PC TOOLS Version 8 A Software Review by Herb Goldstein Remember the old adage, "it's got everything but the kitchen sink ?" Well, PC TOOLS V8.0 has the kitchen sink, plus the dishwasher, microwave oven and just about everything else. It's been an interesting metamorphosis. I've been a PC TOOLS user since the original version, not all that many years back. It came on one 5 1/4 360K floppy, and had a small paper pamphlet as a manual. Version 8 comes on five 1.44 MB floppies along with 2 manuals containing a total of some 1500 pages. It occupies plenty of farmland on your hard drive, and it's worth every square byte of it. Version 8 is the most humongous and encompassing in a fast and furious series of upgrades as PC TOOLS and Norton Desktop engage in a pitch battle of leapfrog. Heaven only knows what's next in this software game of "Can You Top This." Regardless, the winner is the end user...you and me. For rank beginners who may not have heard of PC TOOLS (is there in fact such a person), it is a utility program that will do everything but boil water. There is hardly a task you could invent in DOS that PC TOOLS won't do in yeoman fashion. It is veritably the Swiss army knife of software. For Tools devotees, you will be pleased as punch with the plethora of additions to this latest version. So with no further ado, let's see what Central Point concocted in this update. 1. The DOS shell itself is basically the same, with a number of embellishments and window dressing. You can still do everything imaginable to any file or directory. The whole caboodle is now called the PC TOOLS Desktop, to compete with the Norton Desktop, I suppose. Lots and lots of nuances like zip-file compress and decompress, multiple disk copies without re-read, configurable function keys and menu items, laptop connectivity, drag and drop capabilities, improved file-fix to repair damaged spreadsheet or database files are but the tip of the iceberg. The Desktop is now the launchpad for all the utilities in Version 8. 2. Anti-virus protection now includes cure as well as detection. Additionally, you can subscribe to regular updates which give you the latest fixes for the inventions of sick minds. 3. RAMBOOST will manage your RAM and high memory blocks in conjunction with your current memory management program. 4. New Drive-Map handles file transfers between portables, networks, and your desktop. 5. CP Task utility allows easy switching between DOS programs. 6. What used to be "PC Desktop" in Version 7 is integrated into the current Desktop. It includes such goodies as a notepad, outliner, database, appointment scheduler, modem and fax communications, electronic mail, macro editor, clipboard, autodialer, and some of the most advanced calculators you'll find anywhere. 7. The best backup program in the industry resides in PC TOOLS. It's available as a standalone backup program. You get it as part of the package here. It backs up to either disk or tape, and its got other backup programs beat by a country mile in both ease of use and power. 8. Diskfix will diagnose and repair both hard and floppy disk problems. It can be used regularly as a preventative. 9. PC TOOLS "Commute" utility allows you to access your computer remotely from any telephone. It is also sold as a standalone package, but is included here. 10. Microsoft has included a constricted version of PC TOOLS UNDELETE and MIRROR utilities in DOS 5.0. You get the unabridged versions in Tools 8. They will recover deleted files or help reconstitute a crashed hard drive, respectively. You can also unformat an accidentally formatted disk or drive. 11. To keep your drive running smoothly, you will find an excellent disk defragmentation and optimization utility. 12. CPTASK allows you to instantly switch between DOS applications with a keystroke. 13. Central Point thankfully got rid of the half dozen or so separate manuals that came with Version 7 in favor of two large manuals in Version 8. An index for both appears in only one of the manuals. Is PC Tools perfect? Every program has its flaws, PC TOOLS is no exception. The developers of this superb software keep forgetting that not everyone who wants to use it is a cockeyed expert on computers. The manuals in many areas are very hard to plod through. The writing is decipherable by only the more experienced (and then some) among computerists. Take the "RAMBOOST" utility, for example. Details on its use are covered in almost 40 pages, most of which are about as decipherable for the average computerist as the Dead Sea Scrolls. In contrast, QEMM does all the work and makes all the decisions for you. Maybe not as flexible, but a helluvalot easier for the average individual. I am often convinced that the people who write software and documentation commonly make the fatal error of assuming that everyone is as smart as they are. It just ain't so!! On the plus side, chances are that a good after-market manual is probably waiting in the wings...something like Osborne McGraw Hill's "PC TOOLS, The Complete Reference." It covers Version 7, and was reviewed in a recent issue. It just bothers me that after you invest in a program, you have to spend additional to get documentation that you can follow. PC TOOLS 8 is basically written for DOS, it can be used inside Windows, but it is not a Windows program. Rumor has it that a Windows version is in the Making...probably to compete with Norton Desktop For Windows. In spite of these misgivings, it is axiomatic that if you own a computer, a good utility program is indispensable. If you are looking for a good utility program, you won't find a better one than PC TOOLS. Add the fact that you can get it at a street price of not too much over $100, and you've got one of software's best bargains.