>Date: Thu, 11 May 1995 11:10:40 -0600
>To:xxxxxx@acfcluster.nyu.edu
>From:xxxxxx@tamu.edu (Jean Humphries)
>Subject:Re: Office Suite Software for Research Administration
>
>Nancy,
>        I've been using Microsoft Word/Excel since the early '80s (OVER 12
>YEARS) for the purposes your describe with glowing success. They are easy
>to use/learn and extremely versatile. Some of our folks use MS Office,
>some use just Word/Excel. We're using both Windows and Mac based, of
>course, on the platform the individual is using.  All platforms are linked
>via Novelle and/or Apple 9150 servers.  Works great.  I'll try to answer
>your specific questions below.
>
>Jean N. Humphries
>Director, Research Services
>Texas Engineering Experiment Station
>Texas A&M University System
>
>006 Wisenbaker Engineering Research Center - MS 3406
>College Station TX 77843-3406
>
>Phone:  (409) 845-1264
>Fax:    (409) 845-9643
>Email:  xxxxxx@tamu.edu
>
>_______________________
>
>>Dear Research Administration List Members:
>>
>>        In preparation for upgrading our software, our office is seeking
>>information and comments from other research administration departments
>>currently using Windows software packages.  We would be very grateful for
>>your responses to the questions below:
>>
>>1.      Is your office currently using an office suite package?
>>
>>2.      If so, which one (e.g., PerfectOffice, Microsoft Office, SmartSuite)?
>
>        MICROSOFT OFFICE
>
>>
>>3.      How would you evaluate the package listed above in terms of ease of
>>use, compatibility of components, and usefulness to others outside the
>>office (e.g., faculty members preparing proposal submissions)?
>>
>        MICROSOFT PRODUCTS ARE VERY EASY TO USE.  Those folks in my office
>who previously used other packages, such as Word Perfect, Quattro Pro and
>Lotus, prefer Word/Excel.  They are easy to use/learn and very vertatile.
>You can import virtually any word processing (WP) package the faculty use
>(I haven't had much success with Tech).  I've had no trouble FTPing text
>from faculty's platforms into our servers and subsequently into Word (Mac
>or Windows).
>
>>4.      Are you working with electronic versions of forms such as agency
>>application cover sheets, budget pages, etc.?
>
>        YES, BUT WE CREATED THEM OURSELVES.
>
>>
>>5.      If so, have you had any difficulty finding versions of such forms in
>>the software applications used by your office?
>>
>        WE HAVE PUT EVERY AGENCY FORM WE can find into Word Templates or
>Excel spreadsheets, and they work beautifully.  Cut's work time in-half
>and you don't have to own stock in white-out (of course this would be true
>regardless of the software - simply haveing them on-line is a bonus.)
>        We have not tried to find someone else's (commerical) version and
>pull it up into Word/Excel.  We had already created our own before the
>commerical one's were available, so we simply haven't tried.
>
>
>>6.      Have you put these forms up on a Web page or Gopher site?
>
>        MOST OF THESE FORMS ARE AVAILABLE VIA the Texas TRAM site ---
>gohper://tram.rice.edu/11/TRAM       Information on this gopher is
>provided by institutions such as mine, UTexas, UHouston, etc.
>>
>>7.      For PerfectOffice users, have you been able to find agency forms in
>>the following formats:
>>        WordPerfect 6.0 (or 6.1) for Windows
>>        Quattro Pro for Windows
>
>        WE HAVE NOT TRIED TO USE EITHER OF THESE BECAUSE we have excellent
>response with Microsoft products.  We have created an excel spreadsheet
>that calculates the budgets and, using the "sheet" function in XL 5.0,
>inserts the values into budget pages for NSF, DOE, AFOSR, ARO, NASA, NIH
>(DD, EE, JJ), SF 424, etc.  You select the sheet you want and print; voila
>a 1-5 yr budget with summary appears.  We also have all non-budget forms
>for these agencies available on Word 6.0.
>>
>>
>>Any other comments, comparisons, advice, etc. will be much appreciated!
>>
>>We will share whatever information we collect with RESADMIN List members.
>>
>>
>>Thank you for your time.
>>
>>Nancy Ford
>>Office of Sponsored Programs
>>New York University
>>xxxxxx@acfcluster.nyu.edu
>

____________________________________

Jean N. Humphries
Director, Research Services
Texas Engineering Experiment Station
Texas A&M University System

006 Wisenbaker Engineering Research Center - MS 3406
College Station TX 77843-3406

Phone:  (409) 845-1264
Fax:    (409) 845-9643
Email:  xxxxxx@tamu.edu