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3. WordPerfect 7.0 Beta

3.1 Impressions of 7.0

I have been very impressed with the operation of WordPerfect 7.0 for Linux. I only recently downloaded it and tried it. It looks like WP 7.0 for Windows. The features appear to work properly. I especially like the spell-as-you-go feature!

The HTML publisher works a little better than that on WP 6.0, but still has some bugs. Someone reported that WP 7.0 requires a lot of swap space (I have not tested it at this time).

3.2 Getting WordPerfect 7.0

WP 7.0 is available as several LARGE tarballs from sdcorp's FTP site (or via the WWW). I tried for two days to download the 26MB archive using ISDN but only was able to get part of the file. I eventually had to use a commercial account with a T1 to the Internet to get the files. It would be much easier to download if each tarball was split into several smaller files (1-2 MB in size). Note, when you uncompress the tarballs, the result is a small number of medium sized files -- just what is needed.

The current version that you can download is time limited to 15 days. During this time, you can pay them and they will give you a license for it.

   For WP 7.0 Beta:

        ftp://ftp.sdcorp.com/pub/linux_betab/wp7linuxbetab.tar.gz

              4887525 graphics_tar.gz
             17652138 manual_tar.gz
               450535 wp60ms01_us.all
               290443 wp60ps01_us.all
             26962514 wp7linuxbetab_tar.gz

3.3 Installation of 7.0

To install, you must extract the tarballs, run the Runme program, answer some questions and then run xwp to start WP 7.0. Note, you need 58 MB just for WP 7.0, prior to the manuals, graphics, etc.

1. Extract the tarball into a temporary directory, need 31M

                 tar xvzf wp7linuxbetab_tar.gz 
                   creates LINUX* files and Runme, the install program
   

2. As root and with X windows running, run the Runme program and you get a series of screens to select the installation type. Answer the questions:

   
                   ./Runme
   
                   License Screen:
                           Hit OK
   
                   Demo Screen:
                           Hit OK
                             Corel Corporation:  800-772-6735
                               UNIX Support:     801-765-4019
   
                   Installation Directory:
                           Enter directory, e.g., /opt/wp7.0
                           Hit OK
   
                   Installation Size:
                           Full:      71-80M
                           Medium:    45-51M
                           Minimal:   37-41M
   
                   Existing Application:           
                           If you have WP 6.0 (Caldera installs in
                           /opt/wp6.0 by default), you can keep your
                           settings for terminal drivers, printer drivers
                           and printer ports.  Recommended.
                           
                           Enter directory (if present)
                           Hit OK
   
                   Edit /etc/magic?
                           Will add WP files to /etc/magic.  Will backup
                             /etc/magic as /etc/magic.bak
                           Select YES or NO
                           Hit OK
   
                   Selection of languages to Install
                           Only have English, it is selected
                           Hit OK
   
                   Select print divers:
                           Select your printers, may select more than one.
                           Hit OK
   
                   Assign Printer Drivers to Destinations:
                           Click on a printer
                           Click on the destination (name from /etc/printcap)
                           Hit OK
                           Repeat for each printer you selected in previous step.
   
                           Hit OK
   
                   Installation Review List:
                           Allows you to go back to any screen and make changes.
                           Select screen to make changes, or Hit OK to continue
                           Hit OK
   
                   Graphicsl Corel WordPerfect(UNIX) installation screen 
                           includes progress bar
   
                   Readme Review screen:
                           Allows you to read any review notes....
   
                           Select item and View to view it, e.g., license
   
                           Note if you entered a license, you need to add the 
                           license manager startup stuff to /etc/rc.d/rc.local!
   
                           Select Done when finished
   

3. Run xwp:

                   /opt/wp7.0/wpbin/xwp& (or wherever you installed it)
   

   Note, I have WP 6.0 from Caldera, the first time I started, I got a prompt to load defaults from 6.0. I selected YES and WP loaded the defaults and exited. I then restarted xwp and my defaults, including the last files I edited with WP 6.0 were used!

3.4 Features

• WordPerfect word processor
• Internet publisher
• QuickCorrect - fix your typos while typing
• Spell-As-You-Go - spell checking while typing
• File compatibility with DOS, UNIX, and other WordPerfect versions on other platforms

3.5 Bugs in 7.0

• HTML export of a WP document with headers and footers sometimes leaves the bottom of the document either centered or bold.
• HTML export of a WP document with a table of contents does not generate cross references.
• HTML export messes up the table of contents and if sections were outlined, they become HTML list items and no longer match the TOC.
• Installation of the manual failed. I have not had time to try to fix this problem.
• Someone reported a problem converting WPG graphics to JPG.
• WP 7.0 can not read files from Office97 (this has been a major pain for me as I have received several such files from others and I do not have Office97).
• Someone reported a possible problem with getting printing to work (I had no problems at all).
• Upon starting xwp, I received a message that some backup files existed. Upon clicking on the first backup file, XWP dumped core.

3.6 Pricing and Availability

Upgrade pricing expected to be $149.99 (US) and retail pricing $199.99.

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