Interested Buyer of Scrivener--Questions

Scrivener Newcomer Central
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Hi! – new here!

Some questions:

  1. Does it work offline?
  2. Is there version history? or only per major version? How does that work?
  3. What is the learning curve like? The screenshots on the website look quite the complicated. Are there like courses to use Scrivener? What do those look like?
  4. Do people use Scrivener for things other than writing books/screenplays? Research papers? School papers? I know that the website mentions dissertations, etc. but was just curious what the community does.
  5. Anything you think a newbie should know?

Thanks a million!

~Anuly

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Hi. :slight_smile:

There is a free, fully operational, 30 non-consecutive days trial on the website. (Link at the bottom of this post.)
. . . . . . .

Else, your questions :

  1. Yes.
  2. Yes. (Backups and snapshots, user handled.)
  3. Harder than the average app (but for all the good reasons). … There is a complete manual, an interactive tutorial, and this here forum / help from the community – to name only those.
  4. Yes. (It is the best app for structured written work. AFAIK)
  5. The free 30 days trial. :wink:

. . . . . . . . . .

Direct link to the trial/demo page :

Look for this button :
image

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Lit & Lat (the makers of Scrivener) also has video tutorials on their site.

Moreover, as you might expect from such a widely used app, some dedicated Scrivener users have written help books on the subject.

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In addition to the terrific feedback from @Vincent_Vincent and @gr

See Literature & Latte’s superb resources (FAQ, List of book and videos) available now on their website:

and get your “free” test version at:

Me … I’ve used Scrivener for many years for doing mainly technical writing and producing deliverables (not novels, screen plays, thesis, et. al. as others do) for my private clients.

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I just wanted to emphasize this because it comes up a lot these days.

Scrivener stores your data entirely offline as the default. If you want to use a cloud service, that’s your choice and your responsibility. (Please read our advisories on the subject, here: Using Scrivener with Cloud-Sync Services / Cloud Syncing / Knowledge Base - Literature and Latte Support )

No one but you (and services you authorize) has access to your data. We don’t store it, don’t scrape it, and can’t access it. (Even if you ask us. Please make sure you have backups.)

Scrivener is also not a subscription service. Buy it once, use it forever. (Or at least until you update to an operating system that no longer supports it.) (Legalese details here: End User License Agreement - Literature & Latte)

Use the Tutorial. That’s what it’s there for. Don’t worry about features you don’t need (yet). Learn how the Compile command works before your deadline is looming.

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This this this.

You can start by typing scenes into a folder. Years in, I’m still poking menu items that suddenly reveal themselves to be useful.

It’s a Swiss Army Everything, but first: just get comfortable with the knife bit.

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