Although I’m unconnected with Scrivener’s parents in any way, I’ve been earning my living with Scrivener since 2006, and have been on these boards since they began. In all that time, the unfailing marker that Scrivener was undergoing a revision is to see Keith Blount, the developer–KB on these boards–become conspicuous by his absence. Which, for the past few months, he has been. That this is coincident with Apple’s migration to a new architecture is not coincident.
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I think they’re transitioning from Objective-C to Swift. I don’t know how difficult that is or what products are involved.
I have been rather absent from these forums, regrettably. I am coding very intensely, which is the only reason why.
drmajorbob is right about our transition to Swift. We’re not fully transitioning, but only because the TextKit is still best left in Objective-C, although that is something that will no doubt change over the next five years with TextKit 2, the beginnings of which were introduced by Apple last year. Also, although Scapple is “just” being translated, a deeper shift is required for Scrivener if we want to modernise. The sort of iCloud syncing that users expect across iOS and macOS cannot just be grafted on to the Scrivener that users know and love today.
I am aware that the iOS version needs some serious love before any of these bigger changes see the light of day, though. It hasn’t been abandoned - we ensure I works on newer versions of iOS - but it has way too long since there has been an update, I know.
All the best,
Keith
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Thanks Keith for giving us an update and it’s good to know the iOS version is still alive. I’m a software developer (Apple/Swift included) and I fully understand how intensive it can be to rewrite anything, whether to a new language or just within the same one. It’s great to hear though.
As for bugs, I realised there was one I had forgotten about, in case you’d like to know. I use a Bluetooth Mac keyboard with my iPad Pro and often when I Option+Delete to delete the current word, it will delete the wrong text nearby and shuffle the text cursor around. This is on the latest iOS 15.2.1 with the Magic keyboard. Hopefully you’re able to reproduce it you look into it.
@KB Keith, thanks for showing yourself, and quite appreciate the points on the software trek forwards.
I wonder if it could feel like taking breaks, to change over and push out small improvements to the current state of Scrivener iOS – sort of in the ‘continuous release’ current idea, but not really or unduly.
Could it be that issuing small chunks like getting the Draft Navigator back, or configuring to be able to use the side-by-side multitasking with two separate Scrivener instances (hoping not deeply involved) could please yourself and your audience in a nice way, and let such things spread nicely over time?
It’s a lesson I keep realizing better personally, anyway, that there’s a lot gained in breaking for some effort which has its own different intensity. And nothing can use that sort of break better than either software or writing, I think 
Best also, and from an older presence in maybe more than one sense,
Clive
Ages ago, I and two or three other USAF officers converted ~37,000 lines of mission planning code for a satellite series from Fortran 77 to Fortran 5.
Yes, that was going backward, not forward, which did not make it easier, believe you me!
Fortran 77 had character variables, among other things, which Fortran 5 did not.
The purpose was to move mission planning from a highly classified computer system at SAC headquarters to an in-house computer, an MV-8000, where we wouldn’t have to deal with top secret clearances and working in a locked room, etc.
In the 18 months spent rewriting that code, we were never allowed in that room.
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I have to mirror the sentiment already expressed here. All of my draft work is done on iOS (iPhone, specifically), and my editing work is done on pc. I rely far more heavily on the iPhone app than anything else, and I do love it. It works amazingly well, it doesn’t crash when there’s large documents, there’s nothing screwy or weird with the interface. It’s simple to use, and it just works. It’s been my experience that Scrivener on all platforms is simply the superior option, especially since it’s one of the few tools without a subscription fee. But, I am a little disappointed with the lack of iPhone support. I understand that the PC version of Scrivener is probably the more popular product, but I would appreciate a little TLC for their mobile offering.
Specifically, a new bug (feature?) has popped up with cursor display, and it appears to be limited only to Scrivener mobile. The cursor will appear far longer than the line, and it’s top and tail will cut off depending on where it’s place in the paragraph. It’s a small thing, but it’s a little distracting and uncomfortable. I would greatly appreciate assistance with it. Thank you.
I 
Scrivener. But I wonder if the Swift rewrite will force us to upgrade to the latest version of macOS, whenever Scrivener 4 should see daylight. That could be a problem for some of us. I have a couple of 32-bit apps that are important to my workflow, so I’m still on Mojave. But I’ll bite the bullet and find replacements (none currently are really suitable) if I have to, just to stay with Scrivener.
Frankly, there’s been nothing compelling about recent updates to macOS, they are just building the walled garden higher and higher.
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city_dog, the conversation here (and the forum area) has been about updating Scrivener for iOS (ipads, iphones), rather than some new version of ‘big Scrivener’, which would be on Macs and Windows…cheers!
Sorry, you’re absolutely right. This should have been posted in the Mac section. In my defense, it was so exciting to hear any news from Keith that I lost track of where I was. Also, my interpretation of his remarks were that he was referring to changes to the code base more generally, which got me to wondering how that would affect compatibility in the Mac world. I’m sure it also means a much improved Scrivener for iOS/iPadOS. We’re all looking forward to that.
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