Microsoft Word

Description

Industry-standard word-processing package.

Strengths

  • Tidy and workable user interface
  • Relatively easy to learn and use
  • Excellent WYSIWYG capabilities (printer output is almost always identical to screen display)
  • Ability to save files to HTML and numerous other formats
  • Styles can be created and applied easily to give consistent formatting
  • Hides many of the complexities of document formatting from the user
  • Excellent integration and consistency with other Microsoft products
  • Integrated line-drawing tools
  • Text manipulation capability for "enhanced" presentation (WordArt)
  • Powerful macro language (VBA) and automation features
  • Simple to import, position and scale graphics in a range of formats.

Weaknesses

  • Style over-rides can be applied easily, causing potential formatting and consistency issues for beginner-level users
  • Combination of headers/footers/section breaks sometimes results in page numbering and/or formatting problems
  • Does not cater well for side-heads (labels in the left-hand margin)
  • Automatic document heading numbering may not always operate as intended
  • Not well suited to large or complex documents
  • Automatic page shifts are not stable because they are printer- and "normal.dot" template dependent
  • Internal HTML handling is of limited use
  • No colour separation features.