In case you're just casually browsing this review, I'll give you the bottom line up front: if you have AppleWorks 6 and you intend on using it as a serious productivity application, you really ought to have a copy of Jim Elferdink's and David Reynolds' AppleWorks 6: The Missing Manual, the latest release in O'Reilly/Pogue Press's Missing Manual series. To find out why, read on.

AppleWorks, nee ClarisWorks, as you probably know, is Apple's jack of all trades, all-in-one application suite that has been bundled with "consumer" Macintosh is since the early Performa days. Traditionally, ClarisWorks/AppleWorks included a word processor, a spreadsheet module, paint and draw graphics modules, a database module, and a communications module -- which was basically a rudimentary software data terminal that could be used for accessing BBSs or modem links for of with other computers.

The first two version numbers of ClarisWorks weren't really up to much, but with version 3 the program began to blossom into a truly useful and capable application. With version 4 (especially the later of six sub-versions) ClarisWorks became quite robust and feature rich, and ClarisWorks 5 was basically a refinement of ClarisWorks 4, also assuming the mantle of Apple's front line word processor application with the demise of its stablemate MacWrite Pro 1.5. ClarisWorks 5 was for a brief period renamed ClarisWorks Office before Steve Jobs insisted on rebadging it a second time as AppleWorks 5.

AppleWorks 6 was released in February of this year to a resounding and nearly unanimous chorus of boos. It was buggy, ponderously slow, crashed a lot, had incompatibilities with a long list of popular utilities and applications as well as printing and fax problems, and incorporated controversial changes to the familiar ClarisWorks/AppleWorks feature set. It's hard to believe that anyone missed the old communications module, but some people did complain about that too.

More serious was in the is the elimination of the XTND file translators, one of the strongest features of previous ClarisWorks/AppleWorks versions. AppleWorks 6 has no native ability to open documents created by other applications save for plain text and some graphic and music formats translated by QuickTime. Consequently, AppleWorks 6 users who need to import or export files in, say, Microsoft Word or Excel formats, are out of luck unless they buy a copy of DataViz's MacLinkPlus file translation software, which is actually another good reason for buying AppleWorks 6: The Missing Manual. Included in the book is a discount coupon that allows you to purchase MacLinkPlus for $39.95, which is a cool $60 off the program's list price of $99.95.

On the plus side, AppleWorks 6 incorporates various enhancements to the word processor, spreadsheet, paint, draw, and database modules, and adds a new presentation model for creating and displaying slide shows, as well as the ability to convert any AppleWorks 6 document into a Web page (HTML) document or vice-versa.

Look at it this way: if you got AppleWorks 6 bundled with a new iMac or iBook, you have a powerful and extremely useful program that is sort of a freebie. Buyers of G4 Power Macs and professional PowerBooks don't get AppleWorks. If you paid the full retail price for Apple work 6, a modest $89.95, even with the $19.95 for AppleWorks 6 : The Missing Manual added on, plus another $39.95 for MacLinkPlus at the discount, you have an awful lot of software capability for 150 bucks -- a much better value for many users then coughing up 400 bucks for a lot of complexity they don't need in Microsoft Office.

But what about all those bugs in glitches in the initial release of AppleWorks 6? Well, Apple burned the midnight oil getting a bunch of bug fix patches out the door that have pretty much remedied this slowness and instability of AppleWorks 6.0. If you have the original version of the program, you absolutely need to download CarbonLib 1.0.3, or the AppleWorks 6.0.3 or the 6.0.4 updater. The AppleWorks 6.0.3 updater incorporates CarbonLib 1.0.3 and improves the performance, compatibility and stability of AppleWorks 6 as well as adding RTF translation. The AppleWorks 6.0.4 updaterThe AppleWorks 6.0.4 updater does all that and additionally addresses a compatibility issue with AppleWorks 6.0.3 and DataViz translators.

The first four version numbers of ClarisWorks came with pretty decent print manuals as I recall. The rot began to set in with ClarisWorks 5 whose manual was more rudimentary, and AppleWorks 6 comes with just a pathetic little pamphlet. I will spare you my boilerplate rant about lousy documentation for contemporary software. If you wish, you can read a version of it in my review of the first book in this series: Mac OS 9: The Missing Manual.

