Dictionary / Thesaurus has moved in 2.0?

Scrivener Wish List
1

As I was watching the tutorial video for 2.0’s Name Generator feature, I noticed that Scrivener had seemingly adopted one characteristic that has been driving me crazy in Pages for quite a while. The Name Generator lies in a submenu called Writing Tools, wherein it seems the Look Up in Dictionary and Thesaurus tool now resides as well. As I said, this drives me crazy in Pages, and I respectfully entreat you to reconsider the decision to bury our beloved Thesaurus in Writing Tools.

Why? Currently in Scrivener—in most every Cocoa app that deals with text, including Safari—if you wish to access your Thesaurus it’s just a matter of right-clicking, and Look Up in Dictionary is your third option down in the contextual menu. It’s simple and intuitive and has become second nature to me. In Pages, which I am forced to use when writing dual-column AV scripts, it isn’t so simple. You can still access it via right-click, but you have to scroll down to the last option in the menu and then mouse over to the right to select it. I know this sounds like I’m whining, but it’s an essential tool that should be always at the ready. Burying it in a submenu, while it may seem an innocuous change, interrupts the writer’s flow. Mine, at least. I don’t use the Thesaurus all the time, but it does help dislodge my mind when I get stuck on a word. And I’m sure other writers might appreciate keeping it handy as well.

Thanks, Keith and company, for considering my request, and regardless of whether it’s heeded I look forward to the 2.0 update. I can always, as I’ve done in Pages, create a custom keyboard shortcut, but it’s still less intuitive and requires a bit more thought than simply right-clicking.

Synonymously and Definitously Yours,
Sam

2

Just a thought: perhaps you could set a keyboard shortcut for this feature, to simplify the process? I realize it’d still upset your current right-click routine, but if you set the same shortcut in the various applications you use, you’ll probably be able to adjust quickly. I don’t have Pages so I can’t guarantee it’s possible there, but it ought to be if it has decent menus.

3

A keyboard shortcut for the dictionary and thesaurus is built in to OS X.
By default, Cmd-Ctrl-D brings up the dictionary, but a quick change of settings allows the Thesaurus to be the default action. Further, it even has different actions depending on how long you hold the keys - a momentary tap brings up a definition box, but if you hold the keys, the box will automatically disappear when you release them. No mousing around, no interruption to workflow, just press the keys, get the info you need, and type on. And yes, this works in Pages too (but, unsurprisingly, not in Word).

4

Without submenus like the Writing Tools one, there would be too much chaos in the ctrl-click menu because of the various custom items that need to be there (and as noted, you can use the keyboard shortcut), so this won’t be changing, certainly not for release.

Thanks and all the best,
Keith