Editing Nisus Writer

{{short description|Word processing program for Apple Macs}}
{{Infobox software
| name                   = Nisus Writer
| screenshot             = 
| caption                = 
| author                 = 
| developer              = Nisus Software, Inc.
| released               = {{Start date and age|1989}}
| latest_release_version = 
| discontinued           = yes
| operating_system       = [[Classic MacOS]], [[MacOS]]
| genre                  = [[Word processor]]
| license                = [[Proprietary license|Proprietary]]
}}
'''Nisus Writer''' (known as just '''Nisus''' from 1989 to 1993<ref name="history"/>) is a [[word processor program]] for [[Mac (computer)|Apple Macs]], made by California-based Nisus Software, Inc.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nisus.com/about/|title=About Nisus Software, Inc.|website=Nisus Software|access-date=2024-08-08}}</ref> The program is nowadays available in two varieties: '''Nisus Writer Express''' and '''Nisus Writer Pro'''.

==History==
First introduced in 1989, Nisus was the first word processor for Macintosh able to handle multiple type systems within one document, e.g. [[Arabic alphabet|Arabic]], [[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]], [[Japanese writing system|Japanese]], etc., thanks to [[WorldScript]]. Other distinguishing features of the program were non-contiguous text selection, multiple editable clipboards, one of the earliest implementations of multiple [[undo]], voice recording, and inline annotations. It also offers [[grep]] search and replace accessed through a graphical [[dialog box]] instead of [[command line options]]. These features, which were more advanced than those typically found in word processors of the day, were also present in Nisus' [[QUED/M]] [[text editor]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nisus.com/products/QUEDM/|title=QUED/M|website=Nisus Software|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref>

An unusual feature of the Nisus [[file format]] was that all font and formatting information was saved in the file's [[resource fork]], with the [[data fork]] containing only [[plain text]]. Thus, if the file were to be opened in another program on the Mac, or on a [[Windows PC]], the text would be readable (although style information would be lost). This predates [[cross-platform]] file formats as used by word processors like [[Microsoft Word]]. Contemporary editions of Word had different formats between the Mac and Windows versions and required a translator if the file were to be readable at all. The technique of using the resource fork to store style information was later implemented by [[Apple Inc.]] for the standard Macintosh styled text format as used in [[SimpleText]].

In 1992, '''Nisus Compact''', was released.<ref name="history">{{cite web |title=The History of Nisus Software|url=https://nisus.com/about/history.php/ |website=Nisus Software|access-date=2024-08-08}}</ref> It was an extra-lean variant of Nisus for Apple's 68K [[PowerBook]]s. It was designed to fit entirely within RAM to avoid accessing the hard disk and thereby draining the laptop's battery. It was at first a commercial product but was from 1999 given away as a [[freemium]] with various books and magazines as part of a marketing campaign.<ref name="history"/> "Upgrades" to Nisus Writer were offered at a discount.

In 1994, with the release of version 4.0, the name of the program was changed from Nisus to Nisus Writer, together with a redesigned interface, support for sound, QuickTime, Publish & Subscribe, text-to-speech, autonumbering, color graphics and table and equation tools.<ref name="history"/>

In 2001, Nisus Writer 6.5, the last classic version of Nisus, was released.<ref name="history"/> It ran under [[Mac OS 9|Mac OS 9.2.2]] and [[PowerPC]]-based [[Mac OS X]], but only in the [[Classic (Mac OS X)|Classic]] environment, and is no longer available for purchase.<ref>{{cite web |title=Nisus Writer Classic is no longer for sale. |url=https://www.nisus.com/NisusWriter/ |website=Nisus Software|access-date=9 October 2021}}</ref> 

In 2003, Nisus Software released a fundamentally new product, called '''Nisus Writer Express'''.<ref name="history"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Nisus Writer Express |url=https://nisus.com/Express/|website=Nisus Software}}</ref> Rather than porting Nisus Writer to Mac OS X, it was based on [[Cocoa (software)|Cocoa]] and complied with Apple's Mac OS X user interface guidelines. It was originally developed as Okito Composer by Charles Jolley. Nisus bought Okito Composer and hired Jolley as Managing Director, in which capacity he oversaw further development of the word processor he had created. Jolley left Nisus in 2005 and ended up working for Apple from 2006 to 2010 and Facebook from 2011 to 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wellfound.com/p/charles-jolley|title=Charles Jolley|website=Wellfound|access-date=2024-08-08}}</ref>

In 2007, Nisus Software released '''Nisus Writer Pro''',<ref name="history"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Nisus Writer Pro |url=http://nisus.com/pro/ |website=Nisus Software}}</ref> a more advanced version of Nisus Writer Express, intended more for business and designed as an alternative to the Mac version of Microsoft Word. It supported more file formats<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.nisus.com/blogs/?p=208 |title=Nisus Writer Pro 1.2 added ODF export |website=Nisus Software}}</ref> and by 2011 it had features such as comments, mail merge, go to page, track changes, drawing tools and watermarks.<ref name="history"/>

==Current product range==
As of December 2023, the latest versions of the two word processors, Nisus Writer Express 4.2 and Nisus Writer Pro 3.2, are both compatible with [[macOS Sonoma]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Nisus Blog: Nisus Writer and macOS Sonoma|url=https://nisus.com/blogs/nisus-writer-and-macos-sonoma/|date=2023-12-27|website= Software|access-date=2024-08-08}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of word processors]]
*[[Comparison of word processors]]
*[[OpenDocument software]]
*[[Office Open XML software]]
*[[MathMagic]], an equation editor compatible with Nisus Writer, supporting automatic baseline alignment

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|http://www.nisus.com}}

{{Word processors}}

[[Category:1989 software]]
[[Category:Classic Mac OS word processors]]
[[Category:MacOS word processors]]
[[Category:MacOS-only proprietary software]]