Suffice to say that IMHO on line help is an exceedingly poor substitute for a real BOOK when you need instruction, tutorial, or troubleshooting help with a software application. However, AppleWorks 6: The Missing manual would be a worthwhile addition to your computer reference bookshelf even if AppleWorks came with a manual as good as the one that shipped with ClarisWorks 3. Elferdink and Reynolds have come up with a great little tutorial volume in its own right, that can help you wring the best out of AppleWorks 6's array of capabilities.

The authors place special emphasis on easing the transition for ClarisWorks/AppleWorks veterans as well as newbies into the new AppleWorks 6 interface, its Internet hooks, the Starting Points window, and the new Presentation module.

The book's early chapters are actually detailed tutorials on using the six core AppleWorks modules, with 85 pages devoted to the word processor alone, including advanced word processing features like stylesheets, sections, and outlining.

The respective AppleWorks 6 modules' functions are presented for the benefit of the uninitiated using key words:
• Words-The Word Processing Module
• Facts-The Database Module
• Numbers-The Spreadsheet Module
• Graphics-The Drawing and Painting Modules
• Show Time-The Presentation Module

Also covered in depth is the use of AppleWorks' macros, templates, assistants, customizable Button bar, and Web-based clip-art libraries as well as exchanging documents with other programs, ClarisWorks/AppleWorks versions, and platforms using MacLink Plus.

The later chapters cover topics like clippings, and Assistants, creating web pages, preferences, customization, and macros, HTML import/export, macros, frames, tables, and module integration, movies, sounds, and equations.

There is a helpful chapter on troubleshooting AppleWorks 6, which covers the various bugs, glitches, and incompatibilities that plagued the initial AW6 release.

One of the advantages of using a third-party manual is that because this book isn't an Apple publication, the authors are free to acknowledge the program's weaknesses -- and offer workarounds.

There are also two Appendices; the first being a review of each module's Menus that will be very helpful to new and experienced users alike. Every application manual should have one of these!

The second Appendix contains information on installing and upgrading AppleWorks 6. Ditto my comment in the paragraph above. The book is also thoroughly indexed.

If you are familiar with the first book in this series, David Pogue's Mac OS 9: The Missing Manual, you will feel right at home with AW6:TMM. Both books share the same attractive page layout format; both are illustrated profusely with screenshots; and throughout the main text of both are short parenthetical explanations of particular points under the headings "tips" and " notes" to tell you "why" in addition to "what" and how." Both also have longer mini-tutorial boxes that appear under the topical headings: Frequently Asked Question; Power Users Clinic; Up To Speed; Troubleshooting Moments; Gem In The Rough; and Workaround Workshop.

Jim Elferdink owns the consulting company Macs for the Masses, and teaches AppleWorks, while David Reynolds is the executive editor of MacAddict magazine. The authors write in a witty and conversational style rather than the "manualese" you might expect in a reference that actually did ship in the box with the program.

"The book is honestly packed with good stuff," says David Reynolds. "There's nothing like it out there. Jim Elferdink set the tone and the structure, David Pogue added style and humor, and I added some sweat equity--eww! It's actually an entertaining read. Not easy for a computer manual."

As I said at the beginning of this review, AppleWorks 6: The Missing Manual is a must-have for anyone who wants to get the most out of this program. At $19.95, there's really no excuse not to buy it.

To sample "AppleWorks 6: The Missing Manual," Chapter 3: Advanced Word Processing, is available free online at:
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/aplwrksmm/chapter/index.html

For more information about the book, including Table of Contents, index, author bios, and samples, see:
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/aplwrksmm/

For ordering information, email: order@oreilly.com

AppleWorks 6: The Missing Manual
Jim Elferdink & David Reynolds
1-56592-858-X, 450 pages, $19.95
1st First Edition May 2000
order@oreilly.com

Charles W. Moore

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Tuesday, 09-Feb-2010 10:15:40 EST