I have been a Scrivener user for nearly a year, and I have written numerous stories using the platform and I love it. I had an awesome experience a few months back with another Scrivener user who had started using the Meta Quest 3 system with her Scrivenings projects. The workflow was amazing, and the ability to open many of the tools, such as Character Folder for individual sketches, scenes, and so forth on different virtual monitors was amazing. I used her system for just about an hour and I was amazed at the functionality of the program interface and the ease of my own production by just looking left or right at the different monitors for the information that I needed from other parts of the project without having to go back and forth between the two editors available. To my dismay, after buying my own system, I discovered that many, and I do mean many, of the features available between Mac and Windows are greatly limited. With the Mac, she is able to open multiple windows from the project; with Windows, you cannot. Is there a workaround for this issue, and is there anything in the works to even out the playing field for Windows users? If it is the same product, then it should be nearly identical across both platforms.
Have you tried selecting a Section in the Binder and pressing the Spacebar to open a Quick Reference Panel?
You speak about virtual monitors. What is that?
A project won’t open a quick reference window on another monitor by default; you need to switch the window between monitors—Win+Shift+Left or Right works well for the focused window on Windows. I doubt Mac has the capability either.
However, if your friend has her project on her primary monitor and her resource info in a second project that has been moved to her secondary monitor, or opens by default there, then any of its windows will open on the secondary monitor.
Also, when opening resources on the secondary monitor, any links from the primary monitor to the project on the secondary monitor would open individual resources, such as a character sketch, on the secondary monitor.
EDIT: I’ve tested and an individual project’s last open location (primary, secondary, tertiary, etc.) will be honoured, even after a project close AND a reboot.
So, you can happily work this way on Windows.
Part of the Mac operating system is the ability to have virtual desktops open; it’s nothing to do with Scrivener per se. So I would guess. @DocCook’s friend has QRs open on different virtual desktops. You can navigate between them using two/three-finger-swipe (depending on magic mouse or trackpad) or from the F3 key. You can set apps to open on specific desktops.
I generally have 5 virtual desktops open (though I don’t have more than one of them with Scrivener).
Mark
Alright. Thanks. Might be similar to Task View on Windows, which I have switched off in Settings, since I haven’t conceived how it might be useful beyond having private stuff on Desktop 1, business things on Desktop 2 and entertainment on Desktop 3, etc—all a bit of meh, no, not for me.
Otherwise, why not open multiple projects as Tabs on Mac or Jump Lists on Windows—in both cases, the features are dependent on the OS, not Scrivener? Works on single or multiple monitors.
Forklift (file navigation on steroids) on VD1; Scrivener/writing apps on VD2; Browsers on VD3; email app on VD4; VD5 there for any other app type (e.g. graphics) I need to open.
Virtual desktops have different wallpaper so they’re easily distinguished; they can be re-ordered by dragging if needed; new ones can be created with F3 and a click of the mouse; any app window (e.g.QR) can be moved to any desktop with f3 and drag.
Running different Scrivener projects in tabs is still available.
Mark
Yep. Probably the same intention on Windows with Task Views. I don’t run that many similar apps to make it worth my while.
This is Thumbnail Previews on Win10/11:
You hover over the Scrivener icon on the Taskbar to see a preview of all open projects. Clicking on any thumbnail makes the selected project instantly available. Switching works on the same principle.
It’s not called Jump Lists, which I mistakenly called the Thumbnail Previews feature earlier.
Thanks for you input. Like I said, love the program and I have created four different novels using it. They are all still in the works and hopefully, at some point, they may be published. But then again, I enjoy creating the new worlds, characters, and stories just for the family. Be Safe!!!