[comp.sys.mac] Scientific Word Processor Sought

galvin-peter@CS.Yale.EDU (Peter Galvin) (11/14/88)

I'm posting this for a friend.  Please send replies to her and she will
summarize.

Wesleyan University is in the process of evaluating scientific
word processing systems (IBM PC and/or Macintosh) for our secretarial 
staff in our Mathematics and Science Departments.

We would appreciate any information regarding systems used by
secretaries in other scientific departments.

					Joanne Liljedahl

Internet: JLILJEDAHL@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU
BITNET:   JLILJEDAHL@WESLEYAN 
Phone:    (203)347-9411 X. 2344

					      --Peter

------------------------------------------    --------------------------------
Peter Baer Galvin       		      (203)432-1254
Senior Systems Programmer, Yale Univ. C.S.    galvin-peter@cs.yale.edu
51 Prospect St, P.O.Box 2158, Yale Station    ucbvax!decvax!yale!galvin-peter
New Haven, Ct   06457			      galvin-peter@yalecs.bitnet

kevinc@auvax.UUCP (Kevin "auric" Crocker) (11/18/88)

In article <42951@yale-celray.yale.UUCP>, galvin-peter@CS.Yale.EDU (Peter Galvin) writes:
>I'm posting this for a friend.  Please send replies to her and she will
> summarize.
> 
> Wesleyan University is in the process of evaluating scientific
> word processing systems (IBM PC and/or Macintosh) for our secretarial 
> staff in our Mathematics and Science Departments.
> 
> We would appreciate any information regarding systems used by
> secretaries in other scientific departments.
> 
> 					Joanne Liljedahl
> 
> Internet: JLILJEDAHL@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU
> BITNET:   JLILJEDAHL@WESLEYAN 
> Phone:    (203)347-9411 X. 2344

Peter, I would have sent a reply to Joanne but I know that it would not
get delivered, we just don't seem to be able to send to BITNET or
Internet sites at all.  Hopefullt, a response on the net and mail to
you will get through.

Peter, we here at Athabasca University have decided to go with Lotus
Manuscript.  It permits every equation that I have ever tried to
compose - some rather esoteric ones just for fun.  It is a full
featured word processor, speller, thesaurus, page formatter, etc. etc.

It is not a Ventura Publisher but pretty close with the addition of
many excellent features.  If anyone wants more please let me know.  We
have been using it for almost three years now and we are now using
version 2.0 - don't get an earlioer one as it lacks some of the superb
features of 2.0

Lotus Manuscript is the BEST Scientific and Mathematical word processor
on the market and it includes all the regular word processor features.

alberta!auvax!kevinc (Kevin "The Autarkist" Crocker Athabasca
University)
Do our employers have opinions or is that what we get paid for!

simon@alberta.uucp (Simon Tortike) (11/18/88)

In article <767@auvax.UUCP> kevinc@auvax.UUCP (Kevin "auric" Crocker) writes:
>In article <42951@yale-celray.yale.UUCP>, galvin-peter@CS.Yale.EDU (Peter Galvin) writes:
>>I'm posting this for a friend.  Please send replies to her and she will
>> summarize.
>> 
>> Wesleyan University is in the process of evaluating scientific
>> word processing systems (IBM PC and/or Macintosh) for our secretarial 
>> staff in our Mathematics and Science Departments.
>> 
>> We would appreciate any information regarding systems used by
>> secretaries in other scientific departments.
>> 
>> 					Joanne Liljedahl
>> 
>> Internet: JLILJEDAHL@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU
>> BITNET:   JLILJEDAHL@WESLEYAN 
>> Phone:    (203)347-9411 X. 2344
>
>
>Lotus Manuscript is the BEST Scientific and Mathematical word processor
>on the market and it includes all the regular word processor features.

I beg to differ, but I have yet to see mathematical typesetting done
better than TeX except by a human professional.  It has the added
advantage of being portable across many computers, except for graphical
inclusions.  It is the camera-ready format of preference for the 
American Mathematical Society, and TeX in its various flavours of
Plain, LaTeX or AMS-TeX is rapidly becoming _the_ standard in scientific
and mathematical circles.  Non-research types also use it, for example
by secretarial staff in our Depts. of Math and Statistics.
I have extensively used both of the incarnations of TeX on the Mac,
TeXtures and MacTeX, and notwithstanding being a Canadian, I
have no hesitation in recommending TeXtures as the better product. It
is available from the authors at Blue Sky Research in Seattle, or from 
a number of mail-order houses.
Note that TeX is a technical typesetter, not a word processor.  It is 
harder to learn and master, but the results are clearly obvious to 
even the least trained eye.
Blue Sky also mentioned something about enabling one to transfer 
stuff from TeXtures into Adobe Illustrator 88.  I haven't seen this
version yet.
-------------------
Simon Tortike, Department of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineering,
The University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, CANADA T6G 2G6.
UUCP: alberta!simon  |  BITNET: stortike@ualtavm  |  AGT: +1 403 432-3338

rfarris@serene.UUCP (Rick Farris) (11/19/88)

In article <1842@pembina.UUCP> simon@alberta.UUCP (Simon Tortike) writes:
~In article <767@auvax.UUCP> kevinc@auvax.UUCP (Kevin "auric" Crocker) writes:
~>
~>Lotus Manuscript is the BEST Scientific and Mathematical word processor
~>on the market and it includes all the regular word processor features.
~
~I beg to differ, but I have yet to see mathematical typesetting done
~better than TeX except by a human professional.
~-------------------
~Simon Tortike, Department of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineering,

So in what areas do you find Manuscript deficient?  Have you ever used it?
Or are you just beating your own drum?  Also note that the original requester
asked for a _word processor_.  Tex, in any of it's forms, is in *no* way a 
word processor.

-- 
Rick Farris          |  rfarris@serene.cts.com  | voice     619 259-6793
POB M                |       -* KCBIW *-        | pub.access    259-7757
Del Mar, CA  92014   | ...!uunet!serene!rfarris | serene.UUCP   259-3704