MS Word eventually became the dominant program, alongside the rest of the Microsoft Office suite, thanks to the growing popularity of Windows OS throughout the 1990s.

Then, software came along in the late 1970s and early 1980s - Electric Pencil being the first for home computers.Ī basic word processor program called WordStar dominated the market in the 1980s, but several competitors, including Microsoft Word, came along and unseated WordStar. Throughout the 1960s, companies like IBM innovated by adding electronic features to mechanical typewriters. Here’s a fun fact: you can trace the lineage of word processors back to these machines - not computer programs. The first recognizable typewriter was invented in the late 1800s by Christopher Latham Sholes.

A brief history of the word processorīefore word processing software, we had typewriters, which were considered the first word processors. Without it, we’d still write by hand or, at best, use a typewriter. Cloud-based apps like Google Docs are also popular because of their benefits, but we’ll discuss those later.Īs mentioned, word processing software forms the bedrock of most modern work and communications today. The most prominent example of a word processing program is Microsoft Word. German IBM typewriter sales executive Ulrich Steinhilper coined the term “word processing” in the 1950s. Word processing software, also called word processors, are any computer programs or devices that let you input, delete, edit, adjust the formatting of, and generally manipulate text and data. Then, we’ll explore the benefits of using an online word processor and take a look at the key features your choice should come with.

Tons of options exist, from simple solutions to expansive programs with hundreds of features.īelow, we’ll define in detail what a word processor is and briefly recount the history of this kind of software. Nowadays, it’s hard for people or businesses to get work done without an electronic word processor. Since the invention of the typewriter, people have moved away from writing things out by hand in favor of word processing tools.

Free basic word processor