Gateway

If there was ever a good blue screen to have appeared on your system it was WordPerfect. Of course, that was the 1980s and you were running MS-DOS. But what if you could get that pleasant blue screen on your Microsoft Vista PC? (It will NOT replace the devilish Microsoft blue screen of the Windows era, but it might make you feel better.)

Yesterday Corel launched WordPerfect Office X4, its competitor to Microsoft Office 2007. Through my limited hands-on with the product it proves to be a solid alternative to Office. The interface is easy to get used to and the new Import PDF tool is seriously helpful. You can easily import an image-based PDF file, which is immediately transcribed into editable text.

But what really gets me is the “throwback” WordPerfect 5.1 mode on the new version. When I met with Corel a few months ago about the product, they claimed people missed working in the old WordPerfect interface. I, for one, do. To reminisce: When I was in 2nd grade I would come home from school, launch up WordPerfect on my father’s computer and write away in my “diary.” I recall writing something along the lines of wanting to be just like Doogie Howser.

If you’re into the nostalgia, here’s how to set it up.

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There’s something for everyone in Gateway’s newest lineup: The notebooks, announced yesterday, include everything from three gaming rigs to a convertible tablet. With select models, users can opt for 64-bit systems, which pack performance benefits for gamers and power users.

Perhaps the biggest piece of news is that Gateway is bringing its FX gaming formula, introduced just last January, to a 15.4-inch machine. The M-6850FX has an Intel Core 2 Duo T5550 processor, ATI Radeon HD 2600 graphics, 3GB RAM, and a massive 320GB, 5,400 rpm hard drive. At only $999, it’s likely to appeal to people who can’t afford– or are wary of– the overheating-prone Alienware m15x.

The other two gaming rigs look like refreshes of machines we loved: The P-171XL FX and the P-6831FX. The P-172 FX Edition ($1,999) has an Intel Core 2 Duo T8300 processor, Nvidia GeForce 8800M GTS GPU with 512MB memory, 4GB RAM, and dual 160GB hard drives. Like the P-6831FX, the P-C860FX ($1,349) will be sold at Best Buy. As Todd just pointed out, the specs are pretty much identical to its predecssor’s: an Intel Core 2 Duo T5450 processor, Nvidia GeForce 8800M GTS GPU with 512MB, 3GB RAM, and a 250GB hard drive running at 5,400 rpm.

For non-gamers, the 15.4-inch M-1626 ($849) offers an AMD Turion TL-60 processor, ATI Radeon HD X1270 graphics, 4GB RAM, and a 250GB hard drive. The 14.1-inch T-1628 ($749) has an AMD Turion 64 TL-60 processor, ATI Radeon X1270 graphics, 3GB RAM, and a 250GB hard drive. Both have HDMI ports and, less impressively, 802.11g Wi-Fi.

Lastly, the 14.1-inch C-142XL ($1,299) convertible tablet refreshes the current C-Series, and has an Intel Core 2 Duo T8300 processor, ATI Radeon X2300 graphics, 3GB RAM, and a 250GB hard drive.