
WordStar: A Writer's Word Processor (1996) - Tomte
http://sfwriter.com/wordstar.htm
======
TD-Linux
I have a copy of WordStar running on an Franklin Ace 1200 (Apple II+ clone
from 1983)... it runs WordStar via a Z80 peripheral card that runs PCPI CP/M
while talking to the Apple 6502 to use the rest of the peripherals. So even
then people were using workarounds to keep on running WordStar on newer
hardware...

I still write letters with it and print them on my dot matrix printer. I
certainly wouldn't reach for it over emacs in the modern era, though.

~~~
pvg
You can't call the Z80 card a 'workaround'! Shameless ingrate...

~~~
TD-Linux
Well, I suppose it is one of the fastest CP/M computers around... especially
because it's the PCPI Applicard (or rather, Franklin's licensed version)
instead of the Microsoft Softcard, which means it runs at 6MHz and has its own
dedicated 64k of RAM.

------
itsoggy
I'm an writer in my spare time, my writing PC is a basic text only FreeBSD
install.

I use joe or vim and put everything in git for easy transfer and backup.

For me, I need as little destruction as possible, I even find auto spell check
with its red underlining completely destructive when it comes to my flow of
thoughts.

~~~
unwind
You probably mean "distraction" and "distractive", right? Or perhaps that's
just a pun flying by my head. :)

~~~
Semiapies
It's over of those typos that seems completely right when you're dealing with
an unwelcome distraction.

------
univacky
I was a bit surprised to find no mention of SF author Jerry Pournelle using
the Electric Pencil word processor for many years:

[https://www.jerrypournelle.com/chaosmanor/early-days-of-
word...](https://www.jerrypournelle.com/chaosmanor/early-days-of-word-
processing/)

I do have WordPerfect running on my old DOS PC as well as a CP/M P112 I built:

[https://661.org/p112/](https://661.org/p112/)

------
faragon
Also a Programmers' Word Processor, indirectly: Borland editors (Turbo Pascal,
Turbo C, etc.), JOE, and others, took many of the WordStar key combinations...
[1]

[1] [http://texteditors.org/cgi-
bin/wiki.pl?WordStarFamily](http://texteditors.org/cgi-
bin/wiki.pl?WordStarFamily)

------
wordpressdev
WordStar for word processing, Dbase for database management and Lotus-123 for
spread sheets - those were the days.

~~~
DanBC
I love that dBase launched as dBaseII to make it sound like an established
product.

~~~
hunterjrj
As did Oracle.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oracle_Database#Version_number...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oracle_Database#Version_numbering)

------
Tomte
joe ([http://joe-editor.sf.net](http://joe-editor.sf.net)) is inspired by
WordStar and gets even closer when started as jstar.

~~~
avian
When I started with Linux I used the Zed editor by Sandro Serafini, which used
WordStar-like keybindings as well.

Interesting, how it seems to have completely disappeared from the web since
then. The two "zed" editors I could find appear unrelated, as is the current
"zed" Debian package. Only archive.org seems to still have the original web
page

[https://web.archive.org/web/20120520234205/http://zed.c3po.i...](https://web.archive.org/web/20120520234205/http://zed.c3po.it/)

------
Angostura
If anyone here ever came across a daily IT newsletter called Computergram, you
will be glad to know that it was written (and laid oud) using WordStar until
at least the mid-90s.

The newsletter had a multicolumn-format, and box-outs. These were arranged by
using different margin settings and then running the paper through the printer
multiple times. Erk.

^KS

~~~
hollander
I had a Brother daisywheel printer for my Superbrain, and I didn't like the
options for chapter headings in text, as they didn't stand out enough for me.
I wanted them to be bolder than normal bold. With the daisywheel I had only
one font, not like a matrix printer which had all kind of fonts.

One bold tag around text like (b)example(b) made the printer retype that text
one time. It turned out that (b)(b)(b)example(b)(b)(b) resulted in four times
typing "example". This was hammered (literally) into the paper, so on the
backside you could see and read the text as well. Using capitals, varying
degrees of bold-repetitions, I could get what I wanted.

~~~
Starwatcher2001
I used a similar hack to persuade an Epson MX80 printer to produce slashed
zeros by sending '0', <backspace> '/'.

------
Gaelan
I have to wonder if he's ever tried vim. Seems like a lot of the features he
likes are in vim as well. I'm sure a lot of this applies to emacs as well.

~~~
pvg
WordStar is not modal and that's one of the things he appears to like about
it. I doubt vim is going to cut it - he seems to be using WordStar 7 under DOS
emulation now.

~~~
flukus
Wouldn't emacs be just as capable, or at least an emacs distro?

~~~
pvg
It would be (and then some) but then he'd have to learn and heavily customize
emacs. He's already found the tool that works for him.

~~~
singingfish
M-x wordstar-mode provides a major mode with WordStar-like key bindings. (I
just tried it, although it's been so long since I used wordstar - when I was a
kid - that I've forgotten all the keybindings so couldn't work out how to exit
emacs)

~~~
pvg
Right but it's not the same thing, just some (incomplete) keybindings.
Wordstar fundamentally deals with attributed text. It knows what pages are. It
has a different UI. Etc, etc.

