Office Suite Showdown: Corel WordPerfect Office X3 Worth the Upgrade? Wayne Kawamoto
Worth the Upgrade?
The interface has been modified with revised buttons and toolbars that reflect Windows themes. The result is a clean, eye-pleasing appearance. As before, you can set WordPerfect to completely mimic Microsoft Office so its menus and keystrokes are similar. It is yet another feature that's designed to entice and convert Microsoft users.
WordPerfect Mail now comes as part of Standard suite and manages the routing of documents for review.
A big addition to the Standard version is Corel's WordPerfect Mail, which was introduced in last year's Professional Edition. The program offers the standard features to manage e-mail, as well as search and more. Document routing works through WordPerfect Mail so that you can forward documents to multiple people and record their comments and changes. If you're upgrading, WordPerfect now does a better job of maintaining settings from its prior version — a plus for anyone who has to upgrade multiple systems.
Quattro Pro's new CrossTab reports feature is comparable to Microsoft Excel's PivotTable. This is an excellent feature for people who want to work with tables that can summarize data in different ways — an element that has long been missing in Quattro Pro.
Presentations, long in the shadow of PowerPoint, retains its runner-up standing but offers improvements so you can more easily select and customize master slides and display smoother, more rounded text and images.
The lower-priced Home Edition of the suite includes WordPerfect X3 and Quattro Pro X3 plus the more consumer-oriented Corel Photo Album 6 (a digital picture editor) and Pinnacle Studio SE (a video-editing program). It also offers Norton Internet Security (with a paltry 90 days of free updates) and a template pack.
Instead of simply playing catch up, Corel WordPerfect Office X3 - Standard Edition has added innovations that Microsoft isn't matching, and its lower price makes it a worthy deal. There's no better time to make the switch to WordPerfect Office. And current customers who want the enhanced PDF capabilities, the Quattro Pro Crosstab, and security features will probably want to upgrade.
Pricing and Availability
Corel WordPerfect Office X3 - Standard Edition sells for $159.99 (MSRP) and WordPerfect Office X3 - Home Edition sells for $99.99. You'll find Corel WordPerfect Office X3 (Standard, Home, Student and Teacher and Professional Edition) available online at www.wordperfect.com and through resellers.
Wayne Kawamoto has written over 800 articles, columns and reviews about computers, new technologies, the Internet and small businesses. Wayne has also published three books about upgrading PCs, building office networks and effectively using and troubleshooting notebook computers. You can contact him through his Web site at www.waynewrite.com.
