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Family Fun Pack for OS/2 Warp 
by Pete Cassetta

 
OS/2 Warp logoAs the name indicates, Family FunPak is a collection of OS/2 Warp programs oriented toward the home user. Although IBM publishes this collection, the programs were all written by other companies.

 Family FunPak includes quite a few programs: 
 
 

  • American Heritage Dictionary, Concise Edition - A good basic dictionary of American English. Includes features to help you solve crossword puzzles and anagrams.

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  • Backgammon - You play against the computer, at various skill levels.

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  • Child Development Guide - A helpful guide and logbook for parents. Lets you record significant events in a child's life, keep medical records, etc. Also provides useful reference material describing the stages children go through as they grow and develop.

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  • Havoc - Similar to the old game Asteroids.

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  • In Charge at Home! - A personal finance program along the lines of Quicken. Allows you to organize, track, and budget your finances: bank accounts, bills, personal property, stocks, bonds, and mutual funds, insurance, and taxes.

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  • Magic Canvas - A Windows (not OS/2!) paint program for children ages 3 to 10.

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  • MicroLearn Game Pack - 10 strategy games. Fun, challenging, and well-written, they are mostly based on popular board games or computer games originally written for DOS, Windows, or home entertainment systems.

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  • OS/2 BlackJack and Poker - Good implementations of these classic card games.

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  • Rapid Assault - A DOS action game with 3-D graphics and sound (it runs fine under OS/2). The object is to succesfully complete various military missions using a "rapid-assault vehicle."

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  • SimCity Classic Limited - An OS/2 version of this classic simulation game where you serve as the mayor and city planner. Fun and educational.

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  • Star Emperor - A challenging game where you try to build your space empire through diplomacy or military conquest. Makes good use of sound and graphics.

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Quality

These are all very nice programs, solid and well-designed. IBM obviously screened them carefully in assembling this package. 

 However, some of the programs are rather limited in features. In some cases, such as the American Heritage Dictionary (which lacks a Thesaurus), the limitation is there in hopes of getting you to buy the deluxe edition. In other cases, such as In Charge at Home, the program simply isn't as capable as the market leader in its category (Quicken). But all the programs are capable enough to be useful; none are demos. 
 
 

Technical Support

Because these programs come from a variety of developers, each has a its own support policy. Most offer free support by e-mail. Telephone support ranges from calling an 800 number to making a regular toll call to calling a 900 number. I found the programs very easy to install and use, so I didn't need to contact technical support. 
 
 

Documentation and System Requirements Family FunPak comes with very little printed documentation. The CD-ROM case has a small booklet that covers installation and system requirements, briefly describes each of the programs, and provides contact information for technical support. Fortunately, all programs include online help that is adequate or better. 

 System requirements are OS/2 Warp 3.0 or 4.0, 8-12 MB of RAM, and up to 54 MB hard disk space (depending on what you install). The product is distributed on CD-ROM, so you'll also need a CD-ROM drive. Some programs require a 256-color video adaptor, and many benefit from a sound card. I tested under OS/2 Warp 3.0 on a Pentium 90 with 24 MB RAM, and found the programs quite snappy. 
 
 

Conclusions

At a street price of about $45, this product is a bargain. While there isn't much in here for business users, if you have OS/2 on your home computer, Family FunPak is your best bet for building a library of high-quality, useful OS/2 software at a bargain price. 

 Pete Cassetta develops commercial software products for Windows and lives in Universal City with his wife Lydia and son Peter.