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powerbook 540c..... what software will it run?

vassilizaitsev

Well-known member
I love my Powerbook 540c....

Well I like the look of it.

It came with Apple os 8.1 & it came with all bits and bobs & I've tried to cut down the size of the os (loosing extentions)

I assumed it would do word processing without any hassle.

I use Microsoft word 5.0 on my quadra 650 & so copied it over.

When I run it it quits with an "error type 4" message.

I've tried using Word perfect, but this is only version 2 or 3 and my pc dosn't want to read it.

I tried Claris works & I think I liked the look and feel but again, it dosn't seem to want to save in any nice formats.... ie:- WP 5+, Microsoft Word 5+, RTF, Ascii!

What am I doing wrong? (rhetorical woe is me question)

What Word processing will run on my Powerbook 540c without giving me hassle?

 

The Macster

Well-known member
MS Word will run - not sure if Word 5 is too old for OS8 or if the error you're getting is related to not copying it over properly. MS products typically install lots of extensions, so it's best to install them using the proper installer. Or try Office 4.2.1, the latest version available for 68k Macs (which works fine on my PB520).

 

equill

Well-known member
Any one of WriteNow 2.2 (NeXT, ©1989), WriteNow 3.0 (T/Maker ©1992) or WriteNow 4.0.2 (WordStar ©1994) will run very well on your 540c. WriteNow 4 has a footprint of only 348kB. v3 has a UK-localized version.

de

 

Maccess

Well-known member
MS Word 5.0 runs on everything up to Mac Classic on a G5. You may have to reinstall it though, since it may be expecting to see an FPU, seeing that yours is a transfer from an FPU equipped Quadra. Excel 4, and PowerPoint 3 shuld be good matches.

I'm sorry but I can't find anything good to say about Office 4.2.x

Try WordPerfect 3.5e for Mac. It's been freeware'd sometime ago. IMHO, it's still the best wordprocessor for Mac System 7.x - 9.x

As for OS 8.1 on the 540c, I'd say go back down to Mac OS 7.1.2P, or 7.1.1 (that system's original OS).

Appleworks runs great on that machine. So will IE 4.01, and BBEdit Lite.

 

MultiFinder

Well-known member
I use WordPerfect 3.5. It's a great little word processor :)

BTW, how much RAM do you have in that little guy? If you have 20 megs or less, I'd STRONGLY suggest downgrading to 7.6.1. It'll do most everything OS 8'll do, and it takes up alot less RAM.

 
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