.

The
mid-to-late 1980s saw the spread of laser printers, a «typographic»
approach to word processing, and of true WYSIWYG bitmap displays with
multiple fonts (pioneered by the Xerox Alto computer and Bravo word
processing program), PostScript, and graphical user interfaces
(another Xerox PARC innovation, with the Gypsy word processor which
was commercialised in the Xerox Star product range). Standalone word
processors adapted by getting smaller and replacing their CRTs with
small character-oriented LCD displays. Some models also had
computer-like features such as floppy disk drives and the ability to
output to an external printer. They also got a name change, now being
called «electronic typewriters» and typically occupying a
lower end of the market, selling for under $200 USD.

MacWrite,
Microsoft Word and other word processing programs for the bit-mapped
Apple Macintosh screen, introduced in 1984, were probably the first
true WYSIWYG word processors to become known to many people until the
introduction of Microsoft Windows. Dedicated
word processors eventually became museum pieces.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Word_processor

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Since the invention of the typewriter, people have moved away from writing things out by hand in favor of word processing tools.

Nowadays, it’s hard for people or businesses to get work done without an electronic word processor. Tons of options exist, from simple solutions to expansive programs with hundreds of features.

Below, we’ll define in detail what a word processor is and briefly recount the history of this kind of software. Then, we’ll explore the benefits of using an online word processor and take a look at the key features your choice should come with.

What is word processing software?

Word processing software, also called word processors, are any computer programs or devices that let you input, delete, edit, adjust the formatting of, and generally manipulate text and data.

German IBM typewriter sales executive Ulrich Steinhilper coined the term “word processing” in the 1950s.

The most prominent example of a word processing program is Microsoft Word. Cloud-based apps like Google Docs are also popular because of their benefits, but we’ll discuss those later.

As mentioned, word processing software forms the bedrock of most modern work and communications today.

Without it, we’d still write by hand or, at best, use a typewriter.

A brief history of the word processor

Before word processing software, we had typewriters, which were considered the first word processors. The first recognizable typewriter was invented in the late 1800s by Christopher Latham Sholes.

(Image Source)

Here’s a fun fact: you can trace the lineage of word processors back to these machines — not computer programs.

Throughout the 1960s, companies like IBM innovated by adding electronic features to mechanical typewriters. Then, software came along in the late 1970s and early 1980s — Electric Pencil being the first for home computers.

A basic word processor program called WordStar dominated the market in the 1980s, but several competitors, including Microsoft Word, came along and unseated WordStar.

MS Word eventually became the dominant program, alongside the rest of the Microsoft Office suite, thanks to the growing popularity of Windows OS throughout the 1990s.

Many more innovations came along in the 2000s, such as formatting, spell checking, and even grammar checking features.

But in 2006, the world changed with the first widely popular cloud-based word processing program, Google Docs.

Google created Google Docs after acquiring Upstartle, the creator of cloud-based word processor Writely. At this point, you were no longer limited to your personal computer — you could work on documents from anywhere.

Today, plenty of word processing programs, including Microsoft Word, have moved to the cloud.

We also now have word processors built into larger cloud-based platforms, such as monday.com’s new Docs feature.

Get started with monday.com

Why should I get a cloud-based word processing solution?

Throughout the 2000s, word processing software was generally desktop-based.

Google’s acquisition of Upstartle began the explosion of cloud-based word processing programs.

Today, cloud-based programs have plenty of benefits over traditional word processor tools. Here’s a look at 4 of the big ones:

Availability

Online word processors let you work from anywhere with the proper device and an internet connection. This is vital in the age of remote work.

These cloud-based programs let you write, edit, comment, collaborate, and do other word processing tasks from anywhere — the office, home, your favorite coffee shop, or even the other side of the world.

No need to have a computer, as most word processors offer mobile versions, too.

Collaboration

Traditional word processors only let one person on at a time.

Collaboration in these programs involves tracking lots of changes and constantly sending emails between teammates.

It’s really easy to lose the most updated version of a document in a sea of messages — not to mention the time wasted in sending so many emails and the inbox clutter.

Cloud-based software eliminates this issue because multiple people can be in the same doc at once.

Plus, features like commenting help teams communicate on specific items.

