COMPUTERS and COMPOSITION 8(1), November 1990, page 6

The Computers and Controversy section of Computers and Composition 7:3 raised the issue of how much text is visible on the IBM and Macintosh screens. I typed a short text on both computers and found out that the differences are not likely to be significant.

The IBM uses a fixed size for each character; the width of each line can be set for printer size (65 characters) or screen size (80). WORDPERFECT allows 24 lines of text, WORDSTAR without the help allows 22.

MICROSOFT WORD on the Macintosh uses proportional spacing for the characters. At a typical setting, with 1 inch right and left margins, and 12 point type, one sees 18 lines of type; this can be increased on line by pulling the window down. With my sample text, the difference between IBM WORDSTAR and Macintosh WORD was three words. When the right margin was set to 3/4 inch, the screen's limit, the two displays were exactly the same.

Changing the Macintosh font to 10 pitch gets 24 lines, and you see eight more IBM lines (plus three words) than is physically possible with IBM WORDSTAR and one line more than with WORDPERFECT.

It seems useful to teach (or remind) students that they can adjust the margins and (with the Macintosh) the font if they wish to see more of their writing. Whatever else might make a difference in students' success on either computer, the amount of visible text cannot be a serious variable.

Donald Ross
University of Minnesota