#scrivener — Public Fediverse posts

#scrivener users: Has anyone revisited a project and found that random updated files are empty?

I've discovered I have three such files in that state in one project synced between Mac, iPad, and iPhone—but I have auto backups and mobile syncs, so content is recoverable, though maybe not the last edit.

In my case, each empty file has a last mobile sync of Aug 22, 2026 at 12:40 PM. That they all have the same snapshot time is significant, not the specific timestamp.

The first file I found empty, after the initial panic because these are chapters in a novel, I thought maybe I accidentally did a select all backspace. It could happen. I searched the backups, but could find nothing after the date stated above, so did a rollback to the mobile sync snapshot.

Last night around midnight, I found a second file. Today, suspicious, I checked every single file in the project, and found a third empty file.

Wondering if this ever happened to other writers. No doubt Scrivener devs at support will blame Dropbox. I am asking for feedback to find out if it happened to anybody else before I report it.

#writing #writingCommunity #writersOfMastodon #dropbox

#scrivener users: Has anyone revisited a project and found that random updated files are empty?

I've discovered I have three such files in that state in one project synced between Mac, iPad, and iPhone—but I have auto backups and mobile syncs, so content is recoverable, though maybe not the last edit.

In my case, each empty file has a last mobile sync of Aug 22, 2026 at 12:40 PM. That they all have the same snapshot time is significant, not the specific timestamp.

The first file I found empty, after the initial panic because these are chapters in a novel, I thought maybe I accidentally did a select all backspace. It could happen. I searched the backups, but could find nothing after the date stated above, so did a rollback to the mobile sync snapshot.

Last night around midnight, I found a second file. Today, suspicious, I checked every single file in the project, and found a third empty file.

Wondering if this ever happened to other writers. No doubt Scrivener devs at support will blame Dropbox. I am asking for feedback to find out if it happened to anybody else before I report it.

#writing #writingCommunity #writersOfMastodon #dropbox

#scrivener users: Has anyone revisited a project and found that random updated files are empty?

I've discovered I have three such files in that state in one project synced between Mac, iPad, and iPhone—but I have auto backups and mobile syncs, so content is recoverable, though maybe not the last edit.

In my case, each empty file has a last mobile sync of Aug 22, 2026 at 12:40 PM. That they all have the same snapshot time is significant, not the specific timestamp.

The first file I found empty, after the initial panic because these are chapters in a novel, I thought maybe I accidentally did a select all backspace. It could happen. I searched the backups, but could find nothing after the date stated above, so did a rollback to the mobile sync snapshot.

Last night around midnight, I found a second file. Today, suspicious, I checked every single file in the project, and found a third empty file.

Wondering if this ever happened to other writers. No doubt Scrivener devs at support will blame Dropbox. I am asking for feedback to find out if it happened to anybody else before I report it.

#writing #writingCommunity #writersOfMastodon #dropbox

#scrivener users: Has anyone revisited a project and found that random updated files are empty?

I've discovered I have three such files in that state in one project synced between Mac, iPad, and iPhone—but I have auto backups and mobile syncs, so content is recoverable, though maybe not the last edit.

In my case, each empty file has a last mobile sync of Aug 22, 2026 at 12:40 PM. That they all have the same snapshot time is significant, not the specific timestamp.

The first file I found empty, after the initial panic because these are chapters in a novel, I thought maybe I accidentally did a select all backspace. It could happen. I searched the backups, but could find nothing after the date stated above, so did a rollback to the mobile sync snapshot.

Last night around midnight, I found a second file. Today, suspicious, I checked every single file in the project, and found a third empty file.

Wondering if this ever happened to other writers. No doubt Scrivener devs at support will blame Dropbox. I am asking for feedback to find out if it happened to anybody else before I report it.

#writing #writingCommunity #writersOfMastodon #dropbox

#scrivener users: Has anyone revisited a project and found that random updated files are empty?

I've discovered I have three such files in that state in one project synced between Mac, iPad, and iPhone—but I have auto backups and mobile syncs, so content is recoverable, though maybe not the last edit.

In my case, each empty file has a last mobile sync of Aug 22, 2026 at 12:40 PM. That they all have the same snapshot time is significant, not the specific timestamp.

The first file I found empty, after the initial panic because these are chapters in a novel, I thought maybe I accidentally did a select all backspace. It could happen. I searched the backups, but could find nothing after the date stated above, so did a rollback to the mobile sync snapshot.

Last night around midnight, I found a second file. Today, suspicious, I checked every single file in the project, and found a third empty file.

Wondering if this ever happened to other writers. No doubt Scrivener devs at support will blame Dropbox. I am asking for feedback to find out if it happened to anybody else before I report it.