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Storage safety

Everyone knows the pain of working on a document for hours just for the computer to freeze and realizing you hadn’t hit save.

Yet, even if you do save, a crashing computer could result in you losing that document.

In the past, you needed to routinely back up your computer or keep copies of documents on USB drives. Of course, it was pretty easy to lose those USB drives and find them later in your washing machine.

These are no longer significant worries with the cloud at your back.

Cloud-based programs store everything, well, in the cloud. No more lost or broken thumb drives.

Many also autosave every time you make a change, so no need to worry about “I forgot to click save.”

User interface and intuitiveness

Many cloud-based word processing apps are designed with multiple devices and mobile apps in mind.

The companies behind these, therefore, put intuitive UI at the forefront of their efforts during development.

Programs like monday.com’s Docs don’t take too long to figure out, and everything is right where you’d expect it to be. They’re designed to make learning them simple and finding things quick.

Plus, they come with plenty of documentation in case anything confuses you.

What features should I look for in a modern word processor?

Word processing is foundational to your ability to get work done. You shouldn’t take picking one for your organization lightly.

Here are some features to look for:

1. The actual word processing features

First and foremost — your app should be excellent at its main job: word processing.

Being able to type words on a page isn’t enough. You should have plenty of formatting and customization options at your fingertips.

Here’s an example of text that someone is customizing the format of in monday.com’s Docs app:

Beyond that, being able to add video and images is key.

In monday.com Docs, you can add and then customize these just like if they were text.

2. Cloud-based mobile app

As mentioned before, you need cloud-based software to keep up today.

The entire monday.com platform is cloud-based, so you can use our Docs feature to work on documents wherever you have a device and an internet connection.

But what if you can’t access a computer while out of your office space? You might need to get onto the doc via your mobile phone or tablet.

We thought of that. monday.com has apps for both iOS and Android devices.

Here’s a quick view of monday.com’s mobile app UI:

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3. Permissions

Some docs you want visible to your entire organization. For example, company policy documents are best shared with everyone. Others may have sensitive information or are only pertinent for certain individuals or teams, making permissions a vital word processing feature.

For example, if the marketing team is brainstorming an ad campaign, they may not need to share it with the operations team.

Maybe they want sales to have a look, though, but without editing privileges.

For situations like this, you want the ability to control who can view, edit, or comment on your documents.

You also want control over sharing the docs, of course.

monday.com offers 3 types of Docs depending on your needs, and you can always adjust sharing settings.

For example, you can choose between a main, private, or shareable document upon Doc creation.

4. Easy sharing and collaboration

Speaking of permissions and sharing, your cloud-based word processing app should make collaboration seamless. That includes managing who’s on the doc and the actual collaborative work.

In the monday.com Docs app, you can add teammates to your doc with a few button clicks.

Once all team members you need are in the doc, working on things together is pretty easy.

To illustrate, here’s a brainstorming doc for a proposed marketing campaign that a marketing team is collaborating on in monday.com:

Notice the information in the top right corner. You can monitor who’s been in the doc, add more people as needed, leave comments, and much more.

And, if you have ideas on how to make the app even better, there’s that “Give feedback” button sitting there as well.

The word processor: a vital tool for success

It’s hard to imagine a world without word processors. So much of what we do on and off the internet requires these programs.

That said, the abundance of products can make it hard to choose. You have plenty of standalone options — but it’s even better to get a Work OS that integrates your word processing capabilities alongside the rest of your workflow.

Thanks to monday.com’s new Docs app, that’s entirely possible. It only takes one click to activate, too. Try monday.com free for 14 days to see what it’s all about.

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Word Processor is a term used to describe a hardware or software which is used for input, edit, format, output, convert some text. Even first-word processors are hardware-based or provide very basic features for word processing. Modern word processors like MS Word, Libre Office, OpenOffice, etc. provide advanced features.

Word Processor History

Word processor history goes back to the 1970s. Even hardware-based word processor roots go older than that we will look at the history of the software-based word processor.

