There are numerous advantages in reviewing software for the newsletter.  The obvious advantage is that you are allowed to keep the software and register it.  You are expected to complete the review within 90 days and submit it to the newsletter editor.

At that time the software will become yours and you will be entitled to register it.  These programs are sent to us because the publishers are interested in our feedback and are watching for the published review.  We are not able to receive any additional product from a vendor until each review has been submitted via the newsletter.

Please make every effort to review the program promptly.  The review should be submitted to the editor via e-mail in RTF format.

You don’t need to be the best writer in the world – the editor is here to polish your review, if necessary.

But, don’t forget to spell check!

Guide for Product Reviews

While reviews should be tailored to the individual product, and such tailoring should be done by the reviewer him/herself, it does seem that there should be certain common items in every review.  The below criteria is the minimum that should be included in your review.  This guide is intended to offer a checklist of review items, not as a way of discouraging creativity.  The editor should not have to search for any of this information to complete your review.

Product Identification

Name of product and version number, manufacturer’s name, address, phone/fax number, e-mail & web page address and list price and/or street price.

Introduction

Give a short overview of what the product is supposed to do.

System Requirements

Tell what is required to run the product, such as required operating system, how much RAM, how much hard disk space, etc.  Does it work with other products and are those required to use this one, e.g. Windows?

Installation & Documentation

Does the installation process work as stated in the manual?  Is the process complicated or simple?  Are there manuals and are they readable and understandable?  Is there a tutorial?

Operation/Performance

Does the product work the way the documentation says it should?  Does it do all that the manufacturer claims?  How well does it do it?

Support

Try to use their technical support.  Do they have a toll-free number?   How well did they answer your questions?

Comments

Tell us how you feel about the product.  How familiar are you with this type of product?  Briefly tell your level of expertise.  Is it necessary to be an expert, or can a beginner use this product effectively?  In your opinion, is it worth buying?  You can summarize there and bring your review all together.

A copy of the newsletter containing a product review is sent to the vendor who provided the software.