It's Ctrl-K-x, btw.

~~~
tincholio
Agree on the attributed text (though not on the need of it for writing prose),
but Emacs also understands the concept of pages (you can insert page breaks at
will by using form-feed characters, ^L)

~~~
pvg
Inserting form feeds is not 'understands the concept of pages'. As to the
other thing, I'm not sure 'you don't need that feature' is likely to convince
a professional writer/Wordstar user to take up emacs.

------
Stratoscope
I never used it much as a word processor, but WordStar was my favorite
programming editor on CP/M. Of course that was long before the 1996 date of
this article! I remember a few friends who also used it for their coding.

Sawyer's article hints at this: "An Interface Designed For Touch Typists".

So now I'm curious: anyone else out there who used WordStar as a programming
editor back in the day?

~~~
jhallenworld
I used it as such under DOS (wrote 6800, 6809 and 8088 assembly language and C
with Microsoft C 4.0).

I wrote this emulator to allow me to use CP/M wordstar in Linux:

[https://github.com/jhallen/cpm](https://github.com/jhallen/cpm)

Screen I/O just uses the terminal emulator and does not open another window.
I'd like to see a DOS emulator that works like this.

~~~
jacobush
DOSEmu at least used to have that mode IIRC

------
searchfaster
George R.R Martin uses WordStar

[http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2014/05/14/george_r_...](http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2014/05/14/george_r_r_martin_writes_on_dos_based_wordstar_4_0_software_from_the_1980s.html)

~~~
TAForObvReasons
Mentioned in the first line of the post:

Many Science Fiction writers — including myself, Roger MacBride Allen, Gerald
Brandt, Jeffrey A. Carver, Arthur C. Clarke, David Gerrold, Terence M. Green,
James Gunn, Matthew Hughes, Donald Kingsbury, Eric Kotani, Paul Levinson,
_George R. R. Martin_ , Vonda McIntyre, Kit Reed, Jennifer Roberson, and Edo
van Belkom — continue to use WordStar for DOS as our writing tool of choice.

~~~
detaro
Still interesting that he still does so ~20 years after the article submitted
was written. (Next question: How many of the surviving others mentioned still
do?)

~~~
PaulLevinson
I switched to Word around 2004, when I started writing The Plot to Save
Socrates.

------
partycoder
When I use LibreOffice I run:

    
    
        xcalib -i -a
    

It inverts screen colors. To go back to normal, run it again. Never liked
bright backgrounds much.

WordStar for DOS with blue or black colors was easier on the eyes than the
Windows version.

------
sundvor
Great article. My dad swore by WordStar, even as WordPerfect etc came up and
got more popular. He was always tremendously productive hammering out his
bids; at the time, I didn't get it (I was using the C64 then the Amiga at some
point during this). It's great to see the love for WordStar retrospectively,
will send this for his enjoyment now.

------
noir_lord
I use FocusWriter[1].
[http://i.imgur.com/uKVODsM.png](http://i.imgur.com/uKVODsM.png)

It requires a little bit of config as the default appearance is a bit bleh but
if I have to do any kind of long form writing I reach for it straight away.

The font I use is "FS Me", it was designed in partnership with Mencap for
legibility for people with learning disabilities[2] which doesn't apply to me
(though some people might argue otherwise) but I've found it to be incredibly
easy on the eye for long periods.

[1] [https://gottcode.org/focuswriter/](https://gottcode.org/focuswriter/) [2]
[http://i.imgur.com/uKVODsM.png](http://i.imgur.com/uKVODsM.png)

~~~
littleweep
Cool, thanks for sharing. I plan on taking it for a spin.

------
krptos
I use Zoho Writer for all my writings. -
[https://writer.zoho.com](https://writer.zoho.com)

Zoho Writer, is one such word processor which has managed to retain a
distraction free writing canvas, while still packed with features, found in a
typical word processor.

------
bootload
> wordstar -> turbo pascal

working with wordstar meant the turbo pascal editor was easier to use. [0]

[0] [http://www.freepascal.org/docs-
html/user/userse32.html](http://www.freepascal.org/docs-
html/user/userse32.html)

------
genjipress
WordStar was where I started back in the DOS days. Then WordPerfect, and now
Microsoft Word, where I've remained for upwards of 20 years.

That said, I don't do organization for writing projects in Word itself -- for
that, I'm using TiddlyWiki (stupid name, GREAT software).

I tried Scrivener briefly, but I found it too closed-ended and cramping of my
style to be really worth it.

FocusWriter (also mentioned downthread) is a really nice little app, although
it's best for banging stuff out rather than for full workflow. I end up going
back to Word simply because of the revision tracking and annotation stuff.

------
dwe3000
Thinking about WordStar always gets my ire up, not about WordStar but by
comparing a word processor that fit on a single 3 1/2" floppy and comparing
that to the size of modern word processors that easily eat multiple Mb. I know
that they are often adding features to increase audience, but I rarely do
anything in the modern software that I couldn't do in WordStar. It seems like
such a waste.

