text 7 for Windows is described by its publisher as a Hebrew word processing program designed for people who create documents containing both Hebrew and English text, and whose natural work environment is Hebrew. After several hours of use, however, one quickly comes to the conclusion that it would be more accurately described as a multi-lingual wordprocessor for all those comfortable in either an English or a Hebrew environnment.
 
Qtext was developed in 1986 by Dvir Software Products, Kibbutz Dvir, Israel. It was distributed as Public Domain Software for two years in Israel. It was first released as a commercial product in 1989, as Qtext 3.0, but has undergone much upgrading to become its latest incarnation, Qtext 7 for Windows and Qtext 5.51 for DOS. It is a state of the art word processor that provides tools for editing, formatting, and file management using both Hebrew and English interfaces.
 
The program makes switching between languages fast and simple. One need only hit the Hebrew/English icon and the program automatically swtiches the orientation of the cursor to the side correct for that language and switches to a font in that language. However, in order to switch the function of the "Delete" and "Backspace" keys to be correct for that language, one must also select the working language from a drop-down Language list. Document management is also made simple through an enhanced facility for managing documents with Hebrew or English file names in directories and libraries. In addition, all menus, instructions, and dialogue boxes can be set in either language.
 
Qtext contains several important proofing features, including an enhanced speller and a Hebrew-English/English- Hebrew dictionary. The dictionary allows for easy, continuous searching for the most appropriate word in either language, and will, upon command, insert that word into the text. The dictionary provides definitions not only for the word specifically indicated, but also for related words, or for other words from the same root. While there are no Hebrew-Hebrew or English- English dictionaries, there is a fairly powerful Hebrew Thesaurus, which can be used in conjunction with the Hebrew- English dictionary. The dictionaries and thesaurus are the most significant anvantages of Qtext over Dagesh and Hebrew MS Word.
 
In addition to Hebrew and English, Qtext provides processing capability in 19 other languages, including Arabic, Russian, Greek, and many other European languages. Any or all of these languages can be used in a single document; switching to any language mid-document is as simple as selecting Hebrew and English. A "Language" menu provides a drop down list of all languages available for use in Qtext. Proofing, however, is limited to Hebrew-English use. To enhance Hebrew word processing, a nikud, or vowelization, feature is also included in Qtext. Insertion of nikud is simple. Upon selection of this feature, a small, user-friendly toolbar appears which displays all of the nikud options, including the dagesh. Special forward/backward arrows and backspace key are also provided to make editing the nikud simple, without needing to erase previously typed text. Unfortunately, there is no grammatical tool to check for correct usage of nikud.
 
Qtext has its own faxing program, which enables documents to be sent directly from the word processing program in Hebrew or English. No external fax program is necessary.
 
In addition to the normal word processing features, Qtext has several graphics features. The program comes with over 100 clipart images, and, of course, the capability to install more. Qtext also has the facility for illustrating and flow- charting. However, this program does not include a fill fearture - it is a drawing, not a paint, program. The drawing is oriented to a grid, therefore all lines and shapes must "connect the dots." Qtext provides 16 color chioces for this feature, as well as for text. Qtext can directly import documents prepared by nearly all other major word processing applications.
 
Qtext comes with many TrueType fonts, and is compatable with Dagesh fonts as well. Paragraph numbering is available with a rather wide selection of numbering styles including Roman and Arabic numerals, and alphabetic characters. Other Qtext features include mail-merge, calculations, labels, footnotes, indexes, and tables of contents. Qtext also has an enhanced facility for working with Tables.
 
Qtext 7.0 runs under Windows 3.1 US and Hebrew, Windows 95 US and Hebrew, and Windows NT. The Minimum system requirements for the program are a 386 processor 4MB RAM (8 MB reccomended), 3.5" floppy disk drive, hard disk drive with 35 MB free, and VGA or SVGA monitor. After installation, the Qtext program files occupy approximately 15 megabytes of space on the hard drive. Overall, the Qtext 7.0 Hebrew/English word processing program is highly efficient. Switching between laguages could not be more convenient. The editing features are, for the most part, comparable to those featured in the latest English word processing programs, such as those seen in the current editions of Microsoft Word and Corel WordPerfect. Perhaps the only important feature Qtext lacks is the ability to create text in more than one column. The "tables" feature, however, provides a work-around for this lacuna.
 
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