SoftMaker is offering a free download of a beta version of its commercial word processing software for the Sharp Zaurus. The company calls its TextMaker application “the most comprehensive word processor ever developed” for the Linux-based Zaurus PDAs.

According to SoftMaker, TextMaker supports advanced Microsoft Word formatting better than the Hancom MobileWord application that ships with the Sharp Zaurus. Unlike MobileWord, TextMaker supports headers, footers, tables, graphics, outlines, sophisticated character and paragraph formatting, on-the-fly multi-language spell-checking, and more, providing loss-less conversion of .doc format files, SoftMaker says.

TextMaker's user interface supports English and German, with Spanish, Portuguese, and Russion versions under development.

TextMaker costs $49.95, and will be available through resellers or directly from SoftMaker (which is now accepting pre-orders). TextMaker for Zaurus will also be available bundled with a desktop Linux version for $70. Additional information, including a variety of screenshots, a user discussion forum, downloadable PDF manual, and a free beta download of TextMaker for Zaurus are available online.

 
This article was originally published on LinuxDevices.com and has been donated to the open source community by QuinStreet Inc. Please visit LinuxToday.com for up-to-date news and articles about Linux and open source.