Software Review: RoughDraft Writing Software for Fiction and Nonfiction Writers

Writers pose a unique need when it comes to writing, and different writers have different needs. All writers need certain features, and these are generally options for outlines, notes, and formatting. If you're a fiction writer, you'll need to be able to save many different notes to keep yourself organized. If you're a nonfiction writer, you'll need to be able to keep a bibliography and contacts. If you're a tech writer, you'll need to be able to meticulously format your paper according to your employers need.

Microsoft Word, AbiWord, and Open Office do not offer these type of features, and can make it difficult to keep to a large piece of writing organized. If this is the case with you, you're likely looking for a program that will help you do the things you need. RoughDraft is one such program, and it is free, which is the best kind of software.

If you think RoughDraft might work for your, but you don't want to install it onto your machine before you're sure, read on. This review details all the features and options this program comes with, as well as it's usefulness for different types of writers.

Interface

The interface is simple and clean, yet appears to be something made for Windows 98, not XP or Vista. This isn't a big deal for some, but others like their interface to be creative and modern looking, not basic. If you don't care about the looks, then this isn't a big deal.

The top of the program has all the formating options in button form, and more options using the menu list above the formating buttons. The right two-thirds of the program is the writing space, while the final third is a small area for easy navigating files. It shows all drives plugged into the computer, including external drives and optical drives.

Above that are four tabs to toggle between different options: files, list, Ins. and pad. The files are to choose and view files on different drives, the list shows any lists that you have created. Ins. is for inserting symbols that are frequently used in documents, but not included on the keyboard. Finally, pad is for writing notes, as if you had a notebook and pen on your table.

Formatting

Formatting options are the same that you would get with Open Office or Word, or even WordPad. They are not deeply involved, and doesn't allow for meticulous formatting demands. You can choose margin size, alignment, etc. You can't, however, choose more in-depth technical options.

Reliability

This program is reliable, and hasn't crashed, stalled, or failed on me at all. While that is always a risk on a computer, it's about the same risk as using other software, so you shouldn't be too paranoid. Just remember to backup all your writing.

Conclusion

This program is fast and easy to download, and is doesn't take up too much disc space. With that said, it is very basic, and doesn't seem worth the download to me. It is very similar to WordPad, with a little writing pad on the side. I would, personally, use yWriter over RoughDraft, as it is free and has better options.