Good..
Better...
Best....
Never Let Them Rest
Until The Good Is Better
And the Better is Best

This must be the philosophy of the programmers at Microsoft!

It has become more and more difficult to write reviews for the Microsoft Publisher application because there are just so many words and so many ways that you can let everyone know how marvelous, - how terrific, - how great a product is.....especially because the previous version was so wonderful.

This product, however, is just MORE than it has ever been. It seems to me that there is just nothing that you can’t do with it. It was a breeze to install, because it does it by itself. However, because of all that it has, you should be aware of how much space it takes. If you have to conserve space on your hard drive, Microsoft allows you to do a "Custom" installation, so that you can choose from their many options. They require 8 M RAM for Windows 95/98 or 12 M RAM for Windows NT. The typical installation is 109 M, and the minimum installation is 24 M. Also, you needn’t be afraid that you may lose all the good stuff that you created on a previous version, because Microsoft Publisher 98 has taken that into consideration and searches your hard drive to see if you have an older version and asks whether or not you want to keep your work. It will not overwrite or delete anything that you created in the previous version, unless you indicate that you want to do that.

Another thing that Microsoft Publisher 98 has is a written manual. More and more products are being written with great "help" areas, but sometimes I need the written word to help me understand how to do something. This application has both, - the “Help” area is fantastic, and the manual that comes with it is really great, - easy to understand, - not technical, - even for a novice that has never used Microsoft Publisher before.

This Publisher application has more templates (1600), more graphics (10,000), more pictures (1500), and more wizards. Wizards, as you know, allows you to choose what you want to do, answer really simple questions and then it sets up whatever it is that you want to publish. Everything from Newsletters, Web Sites, Brochures, Flyers, Signs, Posters, Certificates, Labels, Calendars, and the list goes on and on. It also provides if you decide to try it on your own and use your own creativity combined with their wizardry. It most assuredly gives whatever you do a unique look, whether it be for business or for pleasure. One of the things that I think is really exceptional with the application is that you can choose from sixty coordinated color schemes to change the overall look of the publication and/or letterhead/envelope, etc.

This is a really comprehensive publishing application. A "gotta have" in my book!