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This is the main reason I keep my PS/2 around with WordPerfect 5.1. Sure I can go browse the web with Minuet, or I used to before https everywhere, but that me

by cout 11mo ago

This is the main reason I keep my PS/2 around with WordPerfect 5.1. Sure I can go browse the web with Minuet, or I used to before https everywhere, but that means saving and exiting WP. And 30+ years later I'm still waiting for a word processor with a decent Reveal Codes.

tonyarkles 11mo ago
> decent Reveal Codes. You and me both, friend.
fouc 11mo ago
I knew about IBM PS/2, but I temporarily forgot for a moment and was feeling confused about using WordPerfect 5.1 with PlayStation 2 haha.
- swores 11mo ago
  Meanwhile my mind first jumped to the old, pre-USB connector used for things like keyboards and mice, and was wondering what wizardry they had built to turn a PS2 keyboard into a complete text processor!
  - pigeons 11mo ago
    I always thought they were related because my PS/2's did use PS2 connectors.
    - mkl 11mo ago
      Yes, the PS/2 connector came from the PS/2 computer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PS/2_port https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PS/2_port
chipotle_coyote 11mo ago
AFAIK, the current version of Nota Bene -- a direct descendent of XyWrite -- still has this; the current feature list explicitly mentions "Editable Show Codes view so you can see exactly where commands take effect, and edit them as desired". Nota Bene has survived into the present day by moving pretty firmly into a niche academia market, though, and carries a pretty stiff price ($349).
adfm 11mo ago
I keep a Mac IIci that I purchased at a thrift store for $12 to remind me that we haven't progressed that far. It's not fast, but it runs Photoshop, Illustrator, and Vim. Not bad for a 35+ year old machine that will do 80% of what you need. No GPU, but I think that's losing the plot when people can't afford to pay their electricity bills while billion dollar companies continue to scale out the data centers that jack up prices for AI slop nobody wants.
devilbunny 11mo ago
It’s been 30ish years, so I can’t be 100% sure, but Ami Pro 3.1 for Windows had an easy-to-use equation editor that gave great results. And I think its Reveal Codes equivalent was pretty good. Crashed a lot, though.
- anjel 11mo ago
  I still occasionaly yearn for features not seen since Ami Pro
mkl 11mo ago
> And 30+ years later I'm still waiting for a word processor with a decent Reveal Codes. Have you tried... WordPerfect? It still exists: https://www.wordperfect.com/en/product/wordperfect/ https://www.wordperfect.com/en/product/wordperfect/ The first feature they list is Reveal Codes. Personally I like Latex as it reveals all the codes and lets you type them, change them, find-and-replace them, define new ones, etc. But then, I'm a mathematician, so it's designed for my stuff.
alchemism 11mo ago
I'm also in the quaint demographic that believes WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS was the apex of distraction-free writing. Switching disks to change the application was just the right amount of intentional friction to stay in the zone.
lproven 11mo ago
There are 3 freeware versions of WordPerfect. • The final version for classic MacOS, and there's a ready-made VM to run it on a modern Mac. • The GUI version for Linux, and there's a site dedicated to helping you install it on a modern Linux. • And Tavis Ormandy found and resurrected the final ever terminal-mode text-only WordPerfect for Linux, relinking it for x86 Linux. I described how to get all 3 here: https://www.theregister.com/2022/07/20/wordperfect_for_unix_for_linux/ https://www.theregister.com/2022/07/20/wordperfect_for_unix_...

by cout 11mo ago

tonyarkles 11mo ago

> decent Reveal Codes. You and me both, friend.

fouc 11mo ago

I knew about IBM PS/2, but I temporarily forgot for a moment and was feeling confused about using WordPerfect 5.1 with PlayStation 2 haha.

swores 11mo ago
Meanwhile my mind first jumped to the old, pre-USB connector used for things like keyboards and mice, and was wondering what wizardry they had built to turn a PS2 keyboard into a complete text processor!
- pigeons 11mo ago
  I always thought they were related because my PS/2's did use PS2 connectors.
  - mkl 11mo ago
    Yes, the PS/2 connector came from the PS/2 computer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PS/2_port https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PS/2_port

chipotle_coyote 11mo ago

AFAIK, the current version of Nota Bene -- a direct descendent of XyWrite -- still has this; the current feature list explicitly mentions "Editable Show Codes view so you can see exactly where commands take effect, and edit them as desired". Nota Bene has survived into the present day by moving pretty firmly into a niche academia market, though, and carries a pretty stiff price ($349).

adfm 11mo ago

I keep a Mac IIci that I purchased at a thrift store for $12 to remind me that we haven't progressed that far. It's not fast, but it runs Photoshop, Illustrator, and Vim. Not bad for a 35+ year old machine that will do 80% of what you need. No GPU, but I think that's losing the plot when people can't afford to pay their electricity bills while billion dollar companies continue to scale out the data centers that jack up prices for AI slop nobody wants.

devilbunny 11mo ago

It’s been 30ish years, so I can’t be 100% sure, but Ami Pro 3.1 for Windows had an easy-to-use equation editor that gave great results. And I think its Reveal Codes equivalent was pretty good. Crashed a lot, though.

anjel 11mo ago
I still occasionaly yearn for features not seen since Ami Pro

mkl 11mo ago

> And 30+ years later I'm still waiting for a word processor with a decent Reveal Codes. Have you tried... WordPerfect? It still exists: https://www.wordperfect.com/en/product/wordperfect/ https://www.wordperfect.com/en/product/wordperfect/ The first feature they list is Reveal Codes. Personally I like Latex as it reveals all the codes and lets you type them, change them, find-and-replace them, define new ones, etc. But then, I'm a mathematician, so it's designed for my stuff.

alchemism 11mo ago

I'm also in the quaint demographic that believes WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS was the apex of distraction-free writing. Switching disks to change the application was just the right amount of intentional friction to stay in the zone.

lproven 11mo ago

There are 3 freeware versions of WordPerfect. • The final version for classic MacOS, and there's a ready-made VM to run it on a modern Mac. • The GUI version for Linux, and there's a site dedicated to helping you install it on a modern Linux. • And Tavis Ormandy found and resurrected the final ever terminal-mode text-only WordPerfect for Linux, relinking it for x86 Linux. I described how to get all 3 here: https://www.theregister.com/2022/07/20/wordperfect_for_unix_for_linux/ https://www.theregister.com/2022/07/20/wordperfect_for_unix_...