Locoscript

LocoScript

The opening Disc Management screen in LocoScript 1.40. The "hidden files" are the LocoScript software.
Developer(s)	Locomotive Software
Initial release	1985; 32 years ago (1985)
Operating system	MS-DOS
Platform	Amstrad PCW, IBM-compatible
Type	word processing software package
Website	www.locoscript.uk

The word processing software package LocoScript by Locomotive Software was introduced as one of the programs bundled with the Amstrad PCW, a personal computer launched in 1985. Early versions of LocoScript were noted for combining a wide range of facilities with outstanding ease of use. This and the low price of the hardware made it one of the best-selling word processors of the late 1980s. Four versions of LocoScript were published for the PCW, and two for IBM-compatible PCs running under MS-DOS. LocoScript's market share didn't expand with the PC versions, which were not released until after Windows became the dominant PC operating system.

LocoScript's developers, Locomotive Software, had produced Locomotive BASIC for Amstrad's CPC 464 home computer, introduced in 1984. For the Amstrad PCW, introduced in 1985, Locomotive produced the LocoScript word processor and Mallard BASIC, and also wrote the PCW's User Guide. These programs and a dot matrix printer were included in the price of the PCW, which was £399 plus VAT for the base model. The PCW, regarded as extremely good value for money, gained 60% of the UK home computer market, and 20% of the European personal computer market. According to Personal Computer World, the PCW "got the technophobes using computers".

LocoScript was regarded as easier to use than Wordstar and WordPerfect, which in the mid-1980s were the dominant word processors on IBM-compatible PCs, and many users needed no additional information beyond what the manual's "first 20 minutes" introductory chapter provided. The PCW's keyboard offered clearly labelled, one-press special keys for many common LocoScript functions, including cut, copy, and paste, while LocoScript's competitors required a wide range of key combinations that the user had to remember. Most of the program's other features were presented via a pull-down menu bar in which the top-level options were activated by function keys. The menu system had two structures, one for beginners and the other for experienced users. Locomotive Software's slogan for the product was "Everything you need, nothing you don't." However, LocoScript version 1 was regarded as relatively slow.