If I click a document A in the binder, then split the document using selection for title, Scrivener creates the new document (B), sets its title and highlights it in the binder. If I press CMD-[ to back out to the original document, it shows the document, but the binder keeps Doc B highlighted instead of going to Doc A.
Now I understand keeping the binder synced at all times is a big headache, but in this particular case, it seems counter intuitive and downright confusing. Why should splitting that document change the binder highlight, but backing out to the original doesn’t?
Alternatively, is there a switch I can set so that splits will keep the original highlighted in the binder, and keep the document view on the original, rather than the new document?
The FAQ doesn’t really answer the core design issue.
When you use Document>Split, the editor shows the new split document, and the binder syncs to it. Based on that behavior, when you back out to the previous document using CMD-[, the binder should sync to the previous document.
Note that I’m not arguing in favor of syncing the binder at all times and in all cases, but in this one because it’s consistent behavior.
Maybe a compromise would be to add a switch in prefs to perform a Reveal in Binder (Cmd-Opt-R) whenever using the Back or Forward navigation in the editor.
I’m going to try adding a QK macro that does that, and see how it works.
It’s covered in the FAQ here: The Binder selection does not follow what I am currently editing. There are more, very good, design reasons for this (there are very few programs that exhibit the behaviour you seem to expect), but I don’t want to go into this right now as I’ve posted long replies on it in the past, and the bottom line is that it won’t change. In the situation you describe, a new document has been created (the split document), and new documents should always get the focus. If you are going through a long document and splitting it, you will want to split one document, then in the newly created document you will split it down further and so on. The behaviour is entirely consistent.
To compare, when you make a new document from within the editing pane with Cmd-N, the Binder switches to the newly created document. Since splitting is like that in essence, it makes sense. Navigation via links and history on the other hand, do not create new documents. So the Binder is consistent, it just has two different varieties of consistency.
FWIW, I created a QuicKey macro that adds a “Reveal In Binder” keystroke whenever I use CMD-[ or CMD-] for Back or Forward. Works great – syncs the Binder as I navigate.