• The first-word processor software or application is created in 1976 with the name of “Electric Pencil”.
• In 1978 another word processor named WordStar boomed the word processor market and became very popular. WordStar was created for the CP/M operating system. But later with the popularity of MS-DOS the WordStar is rewritten for MS-DOS.
• In the MS-DOS era word processors, WordPerfect and Microsoft became very popular even there are some less popular word processors like XyWrite.
• The late 1980s with the innovation of laser printers typography became important with different fonts.
• Apple Macintosh computers provided the MacWrite word processor alternative from the year 1983.
• In the IBM PC era, Microsoft Word became very popular which started in 1984.
• With the popularity of the Windows operating system, Microsoft Word became a defacto word processor.

Word Processor Features and Operations

Word Processors provide different features in order to create documents. Not all of them provide advanced features but different processors provide a different level of features.

Insert text is the most basic and popular feature where text, words, and characters are typed into the document which is provided by the word processor.

Delete text is another popular operation where miss-typed or unwanted text and characters are deleted.

Copy is another popular operation where some text is copied from the given document.

Paste is similar operation to “insert text” but the text is copied from different documents, browsers, etc. into the current document.

Page size and properties can be configured accordingly for better and specific view and page type.

Search operation will search and find a given word or characters in the current word processor document.

Replace is related to the “search” operation where matched search can be changed or replaced with the given word or characters.

Print is used to print the given document into a different format like PDF or sent to into printer to get a hard copy.

File management is used to create, delete, move, rename word processor documents.

Font management is used to set and change font type which is related to the character representations.

Spell checking is another popular feature where the text content is checked again spelling or grammatical errors.

Footnotes are used to put some information about specific text or paragraph.

References is used for academic purposes.

Headers and footers are used to show some generic information like document name, page number,

Macro is used to run simple scripts to generate, calculate some data, or create actions according to the keystrokes and automatically run some functions.

Index Table is used to show list of headers and document parts with page information.

Graphics are used to show some data or information in a graphical way. The graphic can be a bar, pie, line type.

Table is used to show tabular data in a structured way which is easy to read and look.

Even a word processor provides a lot of features it provides very basic GUI in order to make the user experience easier for most of the people from different knowledge level.

Word Processor Use Cases

Even word processor is a very similar text editor it provides a lot more features and detailed configurations. Below we will list some use cases for the word processor.

• Creating reports for different businesses
• Creating homework for school and university
• Creating documentation about a product, feature or service
• Creating presentations with a lot of text, table, and graphics.

Popular Word Processor Software

Even Microsoft Word is the most popular and defacto word processor there are a lot of proprietaries and free/opensource word processors. Below we will list some of them.

Free and Open-Source Word Processors

• AbiWord
• Apache OpenOffice Writer
• Calligra Words
• EtherPad – real-time word processor
• GNU TeXmacs
• Groff
• JWPce – Japanese word processor, designed primarily for the English speaker who is reading or writing in Japanese
• KWord
• LibreOffice Writer
• LyX – TeX document processor
• OnlyOffice Desktop Editors
• Ted
• Trelby – screenplay word processor

Proprietary Word Processor

• Apple Pages, part of its iWork suite – Mac, iOS
• Applix Word – Linux
• Atlantis Word Processor – Windows
• Documents To Go – Android, iOS, Windows Mobile, Symbian
• Final Draft – screenplay/teleplay word processor
• FrameMaker
• Gobe Productive Word Processor
• Hangul (also known as HWP)
• IA Writer – Mac, iOS
• IBM SCRIPT – IBM VM/370
• IBM SCRIPT/VS – IBM z/VM or z/OS systems
• Ichitaro – Japanese word processor produced by JustSystems
• InCopy
• IntelliTalk
• iStudio Publisher – Mac
• Kingsoft Writer – Windows and Linux
• Mariner Write – Mac
• Mathematica – technical and scientific word processing
• Mellel – Mac
• Microsoft Word – Windows and Mac
• Microsoft Works Word Processor
• Microsoft Write – Windows and Mac (a stripped-down version of Word)
• Nisus Writer – Mac
• Nota Bene – Windows
• Polaris Office – Android and Windows Mobile
• PolyEdit
• QuickOffice – Android, iOS, Symbian
• Scrivener
• TechWriter – RISC OS
• TextMaker
• ThinkFree Office Write
• Ulysses – Mac, iPadOS, iOS
• WordPad – previously known as “Write” in older versions than Windows 95; has been included in all versions of Windows since Windows 1.01.
• WordPerfect