The Wizard Inside The Machine

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Users of personal computers are more concerned with a different kind of software: applications programs, which keep the family budget, help with students' homework, play computer games or do financial planning. These programs usually come on a so-called floppy disc, a piece of plastic about the size of a 45-r.p.m. record. They can also be on magnetic tape or a silicon chip inside a cartridge. Sales of applications software for personal computers last year totaled $560 million.

The most popular programs are used by individuals to improve the speed and quality of their work. Example: text-editing software, which allows someone to write and correct manuscripts without needless retyping. Products for business uses, like accounting software, are second in sales, followed by entertainment and education programs. While hardware manufacturers such as IBM, Tandy and Apple are the biggest sellers of applications software, Microsoft, Lotus Development of Cambridge, Mass., and other independent companies are increasing their share of the market.

About 7,000 stores in the U.S. sell applications software. Softsel, the largest distributor to retail stores, adds about 200 new products a month to its catalogue, which already includes nearly 3,000 titles. Says Chairman David Wagman: "The demand is colossal." Anyone who visits a computer store, looks in a catalogue or picks up one of the many computer magazines is confronted by a stunning but often confusing array of products. Some of the newest titles:

Wills ($49). One of four programs in the Personal Lawyer series produced by Lassen Software of Chico, Calif, this software package offers individuals with a simple estate a quick way to draw up a will without an attorney's help. The program poses questions in plain English (sample: "Do you wish to leave any part of your estate to your college?"), waits until the user types in the answers and then leads him through the process of drawing up the document. Written by a lawyer who specializes in wills, the program satisfies the probate requirements of every state except Louisiana, which has a legal system based on the ancient Napoleonic Code.

Millionaire ($69.95). Marketed by Blue Chip Software of Woodland Hills, Calif, this program is used in a dozen colleges and high schools to teach students how the stock market works. At the start of each game, a player is given $10,000 and is then required to make investment decisions based on a continuous stream of financial information, such as market changes and other business developments. The player wins by amassing $1 million in theoretical profits; he loses when he goes broke.

Math Maze ($39.95). This program by Designware of San Francisco drills children ages 6 to 11 on basic mathematical skills. A player is given a problem and then must guide a fly through a maze until he finds the right answer. If the player hesitates in making a decision, the number-seeking fly will be eaten by a hungry spider.

As programs have become more plentiful, the titles have become more specialized. Flight Simulator helps train would-be pilots to land an airplane; Pole Position lets living-room auto racers drive a road course; Stallion keeps the bloodlines of horses straight by tracking their ancestry; Beefup helps breeders fatten their cattle by keeping track of their weight and breeding;