------
ddp
I still think Electric Pencil running on a Processor Technology Sol-20 was
superior to WordStar, but then again, I owned Newtons back in the day.

------
mwexler
Lots of authors vie for early word processor fame...
[https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/01/conte...](https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/01/contenders-
first-novel-written-word-processor/333277/) was one I recall liking at the
time.

~~~
imron
'vi' :-)

------
Brendinooo
What kind of file formats does it use?

I grew up with [Professional Write][1] for DOS, and when I recently purged a
bunch of my old floppies I came across some files in its proprietary format
that I couldn't open.

[1]:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pfs:Write](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pfs:Write)

~~~
shakna
Short answer: Several [0].

Personally, I had a copy of WordStar 2000, which was completely incompatible
with everything else.

However, most versions of WS used seven bits for ASCII, and one bit for
formatting. Destroyed extended ASCII and internationalisation.

But WS went through a few formats in its lifetime.

[0]
[http://justsolve.archiveteam.org/wiki/WordStar](http://justsolve.archiveteam.org/wiki/WordStar)

------
speculatrix
Recently found the review I wrote of WordStar 5 when it came out.
[https://mansfield-devine.com/speculatrix/2017/03/from-the-
ar...](https://mansfield-devine.com/speculatrix/2017/03/from-the-archives-
wordstar-5-review/)

------
mti27
Got so many praises from high school teachers for "typing" my papers, when in
fact it was just faster to use WordStar on a 286. Cool article, wish I'd known
about the double period note feature!

------
JulianMorrison
I'm always a little surprised nobody has re-implemented it (as a full WP, not
just a plain text editor) after so often having heard praise of it.

~~~
shakna
Some have!

WordTsar [0]

Write & Set [1]

[0] [http://wordtsar.ca](http://wordtsar.ca)

[1]
[http://www.writeandset.com/english/indxf.html](http://www.writeandset.com/english/indxf.html)

~~~
egypturnash
WordTsar looks a little dead: the last three posts on the blog are from 2014,
and are titled, respectively, "Hacked by GeNErAL", "The Best Online Pharmacy.
Buy Cialis Without Prescription – Orders-Cialis.info", and "Alpha 0.51
Released".

Not that WriteAndSet looks better: "Last modified: September 19 2009"

~~~
JulianMorrison
WriteAndSet's screenshots being from OS/2 also doesn't fill me with positive
expectations.

------
rhabarba
Today there is WordPerfect for writer's needs, including great keyboard
controls. Sadly, it lost some reputation over the past few years.

------
bluesmoon
Had to memorize the entire list of Wordstar command sequences for school. We
were tested on it in the 9th grade.

------
ZephyrP
Just wait until you get a load of Emacs.

------
xjay
Anecdote: Richard Dawkins -- not being happy with Apple Writer that came with
the Apple II -- ended up spending a lot of time programming his own word
processor [1] which he then used to write one book -- The Blind Watchmaker.

In response to a question, commenting on him writing ten books at the time,
Dawkins interjects to say he could have written 20 books if he hadn't taken up
computer programming. [2]

[1]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DEe4QEuOSw&t=1074](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DEe4QEuOSw&t=1074)
[2]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQp1QaW_onk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQp1QaW_onk)

~~~
roryisok
This is very relevant to me. I'm a struggling, unpublished novelist with a
handful of half finished books and a moderately successful writing app in the
windows store, which I use myself. Every time I sit down to write I find
myself making notes on how to improve things or sometimes fixing bugs and
deploying new versions instead of writing. As a writer, it's probably the
worst decision I ever made. As a developer, it's the thing in most proud of
(which is also kind of sad since its so very basic)

~~~
shakna
I always get frustrated with the tools for writing.

I like using details in my writing, little things like specific symbols around
print numbers, or being able to ensure a particular event takes place on a
certain page number...

But producing the end files is hell. Some printers take the edge of the page
in their own files, the EPUB spec is excruciating at times, without full
support in any reader, mobi is a worse thing because it's so proprietary.

I've extended Markdown, reStructured Text and Scribble in pursuit of WYSIWYM,
and written four or five build tools.

But I still feel like writing in the modern world for modern devices is like
slowly drowning.

Being both a programmer and a writer is a curse.

~~~
roryisok
> or being able to ensure a particular event takes place on a certain page
> number...

I find your level of organisation intimidating

~~~
shakna
Don't you always want a towel reference on page 42?

Sometimes it makes sense, when you have symbols and stuff. Buried meanings are
great little nods to the audience... But not many people would notice if it
got pushed to page 43.

~~~
roryisok
> Don't you always want a towel reference on page 42?

Well NOW I do...

------
jlebrech
Alpha smart
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AlphaSmart](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AlphaSmart)

~~~
sfRattan
My middle school had these, and a typing course. None of our words-per-minute
scores improved so much as an iota until Christmas break, when we all started
using instant messengers at home. Our teacher was flabbergasted that AIM did
more to improve out typing habits than a semester's worth of instruction.

We also used them to make sideways ASCII art that you had to scroll through.
Things like city skylines and battle scenes.

