Cannot duplicate and edit format

Scrivener Scrivener for Windows
,
1

I get a whited out (Not responding) window where the Compile Format Designer should be.

2

If you want help, you’re going to have to give more details: which version of Windows; which version of Scrivener; which compiler format you’re trying to edit; is this the first time you’ve tried; what have you just been doing in Scrivener; anything else you can think of that might be at issue


Without such information, there’s no way for others to think where the problem might be. NB I’m a Mac user, so I can’t troubleshoot Windows, but the same is true for Mac-users; the more information you can give, the more chance we have to help.

:slight_smile:
Mark

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3

Yes, thanks, Mark.
Windows 10,
Scrivener Version: 3.1.6.0 (2862669) 64-bit - 02 Sep 2025

If I double click or right click the option to duplicate a format, it locks up the program. It does the same if I try the option to Make a New Format. Doesn’t matter if the project is established or new.
I have Manuscript selected in the left menu.

I submitted a tech support ticket, but the team won’t be back until Monday. This isn’t life or death, but maybe someone else will have this issue, and it could help.

4

A few things I would try:

  1. In options, under General: Warnings, enable logging and restart the software. Attempt to edit a Format, and see if you get anything interesting printed in the log window while doing so.
  2. Of course a general reinstall never hurts. I’d start with downloading the regular installer, and running it over your current installation. If that doesn’t fix it, then uninstall and try again. Do note though that prior to uninstalling, you will probably want to use the “Manage” button in the lower left corner of the Options window to back up your settings, so you can import them back in after a full reinstall.
2 Likes
5
  1. Info: “TimeCounter: Documents Load Time: “Debrief SD90” needed 0.006 sec”
    Info: “TimeCounter: Full Load Time: ‘Debrief SD90’ needed 0.006 sec”
    Info: Loading Documents: “D2406879-55E6-4D11-A1BF-4D3059B92D35” “Acknowledgments”
    Info: “TimeCounter: Documents Load Time: “Acknowledgments” needed 0.000 sec”
    Info: “TimeCounter: Full Load Time: ‘Acknowledgments’ needed 0.001 sec”
    Info: Loading Documents: “DDA36FD1-F55F-41FA-820F-03100D251BC2” “Acknowledgments”
    Info: “TimeCounter: Loading RTF file:C:/Users/subsi.DESKTOP-OTPHQMP/Documents/Novels/Starling_REV-6A_01-03.scriv/Files/Data/DDA36FD1-F55F-41FA-820F-03100D251BC2/content.rtf needed 0.000 sec”
    Info: “TimeCounter: RTF Markup processing: needed 0.000 sec”
    Info: “TimeCounter: Documents Load Time: “Acknowledgments” needed 0.000 sec”
    Info: “TimeCounter: Full Load Time: ‘Acknowledgments’ needed 0.001 sec”
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
    Info: libpng warning: iCCP: known incorrect sRGB profile
1 Like
6

Thanks, these messages are all okay. I get the PNG messages when opening this window, as does probably everyone. I guess some of the icon files aren’t colour-coded correctly.

I’d go ahead with the reinstall then, hopefully that’s all it takes. The only really variable thing I can think of about this window is installed fonts, since it does have to pre-load fonts to make all of those little dropdowns. But those same exact dropdowns are in Options, Project Settings, and in the main project window itself on the Format Bar. So it would be strange if a font was messing up one window but not all of them.

Oh one other thing worth trying before reinstalling, if you haven’t already tried it, is to open the Format Designer window from another project, like the interactive tutorial, or even a throw-away blank project. There is one other variable now that I think of it, and that is the list of styles in the project you call it from.

2 Likes
7

Thanks, Amber, I appreciate your help.

I saved the file and themes, uninstalled, reinstalled, and started a new Fiction project. Still freezes up when trying to make a duplicate and edit format. Really puzzling.

8

Just a hunch – whitelist your Scrivener project folder and all of its subfolders in your antivirus software. Scrivener could be running up against a file access issue.

1 Like
9

Hmm
 I tried shutting down Malwarebytes, still no soap. :sob:

10

This sounds a little oddball, but there’ve been a few times that printers have caused problems—if you go to your system printers setting and change the default printer (particularly if it’s a network printer or other printer not always available), then relaunch Scrivener, does that prevent the hang?

12

Hmmm. We’re all over the map here. Ok, I tried removing printer that was no longer present and setting my current printer as Default. Restarted Scrivener, no change.

However, I did have some luck restarting into Windows Safe Mode. I was able to duplicate Times format into a copy so I think I can get by with that. But in regular Windows and still cannot Edit copied format. Thanks all for the amazing assistance.

13

This is also an oddball idea, but one thing I’ve noticed is that opening this window will sometimes access video card drivers. I don’t know why, but I sometimes get log lines about that. So, has your video card automatically updated its drivers recently? Maybe if so, is it something you can try downgrading?

What made me think of it is that safe mode would disable such things, and use factory basic video drivers instead.

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14

Driver date: 8/14/2025

I don’t think reverting to older drivers is a good idea. I’ll hang on until tech support gets a chance to see my issue. Hopefully they will have an idea where the issue lies.

15

FWIW, @AmberV is L&L’s head of support. You aren’t going to get better advice.

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17

Yeah, it must be the video card driver; I disabled the device and Compile works.

1 Like
18

It’s maybe not a long term solution, that part I would agree with, but as to whether it is a good or bad idea depends entirely on the nature of the update, what is in its change logs, and whether the fixes or features it added are something you need for other things (games, video production, etc.). It’s impossible to make a blanket statement one way or another.

A general thing we could say is that the computer evidently ran fine with the older driver before it updated, and thus should in theory continue to do so again—as though it had never updated.

Now the same would not be true of firmware updates, I would be much more nervous about that. Drivers though are essentially just software. If downgrading is worse, you can just update it again.

3 Likes