#writing #writingCommunity #writersOfMastodon #dropbox

Back on #MavericksForever. 😅 I just missed it. Getting #MacJournal and #Scrivener for free is a huge advantage of #retroComputing. 😊

RegEx for Speedy Story Revision

Here are the current iteration of these two RegEx search strings. I will update this post to keep it up to date. The \b requires a beginning- or end-of-word to maximize exact matches. The (?: ) is a non-replacing grouping for multiple words with similar issues, and for he/she matches. Depending on your writing, you may want to change the pronouns to he|she|it|they. Both RegEx rely on NOT selecting Case Sensitive for searches.

• Negative Protection and Homonyms:

can\b|can't|can not|could\b|couldn't|cannot|shall\b|shan'|shall not|shoud\b|shouldn't|should not|would not|\bwould\b|\bwouldn't|\bwith\b|without|write\b|\bright|lead\b|\bled\b|lede|choose|chose|lose|loose

• Weasel and Hedge Words:

ly\b|\babout\b|almost|already|barely|\bbit\b|begin|\bbegan\b|\can|certain|generally|\bguess|\bjust\b|kind|\blike|maybe|mostly|near|course|pretty|perhaps|possibly|potentially|really|probably|\bseem|\bsome\b|sort|start|\bstill\b|surprisingly|suppose|\bthink\b|usually|could|\bsaw\b|\bheard\b|\bfelt\b|\bknew\b|\bread\b|noticed|recognized|\band\b|\bbut\b|(?:I|he|she) could (?:see|hear|taste|touch)|(?:I|he|she) (?:saw|hear|knew|read|felt|noticed|recognized) that|you can|made certain

If you use #Scrivener, this is the procedure for turning these searches into Binder/Left-sidebar buttons on the Mac, though probably similar on Windows:

1. Click the combo-button for Search.
2. Select Search in Project.
3. Copy-Paste a RegEx string and press Enter.
4. Note to the left inside the search control there is a magnifier and a combo-button. Open it. Select at minimum RegEx. I also select the name of my drafts folder, which is Manuscript, and Text so only what I want to revise is shown in the binder. Turn off Case Sensitive if on.
5. Click Save Search as Collection.
6. Provide a name in the dialog (it initially displays the RegEx string).
7. Click View > Binder (if not already check marked).
8. Click View > Collections (if not already check marked).

If you need to update a collection, use this procedure:

1. Click the RegEx search collection in the binder. This displays it in the search control.
2. Copy it from the search control.
3. Press the minus button in the + - shown to the right of Collections. This deletes only the selected existing search collection. There is no way to directly update a search collection.
4. Paste your revision.
5. Follow the first set of instructions to recreate the collection.

On the iPad and iPhone, RegEx search exists but only finds a single word or phrase at a time. Disappointing, but it works. You will find RegEx which you tap gear icon when using Find. You can't save the search, but I put it in the Notes app so I can reference it easily.

The image shows Weasel and Hedge Words in use. In the top left, you'll see the search box with the RegEx, and below it my two collections which are titled 🔍Positives and Negatives and 🔍Weasel and Hedge Words. Note the highlights. Desktop Scrivener shows all matches, making quick review and revision a snap. I've added "and" and "but" and "ly" to highlight overuse of conjunctions and adverbs. There's also double-word error highlighted.

May your editing, revising, and review be simple and swift!

#BoostingIsSharing

#Writer #Author #WritingCommunity #WritersOfMastodon #Revise #Revision #Editing #RegEx #search

I have a problem. An addiction to trying new word processors (aka #writing apps). ✍️

I've got #Scrivener, #LibreOffice, #OnlyOffice, #Pages, #Byword, and recently worked in #MSWord, #GoogleDocs, #Ulysses, and #AiWriter. Oh, and I've played around with #Zettlr, too. I can't stop. 😓

I'm a fan of #markdown and #opensource. Go ahead, make my life more complicated...what app do you think I should try?

¿Quieres saber cuántas #matrices tiene tu manuscrito? Es muy útil para pedir presupuesto de #corrección, #editing, #maquetación o #InformesDeLectura. Da igual si usas #Word, #GoogleDocs o #Scrivener, la respuesta está aquí 👇

https://s.mtrbio.com/vlyywvbqph

¿Quieres saber cuántas #matrices tiene tu manuscrito? Es muy útil para pedir presupuesto de #corrección, #editing, #maquetación o #InformesDeLectura.

Da igual si usas #Word, #GoogleDocs o #Scrivener, la respuesta está aquí 👇

https://s.mtrbio.com/mafjmikgij

¿Quieres saber cuántas #matrices tiene tu manuscrito? Es muy útil para pedir presupuesto de #corrección, #editing, #maquetación o #InformesDeLectura.

Da igual si usas #Word, #GoogleDocs o #Scrivener, la respuesta está aquí 👇

https://s.mtrbio.com/mafjmikgij